Dreamweaver MX: The Missing Manual

Dreamweaver MX: The Missing Manual

by David Sawyer McFarland
Released November 2002
Publisher(s): O'Reilly Media, Inc.
ISBN: 9780596003494

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Book description

As the Web's popularity continues to skyrocket, so does that of Macromedia Dreamweaver, one of the most elegant and powerful Web-page creation programs available. Dreamweaver offers a rich, well-designed, WISYWYG environment for building cross-platform, cross-browser Web sites; but unlike most visual editors, it doesn't clutter up the underlying HTML programming by inserting unnecessary HTML tags that make large Web sites difficult to manage. Dreamweaver is a favorite of multimedia designers, thanks to its smooth integration with other Macromedia applications, like Flash and Shockwave. Dreamweaver MX (for Mac OS 9, Mac OS X, and Windows) marks the historic union of Dreamweaver and Dreamweaver UltraDev, a package of Web-database language modules once sold separately. The new, unified program offers even more power--and Dreamweaver MX: The Missing Manual offers even more easily understood, witty lessons for harnessing it. As in his highly regarded Dreamweaver 4: The Missing Manual, author McFarland livens the book with unique,live examples,that let the reader see and test--on the Internet, itself--real Web pages that follow the development progress of the book's chapters. There's even a step-by-step tutorial for creating an interactive Web database using Microsoft's ASP programming language, new to Dreamweaver MX. In collaboration with Missing Manual series editor David Pogue, McFarland brings Dreamweaver MX to life with clarity, authority, and good humor. Armed with this book, the first-time or experienced Web designer will have little difficulty using DreamWeaver to create stunning, interactive Web sites.

Table of contents

