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This Week’s: Features 5 Quick Improvements to Any Web Site 10 Quick Upgrades That Say “Professional” Reviews Robin Williams Has a String of Hits! Homesite and BBEdit Are the HTML Editing Standards Techniques |
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ReviewHomesite and BBEdit Are the HTML Editing StandardsWhen Macromedia was developing their high-end web developers program, Dreamweaver, they bowed to the preferences of the professionals and simply included Homesite as part of their final Windows program package and BBedit for the Mac version. This was their wisest corporate decision since buying Splash and renaming it Flash. These programs are not WYSIWYG, drop-and-drag web page building software. One of the big advantages of learning HTML source code from the beginning is that you aren't wasting a lot of time learning a particular software package instead of learning the HTML. This puts you in control over your web work, instead of the software manufacturer. Also, all of the popular WYSIWYG, drop-and-drag programs, including wordprocessors like Microsoft Word, modify or add code that can make the pages dependent upon a particular browser or even server. Even pags you did not create in the software. This can prevent visitors from seeing your pages correctly or even at all! A "roundtrip" approach, where the code brought into the program is not changed without specific direction from you, is the best way to avoid problems later. And finally, learning the HTML allows you to "read" the page source information of other sites and learn how to enhance your work — as well as figure out what went wrong. Both Homesite and BBedit provide templates and tag-building features that make it easy to begin building web pages and advanced features that become invaluable as your confidence grows plus web site management tools. Homesite the Windows champion
Homesite is ideal for the beginning web page builders as well as more advanced developers. You can begin with templates and wizards for composing your initial web pages. There are even dynamic HTML wizards for creating javscript-controlled outlines and slide shows. As you expand you web skills, you can take advantages of the very powerful options that support both dynamic HTML and back-end programming such as Perl, Cold Fusion, ASP and more. One of the most useful features for people supporting a single site is the ability to define "custom" HTML tags — tags which contain the attributes you frequently want for a particular style of web formatting. Homesite provides a familiar wordprocessor-style toolbar and, like a wordprocessor program, you can begin by entering your text and then highlighting and formatting with a few clicks. As you become more familiar with HTML and web page construction, you can begin using the advanced features and customizing the program to fit your personal coding style. Among HomeSite's features are:
System RequirementsWindows 95/98, Windows NT 4.0, or Windows 2000 Pentium processor 32 MB RAM 20 MB free hard disk space CD-ROM drive (packaged version)
There are also a number of online resources of support including: http://www.aliveonline.com/homesite/index.html. And for those who liked to try before they buy, Allaire allows a 30-day demo download at http://www.allaire.com and a Freeware version of a basic version of the program at http://web.bentley.edu/empl/c/rcrooks/toolbox/homesite12/index.html BBedit is the choice for Mac usersBBedit is more than an HTML editor. It actually began life as a full-featured shareware wordprocessor used by Apple programmers. As HTML evolved, special toolbars and features were added specifically for web development. For web development, it includes a wordprocessor-style tool bar that uses a fill-in-the-blank format for the determining what standards-compliant attributes you want for each tag. It provides the full-drag-and-drop Mac support for file and image links, syntax color-coding, a Web-safe color palette and much more. among the ultilies included are syntax checking, code optimization, tag case conversion (extremely handy if you're integrating code from other sources), document size and download estimate reports, site and directory indexing, document and site updating, all-browser preview option, and again much more. BBEdit also offers a host of features for general editing and text manipulation for writing anything from a few pages to an entire book. BBedit can transparently handles DOS, Unix and Mac files, open and view any QT-supported file, perform mulitple undos and many other tools. For programming and software development, BBEdit has seamless external editor integration with Metrowerks CodeWarrior IDE, a built-in function scanner and syntax coloring support for 15 computer languages, Auto-indent, integration with THINK Toolbox Assistant and MPW 411 reference, and more. System RequirementsSystem 7.5.5 or later minimum; Mac OS 8.6 or later recommended. (note: HTML Help requires Mac OS 8.6 or later) RAM: 6.5MB (VM off) / 4MB (VM on) plus additional for open files PowerMac required (includes PowerBooks with PowerPC CPU) CD-ROM drive Documentation is available both on CD and in hard copy and is surprisingly good. Because of its position as the choice for serious Mac coders, there are a number of online users resources and support as well. BBEdit Source: http://www.barebones.com/ Find out how to arrange an independent consultation or a workshop for your conference or organization on this or any other Internet-related topic. Copyright ©1995-2001 Carolyn E. Cooper. All rights reserved. |
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For Windows users, Homesite by Allaire is the standard for professional web developers in the Windows environment. It began life as a humble shareware program developed by Nick Bradbury. When it became obviious that the program couldn't be maintained as a part-time project, Allaire bought, along with the programmer's services, and provided full-time support and the financial backing for an ongoing series of upgrades.
