Dreamweaver® CS6 For Dummies®
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Dreamweaver® CS6 For Dummies®
Dreamweaver® CS6 For Dummies®
Published by
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774
Copyright © 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ
Published simultaneously in Canada
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Library of Congress Control Number is available from the publisher.
ISBN 978-1-118-21233-2 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-118-22873-9 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-23135-7 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-26601-4 (ebk)
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
About the Author
Janine Warner is an author, a speaker, and a web designer.
Since 1995, she’s written and coauthored more than a dozen books, including every edition of Dreamweaver For Dummies, Web Sites Do-it-Yourself For Dummies, and Teach Yourself Visually Dreamweaver. She is the host of a growing collection of training videos for web design, Adobe Dreamweaver, and Cascading Style Sheets. She has also created videos for Kelby Training and Total Training. You can learn more about her books and videos, and find many free tutorials on web design, social media, and SEO on her website at .
Janine is a popular speaker at conferences and events throughout the United States and abroad, and she’s been a guest lecturer at more than 20 universities. An award-winning journalist, her articles and columns have appeared in a variety of publications, including The Miami Herald, Shape Magazine, and Layers magazine.
Janine has extensive Internet experience working on large and small websites. From 1994 to 1998, she ran Visiontec Communications, a web design business in Northern California, where she worked for a diverse group of clients including Levi Strauss & Co., AirTouch International, and many other small- and medium-sized businesses.
In 1998, she joined The Miami Herald as their Online Managing Editor. A year later, she was promoted to Director of New Media. She left that position to serve as Director of Latin American Operations for CNET Networks, an international technology media company.
Since 2001, Janine has run her own business as a writer, speaker, and consultant. She lives and works with her husband in Los Angeles. To learn more, visit or .
Dedication
To all those who aspire to share their stories and passions on the web: May all your dreams come true.
Author’s Acknowledgments
More than anything, I want to thank all the people who have read my books or watched my videos over the years. My readers and students are my greatest inspiration, and I sincerely enjoy it when you send me links to your websites. You’ll find my e-mail address on my site at .
Special thanks to David LaFontaine, my partner in all things digital and analog, whose patience and support keep me fed, loved, and (mostly) sane, even when I’m up against impossible deadlines.
For their contributions to this book, a heartfelt thanks to designer Beth Renniessen (); to photographer Jasper Johal (); to artist Amy Baur (); to underwater photo-grapher Ken Riddick (), and my father, Robin Warner ().
Thanks to the entire editorial team on this book: Susan Pink for her helpful and proactive editing style; Jeff Noble for his attention to the technical details; and Bob Woerner for shepherding this book through the development and publishing process (again and again and again).
Over the years, I’ve thanked many people in my books — family, friends, teachers, and mentors — but I have been graced by so many wonderful people now that no publisher will give me enough pages to thank them all. So let me conclude by thanking everyone who has ever helped me with a website, a book, or any other aspect of the writing and research that go into these pages. Okay, now I think I can go to sleep tonight without fearing I’ve forgotten anyone. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Publisher’s Acknowledgments
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Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:
Acquisitions and Editorial
Project Editor: Susan Pink
(Previous Edition: Rebecca Huehls)
Acquisitions Editor: Bob Woerner
Copy Editor: Susan Pink
Technical Editor: Jeff Noble
Editorial Manager: Jodi Jensen
Editorial Assistant: Amanda Graham
Sr. Editorial Assistant: Cherie Case
Cover Photo: © iStockphoto.com / Cary Westfall
Cartoons: Rich Tennant ()
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Layout and Graphics: Melanee Habig, Jennifer Henry
Proofreaders: Melissa Cossell, Jessica Kramer, Shannon Ramsey
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Publishing and Editorial for Technology Dummies
Richard Swadley, Vice President and Executive Group Publisher
Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher
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Publishing for Consumer Dummies
Kathy Nebenhaus, Vice President and Executive Publisher
Composition Services
Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services
Introduction
In the last few years, the Internet has experienced extraordinary growth and has gone through incredible changes. As more and more users access the web with smartphones, tablets, Google TV, and Apple TV, web designers have been forced to design sites that work on tiny mobile screens as well as giant television sets.
Simultaneously, the technologies that work best on the web are changing. The once popular design tool Adobe Flash is losing its audience because videos and animations created in Flash don’t work on the iPad or iPhone. Fortunately, emerging new technologies, including HTML5 and CSS3 (the latest flavors of the Hypertext Markup Language and Cascading Style Sheets, respectively), make it possible to add new design features and greater interactivity without the need for Flash.
I can’t cover every detail of all these technologies in this book, but I do give you a solid introduction to modern web design. You discover how the newest features in Dreamweaver CS6 make it easier to create web pages that meet modern standards and adapt to all the screens used to view websites today.
