Adobe Dreamweaver CS4 Unleashed

by Ruvalcaba, Zak

• ISBN13: 9780672330391
• ISBN10: 0672330393
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-12-03
• Publisher: Sams Publishing

Summary

The most comprehensive, independent Dreamweaver CS4 resource for experienced Web developers. bull; Everything Web developers need to plan, architect, develop, and deploy state-of-the art Web sites, applications, and services with Dreamweaver CS4. bull; The only advanced Dreamweaver book to cover all the major server-side technologies Dreamweaver supports. bull; Thoroughly updated with new coverage of developing rich Internet applications using both Ajax and Adobe Flex. Most Dreamweaver books are targeted either at beginners or at Web designers who want to avoid coding as much as possible. Adobe Dreamweaver CS4 Unleashed fills an enormous gap in the marketplace, focusing on the needs of experienced programmers who intend to use Dreamweaver as the sophisticated programming tool that it is. Thoroughly updated for the brand-new Adobe Dreamweaver CS4, this is a comprehensive, independent resource for Web developers who reliable and upto- date help for developing complex applications and building richer end-user experiences. Expert Web developer and trainer Zak Ruvalcaba brings together deep real-world insights and advanced techniques for every facet of contemporary Web development, from data-driven applications to multimedia content, site management to security, deployment to personalization. Readers will learn how to smoothly integrate Dreamweaver CS4 with other key Web design and development tools, ranging from Photoshop to SQL databases. They will also discover how to use Dreamweaver CS3 to improve team collaboration, automate workflow, streamline content management, and reuse assets more efficiently. This edition contains extensive new coverage of building rich Internet applications with Ajax, Adobe Flex, and ActionScript. Dreamweaver CS4 is positioned to become the leading integrated development environment for both Ajax and Flex: this is one of the few books that will serve developers who want to use it this way.

Author Biography

Zak Ruvalcaba has been researching, designing, and developing for the Web since 1995. He holds a bachelor’s degree from San Diego State University and a master of science degree in instructional technology from National University in San Diego. He served as creative director with EPIC Solutions until 1998. His expertise in developing web applications led him to a position as manager of web development at SkyDesk Inc., where he developed web applications for such companies as Gateway, HP, Toshiba, IBM, Intuit, Peachtree, Dell, and Microsoft. He has worked for such companies as ADCS, Inc., and Wireless Knowledge, and as a wireless software engineer developing .NET solutions for companies such as Mellon Financial, Goldman Saks, TV Guide, Healthbanks, The Gartner Group, Microsoft, Qualcomm, and Commerce One.

 

His skill set includes technologies and languages from HTML/XHTML, XML/XSLT, JavaScript, CSS, ASP, ASP.NET, Visual Basic .NET, C#, ADO.NET, Web Services, SQL, T-SQL, Flash/ActionScript, and ColdFusion.

 

Aside from teaching and holding design lectures on various technologies and tools including Dreamweaver, Flash, and ASP.NET for the San Diego Community College District, Mt. San Jacinto Community College, and Palomar Community College, Zak Ruvalcaba is also the author of 10 Minute Guide to Dreamweaver 4 by Que Publishing, Build Your Own ASP.NET 3.5 Website Using C# and VB by SitePoint Press, and Beginning Expression Web by Wrox Press.

 

Zak Ruvalcaba is a Microsoft Certified Application Developer for .NET (MCAD) and a Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer for .NET (MCSD).

