Most web designers I've come across either love Dreamweaver or hate it.

 

What do you think: Is Dreamweaver the marmite of the web design world?

 

Btw, I hate it (Coda ftw)

Most web designers I've come across either love Dreamweaver or hate it.

 

What do you think: Is Dreamweaver the marmite of the web design world?

 

Btw, I hate it (Coda ftw)

well i did a course on web design and then at the end of it i realised i did not no web design but i new dreamweaver,so i started to code by hand after some one asked me to write the code for a link and i couldnt answer them,i could tell them how to do it in dreamweaver

 

dreamweaver as its uses i decided to learn php and did not want to use a php editor i wanted to learn php so used dreamweaver and realised that the text would change colour if there was an error so it does have its uses

How dare you insult Marmite

 

Dreamweaver is more equivilent to Macdonalds and the s***e they pass off as food

Dreamweaver is great for beginners.

 

Dreamweaver will roughly show you what your site will look like.

 

Dreamweaver is very useful indeed, i dont know why people dont like it.

 

I dont use it full on but it has its uses and i stick to my guns and design all my sites in DW.

 

Of course i am able to design in notepad too, but then i have to keep opening a browser and refreshing etc etc

 

I just find it quicker and easier to write code in dreamweaver.

Dreamweaver is more equivilent to Macdonalds and the s***e they pass off as food

I like McDonalds!

 

Count me as one of those who hate Dreamweaver... notepad++ ftw!

Dreamweaver is good for learning, but still when I was learning in it I was coding in code-view and checking in design view. Sane as I do now with Coda.

I use Coda too. It's v. easy to code using most languages.

well... Coda is only mac compatible... So I'm out.

 

I use dreamweaver because of the built in FTP, and the whole check-in-check-out system. Also it makes php pretty. I've been thinking of switching to the new Microsoft one, I've heard great things.

I think the attitude to DW is largely based around your approach to web design (and coding more specifically). If you're purely a visual designer, then you'll probably think the world of DW's WYSIWYG mode.

If you dabble even slightly in the code side, and open a site that's been made in this fashion, you quickly realise why hand coders HATE DW. Add the fact that there are a raft of charlatans eating up jobs and pumping out crap sites on the back of their table based DW designs, and it's easy to understand the witch hunt. (Add to that the queues they form to forums like this asking you to fix their code on their PAYING jobs - and it looks like good grounds for a lynching!!).

 

The problem is not the software (which by all accounts has some excellent features, but costs a fair whack when you can get most of these features for free if you know how to write HTML/CSS) but PROFESSIONAL abuse of it's features.

 

DW is basically an editor with stabilisers, and many 'pro' website designers out there still ride with 'em on. Would you pay for a cab ride if the driver still had his L plates?

Add the fact that there are a raft of charlatans eating up jobs and pumping out crap sites on the back of their table based DW designs, and it's easy to understand the witch hunt. (Add to that the queues they form to forums like this asking you to fix their code on their PAYING jobs - and it looks like good grounds for a lynching!!).

Ands I bet very few of them actually paid for their copy

 

The problem is not the software (which by all accounts has some excellent features, but costs a fair whack when you can get most of these features for free if you know how to write HTML/CSS) but PROFESSIONAL abuse of it's features.

I couldn't agree more - DW is an excellent tool but only in the right hands

 

Would you pay for a cab ride if the driver still had his L plates?

Well said, sunwukung!

I use it for the code view and to get a general idea of how the site looks, couple this together with firefox 3, firebug plugin and photoshop cs3 and its all good to go.

 

Does it really matter what u use?

 

I can get the same output using notepad, but its slower work.

DW gets such a bad rap these days because of how it approached things in the past. It didn't teach people how to build semantic, web standards sites, it simply enabled anyone without any knowledge to throw a site together. What it turned out was poorly formed, messy and frankly unusable code. Skip forward a few years and the latest versions are much better. However that legacy still hangs around.

 

Bottom line is it should be used for the right reasons in the right hands.

Any WYSIWIG editor is dangerous in the wrong hands they are meant to help the workflow of people who have a grounding in code, but 9 times out of 10 end up in the hands of someone who thinks they can cut corners.

 

It is a bit unfair to blame Dreamweaver for people chucking out crap sites, you get out what you put in and if you dont know jack you come out with a half arsed site.

 

If a drunken moron gets in a car and crashes into a wall, is the car to blame?

Was the steering faulty?

Was the steering faulty?