In this fully updated version of Dreamweaver For Dummies, I added a new chapter to introduce CSS3 and help you transform the boxy look of old-fashioned web pages into the smoother styles made possible by CSS3 additions, including rounded corners, drop shadows, and almost any font you want.
Over the years, web design has evolved into an increasingly complex field, and Dreamweaver has evolved with it, adding features that go way beyond the basics of combining a few words and images. Adobe’s dedication to keeping up with changing standards and adding new features with each new version is why Dreamweaver is such a popular program among professional web designers, as well as among a growing number of people who want to build sites for their hobbies, clubs, families, and small businesses.
In the 15-plus years that I’ve been writing about web design, I’ve seen many changes — from the early days (before Dreamweaver even existed) when you could create only simple pages with HTML 1.0, to the elaborate designs you can create with Dreamweaver today using HTML, CSS, jQuery, multimedia, and more.
If you’re not sure what those acronyms mean yet, don’t worry. I remember what it was like to figure out all this stuff, too, so I designed this book to introduce you to the basic concepts before you get into the more advanced features. To prepare you for the ever-changing world of web design, I show you how to use Dreamweaver to create websites that take advantage of the latest advances in web technology — including CSS3, covered in the new Chapter 7.
One of the challenges of web design today is that web pages are not only displayed on different kinds of computers but also downloaded to computers with monitors as big as widescreen televisions — or as small as the little screens on cell phones. As a result, creating websites that look good to all visitors is a lot more complex than it used to be — and standards have become a lot more important. This book shows you not only how to use all the great features in Dreamweaver but also how to determine which of those features best serve your goals and your audience.
About This Book
I designed Dreamweaver CS6 For Dummies to help you find the answers you need when you need them. You don’t have to read through this book cover to cover, and you certainly don’t have to memorize it. Consider this a quick study guide and a reference you can return to. Each section stands alone, giving you easy answers to specific questions and step-by-step instructions for common tasks.
Want to find out how to change the background color in page properties, design CSS style rules to align images, or add an interactive photo gallery with the Swap Image behavior? Jump right to the pages that cover those features. (Hint: the Table of Contents and index can help you find the sections that interest you most.) Don’t worry about getting sand on this book at the beach or coffee spilled on the pages at breakfast. I promise it won’t complain!
You find templates, artwork, and other goodies to use with this book at .
Using Dreamweaver on a Mac or PC
Dreamweaver works almost identically on Macintosh or Windows computers. To keep screenshots consistent throughout this book, I’ve used a computer running Windows 7. However, I’ve tested the program on both platforms, and whenever I find a difference in how a feature works, I indicate that difference in the instructions.
Conventions Used in This Book
Keeping things consistent makes them easier to understand. In this book, those consistent elements are conventions. Notice how the word conventions is in italics? I frequently put new terms in italics and then define them so you know what they mean. It just makes reading so much nicer.
When I type actual URLs (web addresses) within regular paragraph text, they look like this: .
I also assume that your web browser doesn’t require the introductory http:// for web addresses. If you use an older browser, remember to type that quaint prefix before the address (also make sure you include that part of the address when you’re creating links in Dreamweaver).
Even though Dreamweaver makes understanding HTML pages easier, you may want to wade into HTML waters occasionally. I include HTML code in this book when I think it can help you better understand how things work in Design view. Sometimes it’s easier to remove or edit a tag in Code view than Design view. When I do provide examples — including filenames, file extensions, attributes, and tags, such as the following code that links a URL to a web page — I set off the HTML in monospaced type:
<a href=”http://www.digitalfamily.com”>Learn more about Dreamweaver at Janine’s DigitalFamily website</a>
When I introduce you to a new set of features, such as options in a dialog box, I set those items apart with bullet lists so you can see that they’re all related. When I want you to follow instructions, I use numbered step lists to walk you through the process.
What You’re Not to Read
If you’re like most of the web designers I know, you don’t have time to wade through a thick book before you start working on your website. That’s why I wrote Dreamweaver CS6 For Dummies in a way that makes it easy for you to find the answers you need quickly. You don’t have to read this book cover to cover. If you’re in a hurry, go right to the information you need most and then get back to work. If you’re new to web design or you want to know the intricacies of Dreamweaver, skim through the chapters to get an overview — and then go back and read what’s most relevant to your project in greater detail. Whether you’re building a simple site for the first time or working to redesign a complex site for the umpteenth time, you find everything you need in these pages.
Foolish Assumptions
Although Dreamweaver is designed for professional developers, I don’t assume you’re a pro — at least not yet. In keeping with the philosophy behind the For Dummies series, this book is an easy-to-use guide designed for readers with a wide range of experience. If you’re interested in web design and want to create a website, that’s all I expect from you.
If you’re an experienced web designer, Dreamweaver CS6 For Dummies is an ideal reference for you because it gets you working quickly with this program — starting with basic web-page design features and progressing to more advanced options. If you’re new to web design, this book walks you through all you need to know to create a website, from creating a new page to publishing your finished project on the web.