  1. Dreamweaver MX: The Missing Manual
    1. The Missing Credits
      1. About the Author
        1. About the Creative Team
        2. Acknowledgments
        3. The Missing Manual Series
    2. Introduction
      1. What’s New in Dreamweaver MX
      2. HTML 101
        1. Of Tags and Properties
        2. XHTML, Too
      3. The Very Basics
      4. About This Book
        1. Macintosh and Windows
        2. About the Outline
        3. About→These→Arrows
        4. Living Examples
        5. About MissingManuals.com
    3. I. Building a Web Page
      1. 1. Dreamweaver MX Guided Tour
        1. Welcome to Dreamweaver MX
          1. What MX is All About
          2. Why Dreamweaver?
        2. The Dreamweaver MX Interface
          1. The Document Window
          2. The Insert Bar
          3. The Property Inspector
          4. Panel Groups
        3. The Dreamweaver Test Drive
          1. Phase 1: Creating a Web Site
          2. Phase 2: Page Properties
          3. Phase 3: Creating and Saving a Web Page
          4. Phase 4: Adding Images and Text
          5. Phase 5: Preview Your Work
          6. Phase 6: Finishing the Page
      2. 2. Adding Text to Your Web Pages
        1. Adding Text in Dreamweaver
          1. Adding Special Characters
            1. Line breaks
            2. Nonbreaking spaces
          2. Adding a Date to Your Page
        2. Copying and Pasting Text
        3. Importing HTML from Word
          1. Exporting HTML from Word
          2. Importing the HTML into Dreamweaver
            1. The Open command
            2. The Import Word HTML command
        4. Selecting Text
        5. Spell Checking
          1. About Dictionaries
          2. Performing the Check
        6. Undo, Redo, and the History Panel
          1. Undo, Redo
          2. History Panel
      3. 3. Text Formatting
        1. Paragraph Formatting
          1. Paragraphs
          2. Headlines
          3. Preformatted Text
          4. Paragraph Alignment
          5. Indented Paragraphs
        2. Lists
          1. Bulleted and Numbered Lists
            1. Creating a new bulleted or numbered list
            2. Formatting existing text as a list
          2. Reformatting Bulleted and Numbered Lists
            1. Adding space between list items
            2. Adding new items to a list
            3. Changing bullets and numbers
            4. Nested lists
          3. Definition Lists
          4. Removing and Deleting List Items
            1. Removing list items
            2. Deleting list items
        3. Character Formatting
          1. Text Styles
          2. Fonts
            1. Applying font formatting
            2. Creating custom font lists
          3. Font Size
          4. Font Color
        4. HTML Styles
          1. Creating HTML Styles
          2. Applying HTML Styles
          3. Editing styles
          4. Removing HTML Styles
      4. 4. Links
        1. Understanding Links
          1. Absolute Links
          2. Document-Relative Links
          3. Root-Relative Links
          4. Link Types in Action
            1. Links from the Home page (index.html) to the Subscribe page
            2. Links from the Classifieds page to the Strawberry page
            3. Links from the Match page to the Advertise page
            4. The executive summary
        2. Adding a Link
          1. Browsing for a File
          2. Using the Point-to-File Icon
          3. Typing (or Pasting) the URL or Path
          4. Using the Hyperlink Object
        3. Adding an Email Link
        4. Linking Within a Web Page
          1. Phase 1: Creating an anchor
          2. Phase 2: Linking to an anchor
          3. Viewing and hiding anchors
        5. Modifying a Link
          1. Changing a Link’s Destination
          2. Removing a Link
      5. 5. Images
        1. Adding Images
          1. Adding an Image Placeholder
        2. Modifying an Image
          1. Naming an Image
          2. Adding a Text Description to an Image
          3. Changing the Size of an Image
          4. Aligning an Image
          5. Adding a Margin Around an Image
          6. Adding a Border
        3. Editing Images
          1. Setting Up an External Editor
          2. Editing Images with Fireworks
        4. Image Maps
          1. Editing a hotspot’s properties
        5. Rollover Images
        6. Flash Buttons
          1. A Warning About Flash
            1. Adding a Flash button to a Web page
            2. Editing Flash buttons
            3. Previewing Flash buttons
        7. Flash Text
          1. Adding Flash text to a Web page
          2. Editing Flash text
          3. Resizing Flash text
        8. Tutorial: Adding Rollovers
    4. II. Building a Better Web Page
      1. 6. Tables
        1. Table Basics
        2. Layout View
          1. How to Draw a Table in Layout View
          2. Layout Table Properties
            1. Table dimensions
            2. Background color
            3. Cell padding and Cell spacing
          3. How to Draw a Layout Cell