 

No in this analogy the car is in full working order

I personally prefer microsoft expression web. That said I use it as a glorified html editor so I can not comment on the wysiwyg aspect. Initially I used macromedia dreamweaver MX. It is a couple of version old now, but I did not like the programme much.

Most web designers I've come across either love Dreamweaver or hate it.

 

What do you think: Is Dreamweaver the marmite of the web design world?

 

Btw, I hate it (Coda ftw)

 

I have to say I hate it too! What can Dreamweaver do that a good old copy of Gedit or Notepad can't do. Oh yeh - add lots of useless code...

 

Lats time I used, it used to generate tables for layout. Is that still the case?

Lats time I used, it used to generate tables for layout. Is that still the case?

Dreamweaver can generate valid, div-based layouts. They're bloated to crap and would cause any semantics-nuts to have a heart attack, mind.

 

I do agree with what was said above though.. put crap in, get crap out. Still can't bring myself to like the product though - wouldn't be caught dead with it on my computer

I started by using Dreamweaver 8, and it was bloody useful for learning the basics. I now hand code all my templates and css, but always have DW running in the background if I'm stuck for code and I need a reference. I wouldn't design a site with it any more, although I maintain some sites that use DWtemplates that were built by someone else.

I learnt in Coda and I still use it for everything. It gonna get even better too as they've just released a way to make custom plugins.

DONT use templates! Code your own layouts........

 

I was told that dreamweaver adds loads of extra code once, but ive never seen any of this mystery code during my usage.

 

I type the code in code view and use the design view to get an idea of what it will look like.

 

It points out bad code too, which notepad, as technically advanced as it is, doesnt.

 

I dont have a MAC so i cant use CODA.

 

Dreamweaver for me is a tool, one that i have mastered, one i will continue to use until i find something better.

 

Its not that dreamweaver is crap, far from it, its the users personal preference.

 

wouldn't be caught dead with it on my computer

 

Saying you wouldnt be caught dead with it on your computer is a bit harsh because i bet you have IE on your computer.....

Saying you wouldnt be caught dead with it on your computer is a bit harsh because i bet you have IE on your computer.....

 

lol, <sarcasm>IE FTW!</sarcasm>

 

I've heard good things about Expression Web, how does it compare to Dreamweaver?

I still use dreamweaver (mx2004), not for the addins, or the design view, or ftp. What I do use it for is the code view which is great as it colour codes everything. However I wouldn't buy it again instead I would use htmlkit (free and it also colour codes). I think colour coding is very important and helps me get the job done alot faster.

 

 

ps I didn't pay for mine, my last employer did but it got registered in my name , and another benefit of dw is when writing code for tutorials I can open a temporary page, paste the code in design then edit in code, this saves me from switching all < to < and > to %gt; and & to &... and so on, This can save a bit of time

Most specialised coding and WYSIWYG web design software I've used colour codes the the text. Isn't that a standard feature now?

notepad doesn't

 

(the tools iv'e installed are htmlkit,acehtml,notepad,dreamweaver) of those htmlkit can be customised to colour code to a degree, acehtml can but not flexible ,notepad none ,dreamweaver I think the easyest colour coding out of these solutions.

 

and the only ones i actualy use are notepad and dreamweaver, I can work in them so am not looking for new software but if they broke I'd deffinatley be looking for one with the same level of customisable colour codings.

I suppose in the end different things are important for different people. I can get away with using default colour coding on most coding programs.

Gotta agree that DW is great for beginners. Once you actually know what your doing its far faster to write it by hand. Notepad++ is my tool of choice. Its supprising how much you learn when you move away from WYSIWYG editors as you don't have a program to hold you hand through development.

 

At work we're currently looking for another coder, and I don't think I would be able to take them seriously if they told me they used DW.

I've always been anti anything that i feel i must have just because its the biggest thing...not always the best.

But saying that never used it never seen it so i really couldn't say.

 

I use smultron atm but gonna try coda

Dreamweaver is a good tool for newbies and does help those wishing to make the transition from designer to competent coder. In my opinion, most 'pro' designers dislike/wish not to use Dreamweaver due to its association with those new to web design, which would explain why skilled designers opt to use editors such as Notepad++ over Dreamweaver.

 

I have both Dreamweaver and Coda installed on my MacBook and have found myself not using Dreamweaver at all, in favour of Coda. It just feels more streamlined due to the absence of Dreamweaver's bloat, therefore I can concentrate on what needs to be done and get my projects completed quicker.