Sams Teach Yourself Microsoft Expression Web 4 in 24 Hours Updated for Service Pack 2 - HTML5, CSS 3, JQuery

by Rand-hendriksen, Morten

• ISBN13: 9780672335907
• ISBN10: 0672335905
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-04-15
• Publisher: Sams Publishing

Summary

Microsoft Expression Web 4 offers a fundamentally new and better approach to building standards-compliant sites for every platform and device. Expression Web 4 (with the brand-new Service Pack 2), is a major upgrade, offering powerful new tools for working with HTML5, CSS3, and jQuery, and many other productivity and usability improvements. In just 24 lessons of one hour or less, this book will help readers gain true mastery of Expression Web 4, so they can build state-of-the-art standards-based Web sites and applications with far less work. This edition adds extensive new coverage, including Expression Web's HTML 5, CSS 3, and jQuery support; saving custom workspaces; customizing toolbars; universal comment/uncomment; the new Snippets Panel; improved Snapshot Panel interactivity; authentication forms, and more. Each lesson builds on everything that's come before, helping readers learn all of Expression Web's core features from the ground up. Friendly, accessible, and conversational, this book takes readers from concept through delivery, teaching modern best practices throughout. Step-by-step instructions carefully walk readers through key tasks... Quizzes and Exercises help them confirm their knowledge... "Did You Know?" tips offer insider advice and shortcuts... and "Watch Out!" alerts help readers avoid problems. By the time they're finished, readers won't just understand Expression Web 4: they'll be comfortable using it in real-world projects.

Author Biography

Morten Rand-Hendriksen is the owner and creative director of Pink & Yellow Media, a boutique-style design company providing digital media consulting and creations for individuals, businesses, and broadcast television. He was awarded the Microsoft MVP (Most Valuable Professional) Award for his work with Microsoft Expression in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011.

In addition to Microsoft Expression Web, Morten is considered an expert on the publishing platform WordPress and he has published numerous articles and videos and done public speaking engagements on both topics.

Sams Teach Yourself Microsoft Expression Web 4 in 24 Hours is Morten’s fourth published book. He is a regular contributor to the official Microsoft Expression newsletter and has been published in international design magazines. You can find more tutorials, articles, and other design-related musings on Morten’s blog at www.designisphilosophy.com, and you can follow his rants on Twitter under the name @mor10. Also, you might run into him in different forums and newsgroups throughout the Web, usually using the same handle.