          4. Layout Cell Properties
            1. Alignment
          5. Moving and Resizing Layout Cells and Layout Tables
          6. Building Flexible Page Layouts in Layout View
            1. Creating a flexible-width table
            2. Adding spacer images
            3. Removing spacer images
          7. Using a Tracing Image
            1. Hiding a tracing image
            2. Moving a tracing image
        3. Inserting a Table in Standard View
        4. Selecting Parts of a Table in Standard View
          1. Selecting a Table
          2. Selecting Rows or Columns
          3. Selecting Cells
        5. Formatting Tables
          1. Aligning Tables
          2. Clearing Height and Width Values
          3. Decorating a Table
          4. Resizing a Table
        6. Modifying Cell and Row Properties in Standard View
          1. Alignment Properties
          2. Table Header
          3. A Property to Forget
          4. Cell Decoration
            1. Adding cell background colors
            2. Adding cell background images
          5. Setting Cell Dimensions
          6. Tips for Surviving Table Making
            1. The contents take priority
            2. Set each column manually
            3. There is no such thing as column width, only cell width
            4. Do the math
            5. The Spacer Image Revisited
        7. Adding and Removing Rows and Columns
          1. Adding One Row or Column
          2. Adding Multiple Rows or Columns
          3. Deleting Rows and Columns
        8. Merging and Splitting Cells
        9. Nesting Tables in Standard View
        10. Tabular Data
          1. Importing Data into a Table
          2. Sorting Data in a Table
          3. Exporting Table Data
        11. Tables Tutorial
          1. Getting Started
          2. Using a Tracing Image
          3. Building the Banner in Layout View
          4. Building the Content Table
          5. Using the Table Object
      2. 7. Frames
        1. The Frame Page
        2. Creating Frames
          1. Nested Framesets
        3. Selecting Frames and Framesets
        4. Saving Framesets and Frames
          1. Saving multiple frames
        5. Frame and Frameset Properties
          1. Frameset Borders
          2. Frame Size
          3. Frame Properties
            1. Name
            2. Src
            3. Scroll
            4. No Resize
            5. Margin Width and Margin Height
            6. Border and Border Color
        6. Targeting Links
        7. Inserting a Navigation Bar
        8. Frames Tutorial
          1. Getting Started
          2. Creating a Frameset and Frames
          3. Modifying the Frameset and Frames
          4. Nesting Framesets
          5. Adding the Navigation Bar
      3. 8. Cascading Style Sheets
        1. Cascading Style Sheet Basics
          1. Why Use CSS?
          2. When Not to Use CSS
          3. Internal vs. External Style Sheets
          4. Types of Styles
        2. Creating Styles
          1. Phase 1: Set Up the CSS Type
          2. Phase 2: Defining the Style
        3. Using Styles
          1. Linking to an External Style Sheet
          2. Applying a Custom Style
          3. Un-Applying a Custom Style
        4. Manipulating Styles
          1. Editing Styles
          2. Deleting a Style
          3. Duplicating or Renaming a Style
        5. More About Styles
          1. Inheritance
          2. Cascading
        6. Style Properties
          1. Type Properties
          2. Background Properties
            1. Background Color
            2. Background Image
            3. Repeat
            4. Attachment
            5. Horizontal and Vertical Position
          3. Block Properties
          4. Box Properties
          5. Border Properties
          6. List Properties
          7. Positioning Properties
          8. Extensions
        7. Cascading Style Sheets Tutorial
          1. Creating an External Style Sheet
          2. Editing a Style
          3. Creating a Custom Style
          4. Formatting the Photos
          5. Attaching an External Style Sheet
      4. 9. Under the Hood: HTML
        1. Roundtrip HTML
          1. Auto-Fixing Your Code
          2. Web Application Server Pages
        2. Code View
          1. Code Hints
          2. Setting Code Formatting
            1. Indents
            2. Text Wrapping
            3. Line Breaks
            4. Case for Tags and Attributes
            5. No Break After TD
            6. Centering
        3. Quick Tag Editor
          1. Using the Quick Tag Editor
          2. Quick Tag Editor Preferences
        4. Tag Inspector
        5. Reference Panel
        6. Inserting JavaScript
    5. III. Bringing Your Pages to Life
      1. 10. Forms
        1. Form Basics
          1. The Code Backstage
        2. Creating a Form
        3. Adding Form Elements
          1. What All Form Elements Have in Common
          2. Text Fields
          3. Checkboxes
          4. Radio Buttons and Radio Groups
            1. Radio Group
