The Bottom Line
Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 improves on one of the best Web design tools available. The CSS support is now excellent, FTP works great, and the UI is easy to understand. A powerful Web design tool.
Pros
- Design sites and write code in one tool
- Great CSS implementation - including positioning
- Full integration with other Macromedia products
Cons
- Tons of features - long learning time
Description
- CSS support is vastly improved, making it easy to create and edit styles.
- Edit code in Dreamweaver or in HomeSite+ 5.5 - included.
- Integrate seamlessly with Macromedia Studio MX products.
- Cut and paste directly from Word and Excel - preserving fonts, colors, and styles.
- Secure FTP encrypts file transfers to help make your site more secure.
- Support for XHTML, XML, ASP, PHP, and SQL with code libraries and color coding.
- New start screen makes it a snap to access most recently edited files and more.
- Check the current document for cross-browser compatibility.
- Integrates smoothly with ColdFusion MX.
- Available for Windows or Mac.
Guide Review - Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004
I have been writing HTML for many years using text editors like vi and HTML text editors like HomeSite. But Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 may be the WYSIWYG tool that sends me to the other side. This tool makes it simple to see how your pages are going to look before you upload them, but if I want to go in and work directly with the HTML, it's a one-click move. The HTML is color coded so I can follow along, and I can even have the code in a split screen with the design. But all this is true of previous versions of Dreamweaver. What makes MX 2004 so special?
The thing I like the best about Dreamweaver MX 2004 is the CSS support. Finally I have a tool to help me build CSS documents that is easy to use and understand. I can see the styles I've already defined for the document or the site and edit or make changes in an intuitive interface. The best part is, I can create positioning styles so that my site is XHTML compliant.
Opening files like CGI and Perl is much easier with Dreamweaver MX 2004, and there's built-in color-coding for PHP, ASP.Net, XML, and more. Plus you can create your own color-coding schemes for languages you use a lot.
All-in-all, Dreamweaver offers all the power and control that a designer could want, combined with the speed and production tools that a developer could want.
