Something like Web Page Maker may well be all you want/need. The Web has evolved, with most of the "Wow" sort of eye candy replaced by content &/or sites that actually do something - updated major sites look simpler, not more complex.
Otherwise, when it comes to page design & layout, there's not a lot you can't do with Web Page Maker, though you may have to do some copy/pasting code for more advanced features since it only comes pre-equipped with the basics. At the least you'll probably want more CSS support. You'll want to more easily add/subtract content, & have just those changes made to your on-line site, rather than replacing everything. Now not every site updates frequently, but if yours does (or you want it to), you'll probably want an app that makes changing styles as easy as it is in Word. If you want return visitors you either add/change content, add a new look, or both. The main area where Web Page Maker is weaker than more *pro* apps is site management.
Assuming you're interested in software to design/create a web site, I think the 3 biggest factors deciding whether you'll like & use today's GOTD are: 1) if it's advanced enough, 2) if you prefer wizard based apps, & 3) if the company or ISP hosting your web site doesn't already provide you with software &/or on-line tools.
The app itself takes up ~7MB with 254 files, 56 folders, includes a small selection of clip-art, backgrounds etc, & *should* be easy to make portable with Portable App Creator - Web Page Maker has very little impact on the registry, and far as I can tell, zero impact on Windows itself. Web Page Maker is a nice, small app that comes with 8 templates, a selection of pre-packaged JavaScript, & the ability to easily add Flash video or slide-shows. It is designed for beginners (!) to get a web page or two written quickly using the program. It's a little bit unfair to criticise a program like today's GAOTD for not having more advanced features when it's not aimed even partly at more knowing website people.
it is far better to look at the code for simple sites to see how things are done, or better still, use many of the beginner html and website tutorials online! They can also be VERY complicated as html code. You can view the html source code for any page displayed in a browser, via the browser menu.įor some higher profile sites, if they have embedded frames you won't see much of the code, similarly if they use php scripts or separate file css or java scripts. There are a huge amount of open source scripts out there for code junkies.
This is a great program for people who want a quick website without too much hassle and without having to dip in to html coding.įor people who want more, programs like Dreamweaver or manual html coding are obviously the answer. Go to W3Schools and learn to actually code. So please, for the sake of standards-compliance and the Internet as a whole, avoid these types of programs if at all possible. I went to the developer's website and tested every single website on the first page of their "Gallery" for markup validity. It's also why those of us who actually code our websites get so angry at having to spend countless unnecessary hours making things both completely cross-browser, and completely standards-compliant. It's because of things like this that Microsoft is in no hurry to become standards-compliant (see ). Most people who start their web development lives with the use of programs like this usually end up using Dreamweaver for their entire web developing life. I've had a lot of people say to me in the past that "this is a good way to start in web development." Unfortunately, this is not the case.
As I'm sure all of you who are in the field of web development will know, programs such as this are by no means standards-compliant. However, I do have an issue in general with programs of this sort. Before I begin my rant here, I'd just like to say that this program does what it says in an easy-to-use manner, so for that reason I've chosen not to give it a thumbs-down rating.