Dreamweaver for Dummies [Paperback]

Janine Warner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1998 | ISBN-10: 076450407X | ISBN-13: 978-0764504075

Whether you’re a seasoned pro or a Web design newbie, Dreamweaver CS4 For Dummies shows you the quickest, easiest way to get up to speed on Dreamweaver. You’ll be able to create professional, great-looking, user-friendly websites in no time at all. Take advantage of the new, more customizable interface, improved integration with Flash and Photoshop, a handy new AJAX coding feature, and Live View, which lets you see your work as you create it.

Understand Dreamweaver basics, set up your site and create new pages, and work with text, graphics, and links. You can manage, test, and publish a site, define and apply styles with CSS, coordinate your design work, add audio, video, and Flash files to your site, build a dynamic Web site, and use Dreamweaver’s database features. Know how to:

• Design, build, and deploy professional-looking Web sites
• Use Dreamweaver’s new, more versatile preset layouts
• Fine-tune styles with enhanced CSS support
• Keep your pages cutting-edge with SmartObjects
• Take advantage of the new, more customizable interface
• Understand browser differences, make the most of CSS, build dynamic sites
• Create and optimize Web graphics
• Learn to maximize Cascading Style Sheets and Dreamweaver’s Layers features for creating fluid layouts

Complete with lists of ten resources, ten timesaving tips, and ten great Web sites designed in Dreamweaver, Dreamweaver CS4 For Dummies is your one-stop guide to setting up, working with, and making the most of Dreamweaver.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Dreamweaver is a do-everything web design and management tool that runs on both Macs and Windows. The difficult part for some people to understand is that Dreamweaver does everything from simple HTML to style sheets, layers, and communicating with Java. Once users discover that Dreamweaver makes a lot of this confusing technology easier, they become converts. Both of these titles are good introductions to Dreamweaver, but the concise explanation and visual layout of Peachpit's is easier to understand. On the other hand, IDG's includes a 30-day free use copy of the program. If you can afford it, get both.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies (July 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076450407X
• ISBN-13: 978-0764504075
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #555,655 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #79 in Books > Computers & Technology > Graphic Design > Web Design > Dreamweaver

More About the Author

Hi, I'm Janine Warner, and as you might have guessed, my life revolves around the internet - teaching it, designing it, and always, always learning from it.

Because not everything you read on the Internet is reliable, you can expect that at least two of the following facts in my biography are completely made-up.

1. I'm a journalist turned geek. Sometimes I call myself a 'techy translator' or a 'digital alchemist' -- my favorite made-up titles so far. I imagine future generations will remember us the way we look back on Medieval wizards trying to turn lead into gold.

2. I was bitten by a radioactive computer bug, which gave me my amazing web powers... (Okay, that fact may not be from a reliable source.)

3. I started out as a reporter and editor and got hooked on the Internet early. Since 1996, I've written more than a dozen books, including Web Sites DIY For Dummies, Dreamweaver For Dummies (every edition), and Mobile Web Design For Dummies.

4. I've created and recorded more than 50 hours of training videos on Web design, Dreamweaver, CSS, and Expression Web for Kelby Training and Total Training. (You can learn more about my videos at DigitalFamily.com).

5. I'm fascinated by how mobile is changing the Internet and I'm now working on a book about designing for the iPad, iPhone and other touchscreen devices.

6. I spend most of my time running a consulting firm and writing books about Web design. I also travel all over the world for conferences and events and because I speak fluent Spanish, I've been fortunate to travel a lot in Latin America and Spain.

7. In 1998, I was hired by The Miami Herald, first as their online managing editor and a year later, as Director of New Media. I left that position to run CNET's Latin American operations in Miami. Since 2002, I've run my own consulting and writing business.

8. As a child, I trained my pet Siberian Snow Tiger to ski the steepest slope in the Alps, the dreaded Hannenkahm. Despite reaching speeds in excess of 80 miles per hour on the treacherous course, the Olympic Committee refused to admit him. (This point is so very, very true.)

9. I've taught courses in online journalism at the University of Southern California and the University of Miami and I've been a guest lecturer at more than 20 other universities.

10. I've served as a judge for several internet contests in the U.S. and Latin America, and in the course of that work, I helped create an Internet Literacy program for high school students in Latin America.

Learn more about Janine's books, videos, and Web design consulting at www.DigitalFamily.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great beginning introduction, October 6, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Dreamweaver for Dummies (Paperback)

I did not need this book. Dreamweaver is a relatively easy program to get through the basics, which is the extent of the content in this book. After a couple of hours, I had finished all of the content and I was not even sweating. ;->

This book is a nice introduction for those who need one. If you are a full fledged programming type, you would be best to look elsewhere. This book does not cover enough of the advanced material to make it worthwhile.

However, it is nicely written for beginners to HTML, who are starting out with Dreamweaver as their first editor. It is also a great book for those who find Macromedia's methodology to be similar to learning a foreign language, as I do.

What the book covers: 1. The Dreamweaver application and its windows. 2. WYSIWYG editing and the HTML editors bundled with the program. 3. Basic DHTML and how to design for multiple browsers. 4. Coverage of the many nice features, including pre-loading of graphics, add "rollovers" and a basic idea of moving sites to Dreamweaver from other HTML editing programs. 5. HTML features like tables and frames. 6. Cascading Style Sheets. 7. An intorduction to the author's ideas on good web design and optimizing a site.

What is missing: 1. Advanced features like creating your own behaviors and objects. 2. A thorough explanation of how to use Dreamweaver alongside of other HTML programs. For example, it would be nice to note that Dreamweaver can work very nicely with FrontPage. Use FrontPage for management and Dreamweaver to add sparkle.

Overall, this book is nice if you are beginning to work with HTML or do not have the time to experiment with Dreamweaver. It is also nice for those who need a little boost on the easy way to create DHTML effects and create these pages in a manner that works with all 4.0 browsers, while offering support for non-DHTML browsers as well. If you are looking for something more advanced, I would look elsewhere.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Poorly edited copy spoiled an otherwise decent introduction, February 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Dreamweaver for Dummies (Paperback)

The content is a fine introduction to the basics, as a previous reviewer remarked. Within 3 hours though, I had dumped the book and was well beyond its scope just by exploring the trial copy of the software (included).

However, I do have one huge complaint. The author and publisher have no business charging the cover price for a book they haven't bothered to spell-check or proof read. I found countless spelling and grammar errors (sometimes several on the same page) in my copy. In a technical book, where I tend to read every word, I find this very distracting.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I sure was glad to find this book., February 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Dreamweaver for Dummies (Paperback)

Being new to Web design, I sometimes feel like a true "dummy" when I'm trying to get the HTML to do what I want it to. This book was written to my level and made lots of things easy to understand. For example, the author explained exactly when to use JPG vs GIF and how to use tables to arrange graphics. She also helped me understand transparency -- when to use it and how. I certainly recommend Warner's Dreamweaver for Dummies to any other Web site neophytes.