Hand coding is faster says the NYTimes
Wednesday April 30, 2008
Personally, I've felt for a long time that writing HTML with a good text editor, like Homesite or BBEdit is faster, in the long run, than using a WYSIWYG editor like Dreamweaver or Expression Web. Well, apparently, I'm not alone. In the April 21st Talk to the Newsroom article, Khoi Vinh, Design Director for the New York Times says:
"It’s our preference to use a text editor, like HomeSite, TextPad or TextMate, to “hand code” everything, rather than to use a wysiwyg (what you see is what you get) HTML and CSS authoring program, like Dreamweaver. We just find it yields better and faster results."I've been promoting the benefits of hand coding for years now, it's nice to see there are major sites out there who's developers agree with me.
Comments
During my studies I was taught how to handcode HTML and then how to work with Dreamweaver. I thought it convenient at that time but soon discovered that it would still need some “meddling” in the generated code
Now that I started to write everything in CSS, Dreamweaver isn’t much of a help there anyway. You’d never think you wrote proper code when you look at the higgledy-piggledy preview.
I initially learned how to create web pages in notepad in the 90s and to this day it’s given me the ability to spot erroneous code from a mile away.
While I use front ends, I rely on my ability to understand every single line and command to keep things less complicated.
Agreed. It’s much easier to know the code and be able to adjust it using a text editor. Personally, I use the text coding option in Dreamweaver.
Rick
I use Eclipse based text editor(s) for most of development and agree wholeheartedly. The only caveat is there is absolutely nothing better than code prompts to help out with syntax.
Hand coding is definitely faster, but the value of a good wysiwyg should not be underestimated. Good design is as important as good code good design cannot be achieved blind.
It would be fair to qualify this stance by saying that it is faster and cleaner to hand code html than it is to have html generated for you. People seem to forget that Dreamweaver is itself a text editor, and sites can be hand coded within it without ever once actually asking it to write any code for you.
I too hand code all my pages. I used to use a WYSIWYG application, but found it too limiting. I currently teach web page development and instill in my students the importance of knowing what is going on in the background. There are times when knowing and using the codes is much faster than trying to find the command.
I firmly believe in hand coding. The only time I use Dreamweaver is to check on layout of the page or site that I am working on. Of course, I turn off most of the end tag features and such.
I should mention that when I work on my Mac I write all my HTML and XML in the text editor portion of Dreamweaver. The great thing about most modern WYSIWYG editors is that they come with high quality text editors as well. Of course, I hate how DW re-formats my HTML when I do make a change in the visual window - but I could adjust that if I were willing to take the time.
In principle, I agree that it’s faster to code html by hand. That being said, I really enjoy using Dreamweaver. I usually work in split or code view; I don’t think I ever spend time in design view.
I use the WYSIWYG part of my editor only as a *quick and dirty* view to see if my page is broken. After all, if it’s broken in WYSIWYG, it’s most likely broken in the browser. In contrast, I don’t rely on my WYSIWYG to tell me that my page looks good - this requires the browser testing.
I also rely on DW for standards validation. It’s nice to be able to perform validation from within my DW interface. It’s a big time saver.
In a pinch, I will use text editors such as Notepad or vi, but, from a particle point of view, I don’t think I could author a website using these tools. Over the years, I’ve gotten spoiled with features such as auto-completion and other automated features.
I believe and Instill in my students the need to hand-code because it makes You be in charge of what You are doing.. but I still use DW to “quickly” create layout, format text and so..
After all why waste so much time when DW can make it in a snap?
Besides I need a constant peep at my work and WYSIWYG editors do that
I’m a hand coder, and learned using the pages that CERN had on line. I fell in love with a simple text-editor, CuteHTML… which I used for years. I was devastated to find out last summer that Globalscape is no longer going to support or produce CuteHTML.
I have been learning the WYSIWYG part of Dreamweaver, but am tiring fast of the tweaking of my code. It is good to know how to use it, but I think I am going to go back to coding directly. I do like the WYSIWGY to do “pre-postioning” if I’m using absolute positioning, etc, or if I’m typing large blocks of text (once I have the text blocks established in coding).
I leaned to hand-code first off.
Now, I really appreciate the clean code that Dreamweaver outputs. It is not at all unlike how I would have hand-coded my sites, and I in all seriousness work faster using Dreamweaver in WYSIWYG mode.
Hand coders swear by it, and the ability is a kind of badge of honor (similar to being able to do math manually, without a calculator), but to me it’s a non issue– I get a site up faster using DW in design mode.
I believe that a lot of people think that they are finding a short cut when using a wysiwyg. But those people probably don’t worry about testing in multiple browsers or OSes either. The best way to learn is to use a text editor. There really is never any need for a wysiwyg as far as I can tell. Maybe for companies that restrict all users to a specific browser and allow people in different deparments to throw there own stuff on a web server in an intranet. But even then, it becomes a maintenance nightmare for the WebMaster when new browser versions are released. Oh, and by the way, DM rocks! Just not the design mode
I learned to hand code first back in the ’90s. I also learned to draw and draft with pencils, pens, and other non-digital media. This should be a requirement for students of all ages.
DW does not always create proper code,
by the way, I meant “DW” in my last comment… not “DM”… was typing too fast
Anyway, I’m not sure what you mean, Gary, when you say that DW does not always create the proper code. I’m assuming that you mean in Design Mode?
I hand coded for the first 8 years…
Definately think it has its merits, and that its best to learn this way.
Now I use MS Visual Studio - great piece of software - everything you do is completely compliant - whereas Dreamweaver coders have more errors than… a thing with lots of errors….
I have long used textpad for my coding whether it be html, javacript, or php. Coupled with the ability to copy and paste, I think it is loads faster.