Adobe's website-development program lets you revamp an existing site, or design, build, and manage a new one without writing a single line of code. But learning Dreamweaver is tricky. This step-by-step guide helps you master this versatile program with jargon-free language, hands-on tutorials, and savvy advice from a Dreamweaver pro.
Get complete guidance. Go from building your first web page to creating interactive, database-driven sites
Build skills as you learn. Apply your knowledge using 12 tutorials and downloadable practice files
Create a thoroughly modern website. Build fast-loading pages based on powerful, easy-to-use CSS tools
Add instant interactivity. Use pre-packaged JavaScript programs to add forms, drop-down menus, and more
Tap into databases. Connect your site to a database and build pages that display the information
Discover hidden tips and tricks. Learn undocumented workarounds and shortcuts
Have it your way. Customize the way Dreamweaver looks and works to suit your needs
Building a Web Page
Chapter 1 Dreamweaver CS5 Guided Tour
The Dreamweaver CS5 Interface
Setting Up a Site
Creating a Web Page
The Dreamweaver Test Drive
Chapter 2 Adding Text to Your Web Pages
Adding Text in Dreamweaver
Copying and Pasting Text
Selecting Text
Spell Checking
Chapter 3 Text Formatting
Paragraph Formatting
Creating and Formatting Lists
Text Styles
Chapter 4 Introducing Cascading Style Sheets
Cascading Style Sheet Basics
Creating Styles
Using Styles
Manipulating Styles
Text Formatting with CSS
Cascading Style Sheets Tutorial
Chapter 5 Links
Understanding Links
Adding a Link
Adding an Email Link
Linking Within a Web Page
Modifying a Link
Styling Links
Creating a Navigation Menu
Link Tutorial
Chapter 6 Images
Adding Images
Inserting an Image from Photoshop
Modifying an Image
Controlling Images with CSS
Editing Graphics
Image Maps
Rollover Images
Tutorial: Inserting and Formatting Graphics
Chapter 7 Tables
Table Basics
Inserting a Table
Selecting Parts of a Table
Expanded Table Mode
Formatting Tables
Modifying Cell and Row Properties
Adding and Removing Cells
Merging and Splitting Cells
Tabular Data
Tables Tutorial
Building a Better Web Page
Chapter 8 Advanced CSS
Compound Selectors
Fast Style Editing With the Properties Pane
Moving and Managing Styles
More about CSS
Using the Code Navigator
Styling for Print
Chapter 9 Page Layout
Types of Web Page Layouts
Float Layout Basics
Understanding the Box Model
Dreamweaver's CSS Layouts
Modifying Dreamweaver's CSS Layouts
Absolute Positioning
Adding an AP Div to Your Page
Drawing AP Divs
The AP Elements Panel
Modifying AP Element Properties
Nesting AP Divs
CSS Layout Tutorial
Chapter 10 Troubleshooting CSS
Analyzing CSS with Dreamweaver
Checking Browser Compatibility
Overcoming Common CSS Problems
Handling Internet Explorer 6 Bugs
Chapter 11 Under the Hood: HTML
Controlling How Dreamweaver Handles HTML
Code View
Live Code
Quick Tag Editor
Tag Inspector
Comparing Versions of a Web Page
Reference Panel
Inserting JavaScript
Bringing Your Pages to Life
Chapter 12 Forms
Form Basics
Creating a Form
Adding Form Elements
Validating Forms
Forms Tutorial
Chapter 13 Spry: Creating Interactive Web Pages
What is Spry?
