Section 8.6. Web Authoring Tools

8.6. Web Authoring Tools

HTML documents are simple text files, which means you can use any minimal text editor to write them. Fortunately, there are a number of tools that make the process of generating HTML documents more quick and efficient. They fall into two main categories: HTML editors and WYSIWYG (What-You-See-Is-What-You-Get) web authoring tools .

8.6.1. HTML/XHTML Editors

HTML editors are text editing tools designed especially for writing HTML. They require that you know how to compose HTML by hand; however, they save time by providing shortcuts for such repetitive tasks as setting up documents, compiling tables, or simply applying styles to text.

There are scores of simple HTML editors available, and many of them are free. Just enter "HTML Editor" in the search field of Shareware.com (www.shareware.com) and wade through the results. For purposes of brevity, I'm going to cut to the chase.

Windows users should check out Macromedia HomeSite. For more information and to download a demo copy, see www.macromedia.com/software/homesite/.

If you're working on a Macintosh, check out BBEdit, a commercial HTML editor from Bare Bones Software, Inc. For more information and to download a demo version, see www.bbedit.com.

8.6.2. WYSIWYG Authoring Tools

WYSIWYG HTML editors have graphical interfaces that make writing HTML more like using a word processor or page layout program. So for instance, if you want to add an image, just drag it from the desktop onto the page; the authoring tool creates all the HTML coding needed to accomplish the effect on the screen. In addition to simple style and format shortcuts, many of these tools automate more complex tasks, such as creating Cascading Style Sheets, adding JavaScript, and adding PHP functionality.

WYSIWYG tools offer several benefits:

• They offer considerable time savings over writing code by hand.

• They are good for beginners. They can even be useful for learning HTML, because you can lay out the page the way you want and then view the resulting code.

• They are good for quick prototyping . You can try out design ideas on the fly.

• They provide a good head start for creating style sheets, JavaScript behaviors, and other features.

On the downside, they are expensive and have steep learning curves. Some experienced web authors feel that the markup these tools spit out is not as efficient as markup carefully crafted by hand.

If you are a professional web designer and developer, a web authoring tool won't excuse you from learning HTML altogether. In many cases, you will need to do some manual fine-tuning to the resulting HTML code.

Some of the most popular tools as of this writing are:

Macromedia Dreamweaver

Dreamweaver has emerged as the industry-standard HTML authoring tool due to its advanced features and better standards compliance. For more information, see www.macromedia.com/software/dreamweaver.

Adobe GoLive

Another powerful and professional-level authoring tool, GoLive is well integrated into the suite of Adobe design tools. For more information, see www.adobe.com/products/golive/main.html.

In April, 2005, Adobe announced that it would be acquiring Macromedia. As of this writing, there is no word on the future of the Dreamweaver and GoLive products and brands. It is unclear whether they will both be maintained, if only one will survive, or if they will be rolled together into some turbo-charged hybrid. Consult the Adobe web site for updates. In this edition, all Adobe and Macromedia product names are listed as they currently exist in the market.

Microsoft FrontPage (Windows only)

FrontPage, part of the Microsoft Office software package, is easy for beginners to learn and is popular with the business community. It offers wizards, themes, and tools that make web page creation easy. FrontPage still produces code that many professional web authors consider to be unsatisfactory due to inefficient and proprietary code. Some FrontPage functions are closely integrated with Microsoft's Internet Information Server (IIS) , so check with your hosting service for possible conflicts. For more information, see www.microsoft.com/frontpage/.