          5. Pull-down Menus and Lists
          6. File Field
          7. Hidden Field
          8. Buttons
          9. Labels and Fieldsets
            1. The Label tag
            2. The Fieldset tag
        4. Validating Forms
        5. Forms Tutorial
          1. Getting Started
          2. Inserting a Form and Creating a Structure
          3. Adding Labels and Form Elements
          4. Adding a Menu and Submit Button
          5. Validating the Form
      2. 11. Dreamweaver Behaviors
        1. Understanding Behaviors
          1. Behavior Elements
          2. More About Events
        2. Applying Behaviors
          1. The Behaviors Panel
          2. Behaviors, Step by Step
            1. Adding multiple behaviors
          3. Editing Behaviors
          4. A Quick Example
        3. Events for 4.0 Browsers
          1. Mouse Events
          2. Keyboard Events
          3. Body and Frameset Events
          4. Selection and Highlighting Events
          5. Form Events
        4. The Actions, One by One
          1. Navigation Actions
            1. Show and Hide Pop-up Menu
            2. Open Browser Window
            3. Go to URL
            4. Jump Menu and Jump Menu Go
            5. Check Browser
          2. Image Actions
            1. Preloading Images
            2. Swap Image
            3. Swap Image Restore
            4. Setting a Navigation Bar Image
          3. Message Behaviors
            1. Pop-up Message
            2. Set Text of Status Bar
            3. Set Text of Text Field
            4. Set Text of Layer
            5. Set Text of Frame
          4. Multimedia Actions
            1. Control Shockwave or Flash
            2. Play Sound
            3. Check Plug-in
          5. Advanced Actions
            1. Call JavaScript
            2. Change Property
        5. Adding More Behaviors
      3. 12. Layers: Interactivity and Animation
        1. Creating Layers
          1. Drawing with the Layer Tool
          2. Nesting Layers
            1. Undoing nested layers
          3. The Layers Panel
        2. Modifying Layer Properties
          1. Resizing Layers
          2. Moving Layers
          3. Aligning Layers
          4. Layer Properties
            1. Background image and color
            2. Tag
            3. Overflow
            4. Clip
        3. Hiding and Showing Layers
        4. Creating Draggable Layers
        5. Animating Layers
          1. Understanding Animation
          2. Animation The Easy Way
          3. Understanding Timelines
            1. Adding a timeline
            2. Adding layers to the timeline
            3. Animating with key frames
            4. Adding key frames to a timeline
            5. Modifying layers at key frames
            6. Controlling animation speed using key frames
            7. The Behaviors channel
            8. Adding and deleting timelines
        6. Controlling Playback
          1. Starting and Stopping Timelines
          2. Go To Timeline Frame
      4. 13. Flash, Shockwave, and Other Multimedia
        1. Flash
          1. Inserting a Flash Movie
          2. Flash Movie Properties
            1. Naming a Flash Movie
            2. The Movie File
            3. Src Property
            4. Movie Size
            5. Play Options
            6. Margins
            7. Quality Settings
            8. Scaling
            9. Alignment
            10. Background Color
        2. Shockwave
          1. Shockwave Movie Properties
        3. Java Applets
          1. Applet Properties
        4. ActiveX Controls
          1. ActiveX Properties
            1. ClassID
            2. Embed and Src
        5. Plug-ins
          1. Plug-in Properties
    6. IV. Building a Web Site
      1. 14. Introducing Site Management
        1. Structuring a Web Site
          1. Defining a Site
            1. Site Name
            2. Local Root Folder
            3. Default Images Folder
            4. HTTP Address
            5. Cache
          2. Editing or Removing Defined Sites
          3. Exporting and Importing Sites
          4. Organizing Site Files
          5. Adding New Folders and Files
            1. Adding files
            2. Adding folders
            3. Moving files and folders
            4. Renaming files and folders
            5. Deleting files and folders
        2. Viewing a Site Map
          1. Setting Up Site Map View
          2. Viewing and Customizing Site Map View
            1. Identifying pages in the Site Map
            2. Viewing just part of a Web site
            3. Hiding extraneous links
          3. Renaming Pages in the Site Map
        3. Site Assets
          1. Viewing the Assets Panel
          2. Inserting Assets
            1. Adding color and link assets
          3. Favorite Assets
            1. Identifying your Favorites
            2. Using your Favorites
            3. Removing Favorites
            4. Organizing Favorite assets
      2. 15. Testing Your Site
        1. Site Launch Checklist
        2. Check Target Browsers