Table of Contents

Introduction     xiii
HOUR 1: Getting to Know Microsoft Expression Web 4 Service Pack 2     1
Introducing Expression Web 4     1
Getting and Installing Expression Web 4     3
Getting and Installing Service Pack 2     4
Getting Acquainted with the Workspace     5
Changing and Customizing the Workspace     13
HOUR 2: Beginning at the End: A Walkthrough of the Finished Project     23
Working with a Completed Website     24
Previewing the Site in Your Browser     27
Exploring the Website in Expression Web 4     32
Keeping Your Pages Functional     34
HOUR 3: A Website Is Really Just Text: Build One in 5 Minutes     39
Creating a New Website     39
Creating Your First Web Page     42
Testing Your Web Page in Multiple Browsers     47
SuperPreview: A Sneak Preview     49
HOUR 4: Building a Home Page: A Look Behind the Curtain     53
Opening and Editing an Existing File Using Code View     53
Importing Styled Text from a Document     57
Advanced Tag Editing     59
HOUR 5: Getting Connected with (Hyper)Links: The Cornerstone of the World Wide Web     65
Import a New Page and Create an Internal Hyperlink     66
Creating External Links and New Windows     72
Creating Internal Links Within Documents Using Bookmarks     74
Creating an Email Hyperlink     76
HOUR 6: Getting Visual, Part 1: Adding Images and Graphics     81
Images on the Web: Three File Types for Three Uses     82
Importing and Inserting an Image     83
Using Picture Properties to Change the Appearance of an Image     87
HOUR 7: Getting Visual, Part 2: Advanced Image Editing, Thumbnails, and Hotspots     95
Exploring the Pictures Toolbar     96
Using the Pictures Toolbar to Add and Change an Image     98
Creating Hotspots     104
HOUR 8: Cracking the Code: Working in Code View     109
HTML5, CSS3, and the Brave New World of Web Code     110
Tools in Code View     110
Using Code View as a Learning Tool     115
HOUR 9: Getting Boxed In, Part 1: Using Tables for Tabular Content     127
One-Minute History of Tables in Web Pages     128
Creating a Table from Scratch     129
Changing the Appearance of a Table     130
HOUR 10: Bringing Style to Substance with Cascading Style Sheets     143
CSS3: The New Style of the Web     145
CSS Sans Code     145
Setting the Font Family for the Entire Document     151
CSS Tools in Expression Web 4     155
HOUR 11: Getting Boxed In, Part 2: Knee Deep in CSS     163
CSS Classes--Because Not All Content Should Be Treated Equally     164
Introducing ID--Class’s Almost Identical Twin     169
Classes Within Classes: Micromanaging the Content     173
Pseudoclasses     174
Understanding the Box Model     176
CSS3 Rounded Corners with Border Radius     178
HOUR 12: Styling with Code: Fully Immersed in CSS     183
Introducing CSS: The Code Version     184
Applying Classes to Tags in Code View     189
Creating External Style Sheets     193
HOUR 13: Getting Visual, Part 3: Images as Design Elements with CSS     203
Images as Backgrounds: A Crash Course     204
Using Images as List Bullets     213
Importing Adobe Photoshop Files     215
HOUR 14: Harnessing the Power of CSS Layouts     221
Starting with Pen and Paper     222
Building the Framework from Boxed Parts     223
Styling the Layout Boxes     225
Understanding Positioning     229
Applying the Framework to Existing Pages     232
Applying the New Framework to the Page     234
HOUR 15: Buttons, Buttons, Buttons     243
Buttons: A Brief Definition     244
Creating Buttons from Scratch Using CSS     244
HOUR 16: Using Code Snippets     257
Snippets: An Introduction     258
The Default Snippets     261
Using the jQuery UI Widgets Snippets     266
Creating and Editing Snippets     270
HOUR 17: Building a Functional Menu     275
Making the Basic Vertical Menu Exciting     276
The Horizontal Menu--Laying a List on Its Side     279
Pure CSS Drop-Down Menus: A Clean Alternative     281
HOUR 18: Dynamic Web Templates     297
Dynamic Web Templates     298
Understanding Dynamic Web Templates     306
HOUR 19: Getting Interactive with Forms     317
Creating Forms in Expression Web 4     318
Making Use of Form Results     325
Other Uses for Form Results     331
Forms in Code View     331
HOUR 20: Working with Flash and Other Embeddable Content     337
Flash: An Introduction      338
Adding the Tag for Full Cross-Browser Compatibility     344
Embedding YouTube and Other HTML5 Content     345
Bonus: Making the Flash Gallery Your Own     348
HOUR 21: Beyond the Basics, Part 1: PHP in Expression Web 4     353
PHP: An Introduction     354
Installing PHP on Your Computer to Test PHP Scripts     355
Creating an Email Form Using PHP     360
HOUR 22: Test Twice, Publish Once: Professional Cross-Browser Testing with SuperPreview     373
Snapshot: Instant Browser Previews Inside Expression Web 4     375
Using SuperPreview for Cross-Browser Testing     378
The Tools of SuperPreview     380
Setting Up and Using SuperPreview Online Service     387
SuperPreview Online Service Options     389
Identifying, Diagnosing, and Solving Cross-Browser Issues with SuperPreview     390
Solving IE6 Problems by Telling Visitors to Upgrade Their Browsers     395
HOUR 23: Beyond the Basics, Part 2: Get Noticed with the New Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Checker     401
What Is a Search Engine, Anyway?      402
Search Engine Optimization in Expression Web 4     403
HOUR 24: Publishing Your Website     411
A Word on Domains and Web Hosting     412
Six Different Publishing Options     413
Example: Publishing Content Using SFTP     420
Publishing Open Files Without the Publishing Panel     423
Advanced Publishing Settings     425
Index     431