Customer Reviews

Special Edition Using Macromedia Dreamweaver UltraDev 4

We've all gotten stuck with disappointing reference books (I even have a couple UltraDev's that fall into that), but this one's actually got me grumpy. When I'm done here, this book is back into the mail. Que (and they should know better) shamelessly tacked "UltraDev" onto the end of a Dreamweaver publication to ride the UltraDev wave, like we won't notice. Blatant manipulation.

Check the imbalance here: this book is 25 chapters, only 7 of which pretend any kind of detail about UltraDev.

Two of the 25 chapters belabor-r-r-r-r extensions (as in bor-r-r-r-ring, ir-r-r-relevant, pretty much useless). No help to the core mission, using UltraDev. Of the 5 remaining chapters, one is all ODBC and another all data sources. Necessary information, yes, but the treatment is unfortunately perfunctory. If you think you're going to get a JSP hookup going, just try it. That leaves 3 chapters, all of 69 pages (repeat for emphasis sixty-nine pages) of 558, to explain how to tap databases from a dynamic site.

Won't happen. UltraDev is too complex (sophisticated, robust) for that. There is too much to know, to be explained, to be shown that this book doesn't.

And the 2002 copyright is ironically annoying, like this book is ever going to be current.

For a useful introduction to ODBC connectivity and data sources, and dynamic pages and databases try Dreamweaver UltraDev4: Training from the Source, Macromedia Press. Plan on running through the tutorials a couple times.

For a better hash on extensions, try Building Dreamweaver 4 and Dreamweaver UltraDev 4 Extensions, Osborne.

If you want a Dreamweaver book, this one will do (it IS, afterall, a Dreamweaver book), plus you get a smidgen of UltraDev to get you looking down the road. But if you need an UltraDev book, lordy, this ain't it.

Chapter 7 upwards.. the coverage is pretty good to even get a person like me comfortable with all the features. What they call "Activity Corner" is pretty good and helped me practise all the concepts.

Wanna learn DW and Ultradev ... this is the book for u!!!