        3. Validating Web Pages
          1. Setting Validation Preferences
          2. Validating Web Pages
          3. Common Validation Errors
        4. Find and Fix Broken Links
          1. Finding Broken Links
            1. Checking just one page
            2. Checking specific pages
            3. Checking the entire Web site
          2. Fixing Broken Links
          3. Listing External Links
          4. Orphaned Files
          5. Changing a Link Throughout a Site
        5. Cleaning Up HTML
        6. Site Reporting
        7. Accessibility
          1. Accessibility Priorities
          2. Accessibility Options
        8. Download Statistics
      3. 16. Moving Your Site to the Internet
        1. Defining a Remote Site
          1. Setting Up a Remote Site with FTP
          2. Setting Up a Remote Site over a Local Network
          3. Setting Up a Remote Site with RDS
          4. Setting Up a Remote Site with WebDAV
          5. Setting Up a Remote Site with SourceSafe
        2. Transferring Files
          1. Moving Files to the Web Server
            1. Other ways to move files to the Web server
          2. Getting Files from the Web Server
          3. Cloaking Files
        3. Check In and Check Out
          1. Checking Files Out
          2. Checking Files In
          3. Generating a Report on Checked-Out Files
        4. Synchronizing Site Files
        5. Communicating with Design Notes
          1. Setting Up Design Notes
          2. Adding Design Notes to a File
          3. Viewing Design Notes
          4. Organizing the Columns in the Site Panel
          5. “All Info” Design Notes in Column Views
            1. Phase 1: Defining the new information types
            2. Phase 2: Adding the column
    7. V. Dreamweaver MX Power
      1. 17. Snippets and Libraries
        1. Snippets Basics
        2. Using Snippets
        3. Creating Snippets
          1. Organizing Snippets
        4. Built-in Snippets
        5. Library Basics
        6. Create and Use Library Items
          1. Add Library Items to a Page
        7. Edit Library Items
          1. Renaming Library Elements
          2. Deleting Library Elements
        8. Library Tutorial
          1. Creating a Library Item
      2. 18. Templates
        1. Template Basics
        2. Create a Template
          1. Turning a Web Page into a Template
          2. Building a Template from Scratch
        3. Define Editable Regions
          1. Adding a Basic Editable Region
          2. Adding a Repeating Region
            1. Repeating Tables
          3. Making a Tag Attribute Editable
        4. Adding Optional Regions
          1. Locking Optional Regions
            1. Repeating Optional Regions
            2. Optional Editable Regions
          2. Advanced Optional Regions
            1. Even fancier tricks
            2. Controlling Regions with Expressions
          3. Editing and Removing Optional Regions
        5. Nested Templates
          1. Customizing Nested Templates
          2. Using Nested Templates
        6. Building Pages Based on a Template
          1. Working with Repeating Regions
          2. Changing Properties of Editable Tag Attributes
          3. Hiding and Showing Optional Regions
          4. Applying a Template to a Page You Already Made
        7. Update a Template
          1. Updating Nested Templates
          2. Unlinking a Page from a Template
          3. Exporting a Template-Based Site
        8. Template Tutorial
          1. Creating a Template
          2. Creating a Page Based on a Template
          3. Updating a Template
      3. 19. Automating Dreamweaver
        1. The History Panel Revisited
          1. Replay Your Steps
          2. Exceptions and Errors
          3. Copying and Pasting Actions
          4. Save Steps as Commands
          5. Recording Commands
        2. Create Web Photo Album
        3. Find and Replace
          1. Find and Replace Basics
          2. Basic Text and HTML Searches
            1. Phase 1: Determine the scope of your search
            2. Phase 2: Specify what to search for
            3. Phase 3: Provide the replacement text
            4. Phase 4: Choose the search settings
            5. Phase 5: Take action
          3. Advanced Text Searches
            1. Limiting the search by tag
            2. Limiting the search by attribute
          4. Advanced Tag Searches
          5. A Powerful Example: Adding Alt Text Fast
      4. 20. Customizing Dreamweaver
        1. Keyboard Shortcuts
          1. Make Your Own Shortcut Set
          2. Changing Keyboard Shortcuts
          3. Create a Shortcut Cheat Sheet
        2. Dreamweaver Extensions
          1. Browse the Exchange
          2. Find a Good Extension
          3. Download and Install Extensions
            1. The Extension Manager
          4. Make Your Own Extensions
    8. VI. Dynamic, Database-Driven Dreamweaver
      1. 21. Getting Started with Dynamic Web Sites
        1. Pieces of the Puzzle
          1. Understanding Server Models
