3 Awesome Webpage Authoring Tools
Not everyone is tech savvy and to some people things like tags and HTML may look a wee bit like loathsome pieces of alien invasion. Does it mean that common folk cannot build a website on their own? Actually you don’t have to know anything about coding and software to create a decent looking website. In fact some webpage authoring tools can be used to generate highly complex websites with database connectivity. The three authoring tools I will discuss here are SeaMonkey, Expression and Dreamweaver.
The SeaMonkey Suite
The first thing which attracted me to this tool is that it is free – I love free stuff. But I also know that nothing comes free in this world and there are strings attached. Surprisingly, SeaMonkey is really free and has no strings attached. It is a small download (10 MB approx) and is easy to install. Mainly, anyone can download and install this nifty little piece of software. The interface is intuitive and you can learn the ropes in a couple of hours.
“Help” is really helpful and you can clarify a few basics and you are up and running. If you are a beginner, you can create some standalone web pages and even host them on a free server. If you are a bit adventurous, there is an html editor which you can experiment with. If you want to create some dazzling and captivating pages, you can download free templates. By making some simple changes you can customize the templates to suit your taste.
Adobe Dreamweaver
This is my all time favorite because I started using it way back in 1996 when it was called Macromedia Dreamweaver.
Actually, the good old version was better in some ways. Now with a host of new features, it is possible to get lost in the maze of details. The latest edition can be used to create web pages for tablets, mobiles and stuff in addition to the one for web browsers. You can download the software after paying a tidy sum – I mean it is not free. I would recommend Adobe Dreamweaver to professionals who have some knowledge of coding and want a professional website without going through the pain of doing it with native html editor. The tool is powerful and can be used to create complex websites with database connectivity. The final code generated may require a bit of cleaning in the end.
Microsoft Expression
This is paid software for website development. Here again, the tool can be used to create content for mobile, tablet and other applications.
Those who are used to the Microsoft interface, Expression would be a familiar tool to use. You don’t have to search for buttons and stuff – they are out there right in front of you. The Office layout is evident and has been created for Microsoft users. Another great advantage of using Expression is that you can use the dotnet code. Native help and extensive resources, which are a hallmark of Microsoft are available in Expression as well.
Conclusion
All three authoring tools are good. SeaMonkey is free and therefore a good place to begin with. Dreamweaver and Expression are for more advanced users who know a bit of coding. Nonetheless they can be used by novices too.
This article has been contributed by Nitin Aggarwal, a young entrepreneur who owns the company Offshore Ally. His company is one of the leading providers of dedicated link builders and virtual assistants online. Connect with him via Twitter.
Haven’t used SeaMonkey yet, I’ll have to give it a go.
You should try it’s amazing. It’s also great for embedding your youtube and flickr stuff. Create a website like your using photoshop just drag and drop everything.
Hmm, had to poke into Seamonkey’s composer to revisit it again, as I already had it installed.
Looks like it still doesn’t have syntax highlighting. It definitely has a wysiwyg though! I used to use Kompozer in addition to *gasp* microsoft front page back in the days before I knew better.
Back then I inevitably would have to ask a programmer/devekioer to help me debug some code or another that was automatically generated by the program. Even Dreamweaver has it’s faults. You state “The final code generated may require a bit of cleaning in the end.”
I’m assuming Microsoft Expression has replaced Front Page?
In my honest opinion, I think that it’s ultimately a good thing to learn how to read and edit source code. Even though I have Dreamweaver installed I always go back to Notepad ++ as my favorite editor. I also use Gedit and Geany from time to time. Both have linux and windows versions.
I do agree that the complete novice would have no idea what to do with a code editor though. I quickly downloaded a template from freecsstemplates.org to see how it would render in seamonkey and it actually displayed pretty well in the design view for a free application. One has the ability to switch back and forth between code and design, but man I sure would miss the syntax highlighting!
If I am remembering correctly, kompozer moves all of the code indentations to the left, which would be pretty annoying, so the two apps would be a tossup if I was to use something of this nature in a wyswyig mode.