Xuanwusea Web Design

Is Dreamweaver Necessary For Web Design

Adobe’s Dreamweaver has been in commercial use for over ten years now and while other’s have come and gone Dreamweaver’s development and popularity has continued.

As a piece of software it is widely used in professional web design circles, but nevertheless many designers openly discourage its use when writing in forums and blogs.

This is because of its WYSIWYG features. WYSIWYG is an acronym for What You See Is What You Get. This means that the software writes the actual code for you as you write the text or import pictures.

Professional web designers get aggravated about its use not because they feel that it’s “cheating”, but because the correct way of learning the trade is to look under the bonnet of the website and understand the engine, the code.

However, many people are attracted to the creative possibilities of web design by first using the WYSIWYG features of Dreamweaver. It allows the user to more quickly create something visually tangible rather than just lines of code.

My first website was created using FrontPage, which was part of the Microsoft Office Suite from 1997 to 2003. It is now defunct and has been replaced by Expression Web, but as it came bundled with Word and Excel there is no doubt that many of today’s web designers got their first taste of site creation through that piece of software.

FrontPage was, to say the least, rather basic, but it served as an entry point to the profession.

I use an old version of Dreamweaver, version 8, on an almost daily basis. As a web designer there are many aspects of the software that really appeal to me, although I’ve never seen the benefit of upgrading to more recent versions.

I’ve long stopped using it as a WYSIWYG editor as I now hand code, but I really like the layout. It’s very easy to flip between the code and preview views, or a split combination of the two, and all the files for the project site neatly stacked meaning quick and easy access when needed.

I particularly like how easy it is to preview the page in the browser of your choice and the code validation function.

Of real benefit to quick web design is its template system. Say, for instance, that you need to create 30 near-identity pages then it is easier to create one master template page and base all subsequent pages on that. Changing the template page then automatically alters all the 30 individual child pages.

It is rather useless for PHP coding and I use a separate PHP IDE for that. Subsequent versions of Dreamweaver also have extra features for ease of incorporating AJAX, Adobe AIR and XML.

There are other basic WYSIWYG editors out there such as KompoZer and Mozilla’s SeaMonkey, but none come close to the Dreamweaver experience.

Popular software coding packages are Notepad 2 and Notepad++, both of which are widely recommended, but again, their interface is still not as intuitive to feel your way around as that of Dreamweaver.

So do you need Dreamweaver in order to learn web design? It’s not essential, but it will certainly be a key aid in you quest if you are just starting out.

Really Important Tips for Your Ecommerce Store to Succeed in 2009 and Beyond

The Ecommerce world is one of the most lucrative industries to be involved in and lot of people endeavor into starting up their own online store or business. Ecommerce website owners often ask “what does it take for a web site to succeed?” There are many factors but here is a list of 10 most important areas to concentrate on.

1. Clear Storefront Layout and Navigation – Design cannot be overlooked. A user should instantly feel like he or she knows what to do and what is being asked of him or her to get to a preferred destination. An ecommerce web site should home page almost always must include a search bar, a navigation bar with browse by category, special offers via a colorful rotation banner such as deal of the day, merchandising boxes that work together to offer popular items, security and confidence building purchase icons such as contact phone numbers with customer service links, SSL and secure experience icons, shipping and credit card/payment option logos, and a clearance or discount section.

2. Significant, Useable, Filterable, and Actionable Product Information – First, provide an easy to filter navigation and the option to compare items. This puts a user in charge of his or her own shopping destiny and encourages buying by increasing participation in the selection process. A good amount of content in each section and about each product allows users to learn more about your categories, products, your company, and the experience one can expect, building the consumer confidence needed to make a purchase and be happy about his or her decision.

3. Product Photos – Product photos are a big deal! Many users need to see, in good detail, the quality of the product he or she will receive. Include zoom tools so users can see the detail, even if you think this is not important. If your product warrants multiple angles or light shots, show them. Your users will reward you with a confident purchase, one less likeley to be returned. Best practice would be to find the best competitor out there and make sure your site has better or “as good” pictures as that site.

4. Calls to Action – Invest in features that will help customers interact with your site and understand your products better. Investment ideas are to go with some leading trends such as expandable interactive images, flash, interactive tours, videos, live chat with customer service, professional looking slideshows that show high level technical prowess, and the list goes on. The idea here is to provide a user an experience eh or she cannot find elsewhere.

5. In Your Face Product Promotion – When you go to a store are all products set up the same? Most likeley, no. A store’s objective is to push viewers to see many items in a way that is fashionable and exiting to the customer. Many stores forget that cross selling suggestions, product reviews, featured products sections, clearance areas, coupons, and any interactive presentation is seen. Push viewers to more interaction, and to buy today! Additionally, merchants that now provide advanced, exceedingly fast shopping experience tools such as AJAX can now gain a competitive advantage via site speed increase, earning customer loyalty and additional revenues.

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