How This Book Is Organized
To ease you through the learning curve associated with any new program, I organized Dreamweaver CS6 For Dummies as a reference. This section provides a breakdown of the four parts of the book and what you can find in each one. Each chapter walks you through the features of Dreamweaver step by step, providing tips and helping you understand the vocabulary of web design as you go along.
Part I: Creating Great Websites
Part I introduces you to the basic concepts of web design as well as the main features of Dreamweaver. In Chapter 1, I give you an overview of the many approaches to web design, so you can best determine how you want to build your website before you get into the details of which features in Dreamweaver are best suited to any particular design approach. In Chapter 2, I start you on the road to your first website — including creating a new site, importing an existing site, creating new web pages, applying basic formatting, and setting links. To make this chapter more interesting and help you see how all these features come together, I walk you through creating a real web page as I show you how the features work.
In Chapter 3, I move on to graphics, with an introduction to creating graphics for the web, an overview of the differences in formats (GIFs, JPEGs, and PNG files), and detailed instructions for adding and positioning graphics in your pages. In Chapter 4, you discover Dreamweaver’s testing and publishing features, so you can make sure that all your links work and that your website will look good in the most important web browsers. You also find everything you need to start uploading pages to the Internet.
Part II: Creating Page Designs with Style
Chapter 5 provides an overview of how Cascading Style Sheets work and how they can save you time. CSS has become the way to create page designs and manage formatting on web pages, and these features have been nicely improved in Dreamweaver CS6. In this chapter, you find descriptions of the style definition options available in Dreamweaver as well as instructions for creating and applying styles. In Chapter 6, I take you further into CSS, introducing you to the power of <div> tags, how to create CSS layouts, how to create centered CSS designs and fluid layouts, and how to use Dreamweaver’s newest CSS testing features. In Chapter 7, I introduce the newest features in Dreamweaver and show you how to add some of the hot new design options, such as drop shadows and gradients, which were made possible by CSS3.
In Chapter 8, I introduce you to some of my favorite Dreamweaver features, including sophisticated template capabilities that enable you to create more consistent designs and make global updates across many pages at once. I also cover Dreamweaver’s Library items, which come in handy for commonly used elements, such as the copyright on all of your web pages. In Chapter 9, you discover how to use HTML table features (and when they’re still recommended on the web).
Part III: Making Your Site Cool with Advanced Features
In Part III, you discover how cool your site can look when you add interactive images, audio, video, and drop-down menus. In Chapter 10, you find instructions for creating an interactive photo gallery with the Swap Image behavior, as well as how to use other features in Dreamweaver’s Behaviors panel — including the Open New Browser behavior. In Chapter 11, you discover how great the Spry features are for adding AJAX interactivity to your site. You find instructions for creating and customizing drop-down lists, collapsible panels, and more. In Chapter 12, you find out what it takes to add multimedia to your web pages, including how to insert and create links to a variety of file types — from Flash to video and audio files. In Chapter 13, I cover Dreamweaver’s HTML form options, which you can use to add feedback forms, surveys, and much more.
Part IV: The Part of Tens
Part IV features two quick references to help you develop the best websites possible. Chapter 14 provides a collection of online resources where you can register domain names and find hosting services, as well as a few services that can help you take care of more advanced challenges (such as setting up an e-commerce system). In Chapter 15, you find ten ways to promote your website, from search engine optimization to social media and beyond.
Icons Used in This Book
This icon points you toward valuable resources on the web.
This icon reminds you of an important concept or procedure that you’ll want to store away in your own memory banks for future use.
This icon signals technical stuff that you may find informative and interesting, though it isn’t essential for using Dreamweaver. Feel free to skip over this information.
This icon indicates a tip or technique that can save you time and money — and a headache — later.
This icon warns you of any potential pitfalls — and gives you the all-important information on how to avoid them.
Where to Go from Here
To familiarize yourself with the latest in web design strategies and options, don’t skip Chapter 1, which guides you through the many ways to create websites that you have to choose from today. If you’re ready to dive in and build a basic website right away, jump ahead to Chapter 2. If you want to find out about a specific trick or technique, consult the Table of Contents or the index; you won’t miss a beat as you work to make those impossible web design deadlines. Most of all, I wish you great success in all your web projects!
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Part I
Creating Great Websites
Chapter 1 compares different layout techniques you can use in Dreamweaver and provides an introduction to the toolbars, menus, and panels that make up Dreamweaver’s interface. In Chapter 2, you dive into setting up a website, creating web pages, and adding text, links, and meta data for search engines.
In Chapter 3, you find an introduction to web graphics with instructions for using Photoshop (or Photoshop Elements) to optimize images in GIF, PNG, and JPEG formats. Chapter 4 covers managing, testing and publishing your site, so you can make sure that everything works beautifully before you publish your site to a web server.