 

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. 1
Getting Up to Speed with Dreamweaver CS4	p. 5
The Dreamweaver CS4 Interface	p. 7
New Dreamweaver CS4 Features	p. 8
The Welcome Screen	p. 10
The Document Window	p. 11
The Tabbed File Chooser and Related Files Bar	p. 12
The Document Toolbar	p. 14
The Standard Toolbar	p. 25
The Style Rendering Toolbar	p. 26
The Status Bar	p. 27
Context Menus	p. 30
The Insert Panel	p. 32
Common Objects	p. 33
Layout Objects	p. 35
Form Objects	p. 36
Data Objects	p. 37
Spry Objects	p. 37
Text Objects	p. 38
Favorites	p. 39
The Property Inspector	p. 40
Panels	p. 42
Interacting with Panels	p. 42
The CSS Styles Panel	p. 45
The AP Elements Panel	p. 45
The Application Tab Group	p. 45
The Files Panel	p. 45
The Assets Panel	p. 46
The Snippets Panel	p. 46
The Tag Inspector Panel	p. 46
The Behaviors Panel	p. 47
The History Panel	p. 47
The Frames Panel	p. 47
The Code Inspector	p. 47
The Results Tab Group	p. 47
Workspace Layouts	p. 48
The Menu Bar	p. 49
Building a Web Page	p. 51
Creating a New Document	p. 52
Working with a New Document in Design View	p. 56
Modifying the Page Properties	p. 56
Working with Text	p. 61
Inserting the Time and Date	p. 79
Inserting a Horizontal Rule	p. 80
Working with Images	p. 82
Inserting Images into a Dreamweaver Document	p. 83
Formatting Images Within a Document	p. 85
Image Placeholders	p. 88
Rollover Images	p. 90
Working with Hyperlinks	p. 91
Linking Text	p. 93
Email Links	p. 95
Linking Images	p. 96
Image Maps	p. 97
Named Anchors	p. 99
Creating a Navigation Bar	p. 102
Dreamweaver Site Management	p. 105
Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

Introduction IntroductionOver a decade agowhen I used Dreamweaver 1.0 for the first time, I was amazed at how far ahead of its time it was. The capability to incorporate JavaScript Behaviors, styles, and pinpoint accurate designs truly amazed me. I was a skeptic when it came to visual editors and preferred Notepad whenever possible. Dreamweaver changed that for me and made me look at web development in a whole new light.Dreamweaver has become the industry's leading web development environment, far surpassing any other. Still, many consider Dreamweaver a simple visual editor that accomplishes little more than aiding in the development of static web pages. The mindset is that visual editors lack the true complexity that it takes to create rich and powerful web applications that encompass client-side technologies such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript while leveraging server-side technologies like ASP, PHP, and ColdFusion. Dreamweaver obliterates the stigma by captivating the developer in a vast, intuitive, and feature-rich environment.If you've picked up this book, chances are you're interested in the world of web design and development and, more specifically, how Dreamweaver can help you succeed in these endeavors. Whether you're a seasoned developer, a print designer looking to expand your base of knowledge to the Web, or a home user who wants to create a family website, Dreamweaver offers the features and flexibility to get you on your way quickly and effortlessly. This book introduces you to the many features available through Dreamweaver using a fun, yet concise, approach. What's Inside, Part by PartPart I, "Getting Up to Speed with Dreamweaver CS4" Starting off gently, this part introduces you to Dreamweaver CS4. Moving from Chapter 1, "The Dreamweaver CS4 Interface," to Chapter 3, "Dreamweaver Site Management," you'll learn about the many panels, inspectors, and windows that Dreamweaver reveals within its development environment. You'll also learn about defining and managing a site, building a simple web page, and finally, defining Dreamweaver preferences for customizing how you work with Dreamweaver.Part II, "Static Web Page Development" Generally considered the heart of the book, this part covers topics related to static web page development. You'll learn about web page structuring using tables, advanced page formatting and structuring using cascading style sheets, designing forms with form elements, and incorporating behaviors into your web pages.Part III, "Team Collaboration and Task Automation" Although most consider Dreamweaver a great tool for building web pages, the truth is that Dreamweaver provides many tools for working with web pages within teams. In this part you'll learn about the many aspects in Dreamweaver that facilitate the collaborative process, such as file check in and check out, Design Notes, and integration with Contribute. You'll also learn about the many components, such as templates and library items, built in to Dreamweaver for enhancing the workflow process.Part IV, "Incorporating Multimedia and Animation" Developer