Wednesday, February 1, 2012

IDEs like Dreamweaver, Dreamweaver alternative

Basic Web Development IDE/Editor like Dreamweaver, Dreamweaver alternative

 Dreamweaver alternative

  IDEs like Dreamweaver, Dreamweaver alternative


Dreamweaver alternative

If the rumors are true then iWeb will go away along with MobileMe in 2012, but luckily for you there is plenty of time to look for alternative applications. Giles Turnbull offered up a few ideas on What To Do With Your iWeb Site that you should take a look at if you haven’t. I’d like to add to his advice by recommending four popular desktop web design applications that run on Mac OS X.

iWeb Replacements

Freeway Express – This popular HTML editor  is offered for $69 by Softpress and it has a lot to offer. You would be surprised by the plethora of features that you normally would not expect to find in such an affordable application. You can check out a complete feature set and a comparison between Freeway Express and Freeway Pro ($229). You can download a trial version of either one to give them a spin before handing over your hard-earned cash. The Express version would be a good place to start for iWeb users who can upgrade to the advanced version later.
Three Popular Applications That Can Replace iWeb & Another Takes You To The Next Level
Sandvox – This is another popular website creation tool for the Mac from Karelia Software that sells for $77. It is probably one of the closest to iWeb when you compare the two. The only difference is that Sandvox is a lot more advanced with a broader feature set and it even looks a lot like iWeb. Therefore people who are currently using iWeb will probably feel comfortable with it.  It includes a lot of things to get you started like themes, objects which are akin to iWeb widgets, and a lot of flexibility.  Download a free trial version and give it a spin.
Three Popular Applications That Can Replace iWeb & Another Takes You To The Next Level
Rapidweaver – This is another web design tool that is popular with a lot of Mac users it sells for $60 from Realmac Software. It works pretty much like iWeb offering templates, page editing, and a popular growing library of add-ons that are similar to widgets in iWeb. It goes a step further by adding another option called Stacks that even further enhances the features of Rapidweaver by including new ones made by third-parties or Realmac Software. Rapidweaver is expandable which is a very good reason to take a good look at it. Luckily just like all the others you can download a trial version to test. I think that iWeb users will be very comfortable with this application so check it out.
Three Popular Applications That Can Replace iWeb & Another Takes You To The Next Level

Go To The Next Level  With This Advanced iWeb Replacement

Dreamweaver CS5 – This powerful web design tool from Adobe is aimed at professionals and some would say that it is the design tool to use for any professional web development project. That doesn’t mean that you cannot use it for your own projects, but be prepared to learn a lot since this application has a steep learning curve.  The price isn’t exactly bargain basement either since it sells for $399. If you think you’ve out grown iWeb or the other WYSIWYG editors listed above this is the application to consider replacing them with. You can check it out, explore all of the features it has, or download a trial version on Adobe’s Dreamweaver website.
Dreamweaver alternative

Conclusion

These are only a few of the potential iWeb replacements out there. All of them require you to find a hosting service for your iWeb sites like Godaddy or Bluehost.
They are all WYSIWYG editor based website design tools with a plethora of features and the first three recommendations are going to be the closest to iWeb then the last one. They are also the easiest to use when compared to Dreamweaver. However, if you plan on becoming a professional web designer in a corporate environment one day then Dreamweaver is hard to beat and the one to take you to the next level in web design.
If you have an alternative suggestion for an iWeb replacement that isn’t listed here or personal experience with the applications above please tell us about it in the comments.

 Dreamweaver alternative
I would probably have to recommend KompoZer, which is an unofficial bug-fix release of the popular application, Nvu.
KompoZer Screenshot - Dreamweaver alternative
To quote the KompoZer features page:
Finally, a top-notch WYSIWYG web page program for the rest of us! Now there's no need to >pay a little fortune for a program to create and edit great-looking web pages, including >powerful and easy to use CSS capabilities.
KompoZer is a complete Web Authoring System that combines web file management and easy-to-use WYSIWYG web page editing capabilities found in Microsoft FrontPage, Adobe DreamWeaver and other high end programs.
KompoZer is designed to be extremely easy to use, making it ideal for non-technical >computer users who want to create an attractive professional-looking web site without >needing to know HTML or web coding.
 Kompozer is a decent feature full html/css editor http://kompozer.net/features.php, u can give it a try.


More precisely at Dreamweaver alternative in ubuntu?, in the comments of your question. I must accept that I didn't notice before the existence of Aptana Studio.
I include here a few screenshots for you, covering some of the points of your interest.
Dreamweaver alternative

Syntax Highlight for PHP:

Dreamweaver alternative

Syntax Highlight for HTML:

Dreamweaver alternative

Syntax Highlight for CSS:

Dreamweaver alternative

Syntax Highlight for Javascript

Dreamweaver alternative
File tree illustrated in these screenshots and this examples:

Project Explorer:

Dreamweaver alternative

Application Explorer:

Dreamweaver alternative

Multi-Tabbed files

illustrated in the above screenshots.
I have noticed that there is support for FTP/SFTP file browsing/management but these are features that I don't use so I can't provide further details but I am sure you will find it in the Aptana Studio site.
In my experience, I stopped using all these tools that I formerly used in order to start enjoying this excellent application, that tops all the other similar alternatives.
I suggest you to try it. Is as easy as download and run, or follow the instructions of the producers in order to have this application installed and running in your system. For me is good to have it inside of my home folder, from where I start it by double clicking the program's icon. The application will find its updates and download to the appropriate folder when necessary.
There are several alternatives, like those mentioned in the previous questions, including those that features WYSIWYG editors. But this is also a great Dreamweaver alternative.
Good luck!

First of all and related to the alternative to Dreamweaver, I found all the suggestions of all the other answers excellent, but when looking for an alternative to Dreamweaver, the closest application -for me- it was the Amaya Project. Which seems to be richest than other alternatives and a little bit more sophisticated than the Kompozer.
A screenshot from the official web is here for you to see it in action:
Dreamweaver alternative
Additional screenshots can be reached by clicking the next link: http://www.w3.org/Amaya/screenshots/Overview.html
You may find it a little bit unstable, or at least it was for me but it may also fit your needs.
After playing with WYSIWYG editors, I prefered direct encoding with BlueFish but it is not a WYSIWYG editor.

Edit

After installing Amaya, I find it yet far from stable but somehow it seems to have a better features than other applications, if you consider that other software are simple Text Editors and Amaya is like a WYSIWYG editor.
I tested what you said in your comment and I found that Amaya don't even get noticed that something changed in the files/folders structure/name. Which won't fit your needs related to this.
In the next screenshot you can see I renamed the "resources" folder to "resources1" and Amaya is yet showing it as "resources" and there is no way to force it refresh. Even after restarting the software and loading the project again, Amaya won't notice it.
Dreamweaver alternative
I am going to follow your question closely hoping somebody come and drop a good alternative.

did you try eclipse for php http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/ 
relevant software:
 Web Developer addon for Firefox offers some support for live editing of CSS and HTML with saving, however it's not very robust (no syntax highlighting etc.).
Good luck!

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