            1. ASP
            2. .NET
            3. ColdFusion
            4. JSP
            5. PHP
          2. Picking a Server Model
        2. Setting Up Dreamweaver for Dynamic Web Sites
          1. Setting Up a Testing Server
          2. Setting Up Dreamweaver
        3. Databases Explained (in Five Minutes or Less)
          1. Tables and Records
          2. Relational Databases
        4. Connecting Dreamweaver to a Database
        5. Creating a Dynamic Page
        6. Connecting Dreamweaver to a Database
        7. Exploring the Databases Panel
      2. 22. Adding Dynamic Data to Your Pages
        1. Retrieving Information
          1. Understanding Recordsets
          2. Creating Recordsets
          3. Filtering Information
          4. Comparison Operators for Filters
            1. Comparing text values
            2. Comparing Numbers
          5. Getting Comparison Values
            1. Form variables
            2. URL parameters
            3. Creating a link with a URL parameter
            4. Creating the recordset for the Results page
          6. Advanced Recordsets and SQL
            1. SQL: The very basics
            2. Using the data tree view
            3. Creating variables for filtering data
          7. Reusing Recordsets
          8. Editing Recordsets
          9. Deleting Recordsets
        2. Adding Dynamic Information
          1. Using the Bindings Panel
          2. Formatting Dynamic Information
          3. Deleting Dynamic Information
        3. Displaying Multiple Records
          1. Creating a Repeating Table
          2. Creating a Repeat Region
          3. Editing and Removing a Repeat Region
        4. Recordset Navigation
          1. Recordset Navigation Bar
          2. Recordset Navigation Status
        5. Viewing Live Data Within Dreamweaver
          1. Live Data View Settings
        6. Master Detail Page Set
        7. Passing Information Between Pages
          1. Go To Detail Page
          2. Go To Related Page
        8. Tutorial: Displaying Database Information
          1. Creating a Recordset
          2. Formatting Dynamic Information
          3. Live Data View and Creating Repeating Regions
          4. Editing a Recordset and Linking to a Detail Page
          5. Building the Detailed Ad Page
          6. Filling in the Details
      3. 23. Web Pages that Manipulate Database Records
        1. Adding Data
          1. Dreamweaver’s Record Insertion Form
          2. Using the Insert Record Behavior
        2. Updating Database Records
          1. The Insert Update Record Form
          2. The Update Record Server Behavior
        3. Dynamic Form Fields
          1. Dynamic Text Form Fields
          2. Dynamic Checkboxes and Radio Buttons
            1. Dynamic radio buttons
            2. Dynamic checkboxes
          3. Dynamic Menus and Lists
        4. Deleting Records
        5. Tutorial: Inserting and Updating Data
          1. Adding an Insert Ad Page
          2. Finishing the Insert Form
          3. Building a Page for Editing Database Records
            1. Linking to the Update Page
            2. Creating the Update Page
          4. Creating and Linking to the Delete Page
            1. Adding a Link on the Details Page
            2. Creating the Delete Page
      4. 24. Advanced Dynamic Site Features
        1. Password Protecting Web Pages
          1. The Users Table
          2. Creating a Registration Form
          3. Creating the Login Page
          4. The Log Out User Behavior
          5. Protecting Individual Pages
        2. Additional Data Sources
          1. For ASP
            1. For PHP and Cold Fusion:
            2. For JSP:
          2. URL Variables
          3. Form Variables
          4. Cookies
          5. Session Variables
          6. Server Variables
        3. Advanced Server Behaviors
          1. Recordset Paging
          2. Show Region Server Behaviors
        4. Tutorial: Authentication
          1. Building a Login Page
          2. Password Protecting the Administration Pages
          3. Displaying a Portion of a Page to Logged-In Users
    9. VII. Appendix
      1. A. Getting Help
        1. Getting Help from Dreamweaver
          1. Getting Started
          2. Detailed Assistance
        2. Getting Help from Macromedia
          1. Free Help by Email
          2. Paid Support
          3. Macromedia Web Site
          4. Quick Reference Guide
          5. Newsgroups
        3. Help from the Real World
          1. Dreamweaver FAQ and Resource Site
          2. The Dreamweaver Zone
          3. Newsgroup FAQs
        4. Help with Extensions
          1. The Exchange
          2. Massimo’s Corner
          3. Yaromat
          4. Project Seven
          5. Creating Your Own Extensions
    10. Index
    11. Colophon

Product information

  • Title: Dreamweaver MX: The Missing Manual
  • Author(s): David Sawyer McFarland
  • Release date: November 2002
  • Publisher(s): O'Reilly Media, Inc.
  • ISBN: 9780596003494