I’m a web designer. I’ve been using Dreamweaver, but still hand-code a fair amount of HTML and all javascript (except rollovers). Also, I’ve been using educational versions of software and am trying to go legit.
So I want a new program. I had been thinking about getting Dreamweaver Ultradev (b/c I also want to do ASP, though I’ve only read books on the subject–haven’t built any ASP pages yet), but it got panned by the reviewers on Amazon. Anyone have experience w/ Ultradev? Especially for someone new to ASP?
Another option: Adobe is offering GoLive for $99 when you buy Photoshop 6 (which I also would like to have–I’m using an ed. vers. of 4). I’ve read some stuff about the latest GoLive (never used it), and its integration with Photoshop (layers, automatic resizing/compressing images, etc.) seems pretty cool, as does the fact that it leaves your code alone.
Which should I buy? Ultradev, and make my ASP work easier, or Photoshop 6 and GoLive, and make the image work easier? Is the ASP stuff in Ultradev worth it, or will it be just as easy to do it all by hand?
First, I’ve never used Dreamweaver so I don’t have alot to compare to. Second, I code all my HTML, ASP, and Javascript by hand in Textpad. That said I’ve used GoLive 5.0 to error test and validate some of my HTML and Jscript and I think it works pretty smoothly, its very simple and quick to switch from viewing the layout/source/outline/preview. I haven’t taken advantage of the PS-GoLive integration at all so I can’t say how well they work, I simply use them independantly.
So, I realize most of this isn’t much help, my advice to you would be to simply get used to doing all your developing in text. The WYSIWYG editors are nice for very very simple pages, but if you want to get complex you’ll be much better off doing it by hand. Also doing it by hand makes sure that you have a concrete understanding of the languages rather quickly so it is going to make working around all those Netscape bugs more efficient. WYSIWYGs are good until you run accross a compatability promlem, or a JScript problem then the time you spend deciphering the orginal before you can fix the problem negates any time saved from typing.
I don’t forsee there ever being a program that will smoothly generate VBscript, JScript, CSS, HTML, and XML all in the same document. Any web designer worth his salt is going to have to be proficient in each one, using a crutch like Dreamweaver or GoLive will just retard the learning curve.
My advice, if you are planning on making the investment, go ahead and buy the PS 6 and GoLive at a discounted price just so you can have it on hand when you need it, but don’t buy it expecting it to replace doing 90% of the coding by hand. If you weren’t planning, or don’t really need to buy PS 6 then I wouldn’t suggest you buy anything except for books.
I’m on Mac, so I usually end up rewriting most of the pages I build (or especially doing updates) with Simpletext. But I still like a WYSIWYG to set up tables quickly, that sort of thing. And I’d be thrilled if the layout tools became as reliable and easy to use as say, QuarkXPress is for print, but I don’t see that happening soon.
Well, the layout tools work great, but unlike print work the problems arise when you’re dealing with 3-4 different browsers ranging in age from new to 3 years old all conforming differently to the W3C standards. So, one can’t blame the editors for the reliablity problems, and understand that designing for the web will never compare to print work, they are entirely two different animals.
I’m a web developer too. I use Dreamweaver to layout tables and images. Basically anything that affects visual layout of the page. For everything else I use Homesite. I highly, highly recommend it. It color codes the code and uses line numbers, two things that you just can’t get with simple text editors. It is also programmed to recognize an assorted range of code such as Javascript, CSS, etc. I also like the layout of the screen. It has an Explorer-like list of folders to the left of the screen, so finding and opening files is much easier. It’s also half the memory hog that Dreamweaver is (which is a problem for me at my 64MB workstation).
As for ASP, I have no experience with it. Before I moved into the web department they had been tinkering with ASP but have a “Absolutely No ASP” policy.