HTML Editors and Web Design Software

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Web Design 101

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Designing Your Web Site with Web Design Software ; WYSIWYG Editors Make Designing Easy

Using web site software is not difficult. You do not have to know html in order to use a web page software application also known as an html editor. The easiest kind of website software to use is called a WYSIWYG editor (what you see is what you get). Designing web sites has never been easier. Using web design software to build your web site can save you a lot of time and in some cases you may never need to write a single line of HTML.

With a WYSIWYG editor you have the option of designing and viewing your web page in the 'preview' mode (which allows you to see the final product as you build) or in the 'html code' mode (in which you only see the html code that builds the page, not the final result). You can also flip back and forth between the 2 simply by clicking a button. So when ever you need to edit the code manually you have that option and whatever you do in the code will show up in the design or preview mode.

If you have ever designed a flyer or written a document in Microsoft Word, Corel Wordperfect or any another word processing program you are most likely already familiar with most of the tools in a WYSIWYG editor. It operates in a similar fashion. You would use tools on the software interface to make your tables and to assign your text different attributes.

The most important thing you need to learn before you begin designing a web page for the first time using one of these editors is what works and what doesn't for web design. The rules are not the same as it is for print design. Having said that, here are some articles that I have written to help you understand what good design is and what it isn't How to create a web site, Does your website sell, setting up your first website, web design tips, and top 10 mistakes made by newbies.

There are many web design software programs out there, a few will allow you to create more elaborate and advanced web pages. Most will do a good job of creating a basic web page. If you need to create advanced web pages with javascript, menu trees, style sheets, and databases then the program you should choose is Macromedia's Dreamweaver. Dreamweaver is the software that I use to create all of my web pages. It is very versatile, it writes clean html code that is easy to edit and easy to integrate with elements and features not found in Dreamweaver.

Prior to using Dreamweaver I used Microsoft's Frontpage. Frontpage is less expensive than Dreamweaver but I was very dissatisfied with the web pages that I created in Frontpage. It never failed that I had a problem with the compatibility of the raw HTML with certain browsers. Frontpage writes HTML very differently than any other web design software. It is an excellent choice for the first time designer that wants the familiarity of the Microsoft Word interface and tools in a web design application. It would be much more versatile at helping you create advanced features like forms and databases than other WYSIWYG editors that might be free or lower in cost.

If you already have Microsoft Word or Word Perfect by Corel on your computer you can always use those programs to create web pages. The problem is that these word processing programs write html code that is very hard to translate to other applications or integrate with other features like javascript. Sometimes the pages that are created do not pass the cross browser test. Meaning it looks very different in browsers than it did on your computer. But you can definitely use a word processing program to create a basic webpage. It does not have a folder or local site manager so you would have to manage all of the pages, images for your website on your own.

Dreamweaver has a neat feature that allows you to import pages that were created in Microsoft Word and 'clean up' the raw code that Word creates so that it will cause less problems and be easier for you to decipher. Since there is almost always an occasion to dive in to the HTML itself and tweak the code to perform just as you want this feature can come in handy.

Adobe Go Live is another WYSIWYG editor that has broad functionality. It is not limited in what it can create and it comes equipped as does Dreamweaver with many tools, ready made code and compatibility with other Adobe products. If you are familiar with Photoshop Adobe go live would be very easy for you to use, since it's features and interface are similar to Photoshop.

The applications that I mentioned above are superb and I highly recommend them. Most of them even offer a free trial download. But if they are out of range for you there are less pricey options that do an adequate job. In the instance that you want to advance your design with javascript or some other advanced design feature you will probably be on your own to delve into the code and make it work in your design. Where as with Dreamweaver you would simply click a few buttons and the software would add all of the code for you.

When designing your web page with the editors recommended on this page you will still need to buy hosting for your web site and a domain name. In some cases you may still need to use use ftp software to get your web site published to the web.

Applications like Dreamweaver, Adobe go live and Frontpage have ftp software built in and make it easy to publish your finished web page straight from the software application without transferring information to another application.

Recommended Low Cost Web Design Software;

Looking for free html editors ?

Recommended Top of the Line WYSIWYG Editors

Dreamweaver- If you are interested in trying dreamweaver I recommend that you download the free 30 day dreamweaver trial, it is a full featured application that will even allow you to save the pages you create. Then get the free dreamweaver tutorial videos to help you get started modifying and creating pages using the world's finest html editor. You can design your web page for free, if you do it in the 30 days before the software expires. Design a brand new web site or modify this free template in dreamweaver.
Frontpage- Created by Microsoft relatively inexpensive compared to the others on this list. It can help you create database driven and interactive web pages.
Adobe Go Live - Created by Adobe the makers of Photoshop and Acrobat Reader. A Professional software application allows great flexibilty. Great for creating advanced pages as well. 2nd only to Dreamweaver though some would argue with me about that. (but it's not thier website.)

Web Design Resources and Recommendations- Low cost and top of the line HTML editors.

Other Web Designing Options

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