19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Just a Little Integration, October 26, 2005
This review is from: Photoshop and Dreamweaver Integration (One-Off) (Paperback)
The most widely used advanced software for creating web pages is Macromedia's Dreamweaver. Similarly, the most widely used graphics software is Adobe's Photoshop. One component of Photoshop that aids in creating web sites is Image Ready. Many people creating websites integrate Photoshop's output with Dreamweaver to make the best possible websites. But since there is no direct interface between the two, the site maker often encounters significant problems. It is this situation that this book aims at improving. (This problem may lessen with the proposed merger of Macromedia and Adobe.)
The author's method is to take a project, the creation of a web page, and follow it through the process from creation to completion. He suggests that if the reader has a similar project he can follow along with the book to create that project. Along the way, he offers additional tips on using the two pieces of software and finishes up with a few applications not covered in the project.
I followed along with a project of my own, trying to create and insert some new navigation buttons into my website. I had actually created buttons before, but I thought I would use Smith's method to make sure he covered all the steps.
The results were frustrating, primarily because Smith's project is relatively simple and mine slightly more complex, and because Smith provided no information on using some of the more advanced features of the software. For example, in my project my buttons were to have names on top of them and to feature a rollover effect, where the buttons would change color. Experienced users of Photoshop will recognize that this requires use of the type tool and styles. There was no discussion of the type tool and little discussion of styles. There certainly was no indication that once a style was created, it could be used again by saving it in a styles window. When it came to creating the rollover effect I had to read the section eight or nine times to understand the instruction, and then I only understood it because I went back to several other references.
Another problem I faced was that I was looking to upgrade an existing page. This meant that after I was finished constructing my project in Photoshop, I had to paste the HTML created by Photoshop into the existing page in Dreamweaver and move the new buttons to the Dreamweaver site. I found no help in the book for this task, which I would think would be fairly common for people upgrading their site.
I noticed that the book did briefly cover creating a website in Photoshop. I have found it extremely useful to create a new website this way, and to then import it into Dreamweaver. There the site can be personalized and updated. There was no mention of how this could be done in the book.
I note that the book used Photoshop CS and Dreamweaver MX 2004 for its software. They have been upgraded to Photoshop CS2 and Dreamweaver 8, but the techniques covered in this book are probably still applicable.
In summery, if you want to create a basic site using Photoshop as your main design tool, and then add some enhancements in Dreamweaver, this book will prove helpful. But you probably will have to refer to other references if you want to construct a more complex site.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
No Dancing Teddy Bears - Just Good Design, February 13, 2005
This review is from: Photoshop and Dreamweaver Integration (One-Off) (Paperback)
This is an awesome resource for anyone who is serious about building a web site. Colin teaches the basics and then gets into the more advanced techniques for web design, integrating two of the industry's leading web-building programs, Photoshop and Dreamweaver. As always Colin writes in a smooth easy-to-understand manner, carefully explaining each tool and technique.
Another great thing about this book is that it teaches "good" web design, as opposed to flashy, fancy, dancing teddy bears. You learn how to set up your page from header to content. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to design a web site.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good Discussion of Both Products, January 22, 2005
This review is from: Photoshop and Dreamweaver Integration (One-Off) (Paperback)
These two packages are hands down the first choice among professionals for web design. Photoshop is easily the most popular image editing and creation application, and has enjoyed the unrivaled position at the top of the design industry for years. Dreamweaver is the favored took for taking all these beautiful graphics and arranging them for display on the web.
This is about a two (maybe three) day book, if you already have some knowledge of Photoshop. Add another day or two if you do not. One really strong point in the book is its concern with things like how fast the web page loads. So many earlier web sites were so extensively graphics oriented that people got tired of waiting for them to load. The site being designed in the book uses small but carefully designed graphics to add eye appeal.
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