Tabbed Panels
Accordions
Collapsible Panels
Spry Tooltips
Spry Data Sets
Live View
Chapter 14 Dreamweaver Behaviors
Understanding Behaviors
Applying Behaviors
Events
The Actions, One by One
Advanced Behaviors
Adding More Behaviors
Chapter 15 Add Flash and Other Multimedia
Flash: An Introduction
Automate the Flash Download
Add Flash videos
Building a Website
Chapter 16 Introducing Site Management
The Structure of a Website
Site Assets
Chapter 17 Testing Your Site
Site Launch Checklist
Previewing Web Pages in BrowserLab
Find and Fix Broken Links
Cleaning Up HTML (and XHTML)
Site Reporting
Download Statistics
Chapter 18 Moving Your Site to the Internet
Adding a Remote Server
Transferring Files
Check In and Check Out
Synchronizing Site Files
Communicating with Design Notes
Dreamweaver CS5 Power
Chapter 19 Snippets and Libraries
Snippets Basics
Using Snippets
Creating Snippets
Built-In Snippets
Library Basics
Creating and Using Library Items
Editing Library Items
Snippets and Library Tutorial
Chapter 20 Templates
Template Basics
Creating a Template
Defining Editable Regions
Adding Optional Regions
Nested Templates
Building Pages Based on a Template
Updating a Template
Template Tutorial
Chapter 21 Automating Dreamweaver
Find and Replace
Chapter 22 Customizing Dreamweaver
Keyboard Shortcuts
Dreamweaver Extensions
Dynamic Dreamweaver
Chapter 23 Getting Started with Dynamic Web Sites
Pieces of the Puzzle
Dynamic Web Sites: The Setup
Creating a Dynamic Page
Databases: A Quick Introduction
Loading a Database
Connecting to a Database
Chapter 24 Adding Dynamic Data to Your Pages
Retrieving Information
Adding Dynamic Information
Displaying Multiple Records
Recordset Navigation
Master Detail Page Set
Passing Information Between Pages
Viewing Live Data
Tutorial: Displaying Database Info
Chapter 25 Web Pages that Manipulate Database Records
David Sawyer McFarland is president of Sawyer McFarland Media, Inc., a Web development and training company in Portland, Oregon. He's been building websites since 1995, when he designed an online magazine for communication professionals. He's served as webmaster at the University of California at Berkeley and the Berkeley Multimedia Research Center, and oversaw a complete CSS-driven redesign of Macworld.com. David is also a writer and trainer, and teaches in the Portland State University multimedia program. He wrote the bestselling Missing Manual titles on Adobe Dreamweaver, CSS, and JavaScript.
Comments about O'Reilly Media Dreamweaver CS5: The Missing Manual:
I am (correction: I was) a complete novice to web development. I'm a few steps beyond that, now, but I would be a lot further if I was more serious about it. But I'm retired and have a lot of other interests. If I had been more serious, this book would have been an immense help.
1. I went through all the lessons, with and without the attached CD. The lessons were very clear - most of the time - and even when they weren't, I had the feeling that was almost by design to keep me looking for the right code or way of thinking that would get me beyond that place. Still, the examples on the CD really helped - the pieces of the lesson and then the finished, "correct" result provided were very instructive.
2. It's a very comprehensive book - not just the tutorials, but the added info that get a person beyond Dreamweaver itself as a stand-alone program.
3. The language was clear and consistently correct (I often compare one person's work with another's for verification).
4. I compared this manual with a lot of others, sitting down to examine them from Table of Contents to Chapter to Index, and it was apparent early on that this was the best of the lot.
10/14/2010
(10 of 10 customers found this review helpful)
5.0
A superb treatment
By craig
from Aptos, CA
About Me Designer, Developer
Pros
Accurate
Concise
Easy to understand
Helpful examples
Well-written
Cons
Best Uses
Expert
Intermediate
Novice
Student
Comments about O'Reilly Media Dreamweaver CS5: The Missing Manual:
Superb! This book is a refreshing delight. I'm a professional software developer and have been reading technical programming books for 30 years ranging from C, C++, Java, Python, etc. etc. and "Dreamweaver CS5 – the Missing Manual" is among the best books I've ever bought. The author blends and balances conceptual overview and description with detail and tutorials superbly. Enough overview to get the most important concepts established; enough detailed description to reveal how things really work while also pointing out some of the important "gotchas" that newbies will run into; and then enough tutorials (but not too much, and not too trivial) to help beginners get both a comprehensive feel for dreamweaver and put them well on their way to building professional websites. For example, the tutorials are well thought out and then distilled to focus on the things that are important for beginners to understand. Also the instructions for the tutorials are so explicit and accurate, it is almost impossible for readers to get confused. Another example: many tutorials I've seen elsewhere might talk about specific aspects of "layout" but never do a good job at providing context and the big picture of layout. In this book as well as in "CSS The missing Manual", the author articulates and explains different layout strategies very clearly.
