Ten Ton Dreamweaver [Electronic resources] نسخه متنی

Keep Arms and Legs Inside the RideWe're About to Define a New Site!

I know, I know. You must be dying to start building pages. But this chapter is absolutely critical to constructing sites. If you remember back in the previous chapter, I said that defining a site in Dreamweaver was imperative. If you skip this part, things will really mess up on you. So tape your eyelids open and pay attention!

When you go through the site definition process, essentially what you're doing is telling Dreamweaver where all the files that are a part of your site will be stored on your hard drive. Every image, every page, even individual sound files and scripts that you use in your siteall must be stored in the same location. Otherwise, your site won't run.

As you define your site, you'll also set up your remote site, the location where you'll be publishing your site online. If you're already set up with a hosting companyor perhaps your site will be hosted internally by your companyyou should already have the information you need for this part of the process. If you've yet Finding a Web Host" later in this chapter to learn more about hosting companies.

To get an idea about how to keep yourself organized, check out my approach. I have a folder on my machine called Websites, where all my current sites are stored.

When you define your site, you can use either Basic or Advanced mode. Basic mode (which you get when you use the Site Definition wizard) provides a simplified way to define a site. The Advanced mode may seem overwhelming at first, but it allows you to make full use of all of Dreamweaver's site functions. We'll start with the Site Definition wizard (Basic mode) and then take a look at the Advanced mode.

Shazam! Using the Site Definition Wizard

With the Site Definition wizard, you'll be sailing smoothly, but because it's so simplified, it may be missing some of the functionality that you might be after. That's where the Advanced mode comes in. But first, the wizard.

The Site Definition wizard provides a simplified way to define a site.

Here's the goods on the Site Definition wizard:

From the Site menu, choose Manage Sites.

In the Manage Sites dialog box that appears, click New; then choose Site from the pop-up menu.

If necessary, click the Basic button at the top of the Site Definition window.

This switches you to the Site Definition wizard.

Give your site a name and enter your site's URL if you know it. When you're done, click Next at the bottom of the window.

I suggest giving your site a clear descriptive name. Down the road, you may find yourself working with multiple sites, and it can get really tricky remembering the difference between Unnamed Site 1, Unnamed Site 2, and so on. Also, If you haven't registered your URL yet or don't know what it will be, you can always come back and fill it in later.

In the next window, make sure the option No, I Do Not Want to Use a Server Technology is selected; then click Next.

This setting relates to building dynamic pages with Dreamweaver. Find out more in the sidebar "Taking a Drive with Data-Driven Sites."

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On the next screen, choose the way you want to work with your site:

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Odds are you'll stick with the first option, Edit Local Copies on My Machine. Use the folder icon beside the Where on Your Computer Do You Want to Store Your Files field to specify where you'll be saving your web site on your computer.

If you use the second option, Edit Directly on Server Using Local Network, use the folder icon beside the Where Are Your Files on the Network field to specify your site's folder on the network.

Click Next. If you selected Edit Local Copies on My Machine, read on. If you're using the Edit Directly on Server Using Local Network option, skip down to step 11.

Choose how you want to connect to your remote server; then click Next.

Noteworthy

A local site is a copy of your web site that resides on your computer. The local site is where you'll be doing the majority of your work, including updating, creating new pages, and adding new content. Once changes have been made to your local site, it will need to be uploaded to your remote site. See "Put Yer Files Up Dar and Git 'Em on Back" later on in this chapter.

FTP is a common approach, but there are several to choose from. The options below the pull-down list will change depending on the connection type you choose. If you're not sure which you'll use, choose Noneyou can come back to this setting later.

10.

Specify whether you want the ability to check files in and out; then click Next.

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Imminent Doom

Every site you define in Dreamweaver should have its own separate local root folder. If it doesn't, working on your sites can get very confusing, or downright disastrous. If you do choose a folder that's already being used by another site, Dreamweaver warns you of the possible problem.

Essentially, enabling Check In/Check Out allows a team of designers to work on a site at the same time without worrying about overwriting each others' files. If you work on your own, you don't need to worry about this.

11.

The Summary page appears. Take a quick look to ensure that all your settings are correct; then, when you're good, click Done.

If you want to make a change, use the Back button to return to page you want to fix.

The Summary page in the Site Definition wizard

12.

Back in the Manage Sites dialog box, click Done again.

The Updating the Site Cache window may appear. Let it do its thingit'll speed up Dreamweaver's work with your site.

Once the site definition process is complete, take a gander at the Files panel. It should load in your new site. We'll take a closer look at the Files panel later.

If your Files panel is empty, that's cuz you don't have any pages or graphics yet. But you will soon.

So that's all there is to setting up a site in Dreamweaver. Didn't hurt too much, right? Now let's take a look at the Advanced mode.

Taking a Drive With Data-Driven Sites

In greater and greater demand these days are web sites that are driven by back-end databasesthat is, sites whose content is inserted dynamically, rather than being fixed on the page.

A great example of a database driven site is [eBay.com]. Creating pages for this massive site by hand would be practically impossible. Instead, all the graphics, descriptions of items, and other page content is dynamically inserted onto the page. When a surfer performs a search, it's actually a back-end database that's being searched, and whose content is then inserted into individual pages.

Although it's beyond the scope of this book, Dreamweaver makes it easyeven for those with little experienceto create dynamic, database driven sites in a variety of server technologies and programming languages, including ASP.NET, PHP, JavaServer Pages (JSP), Microsoft Active Server Pages (ASP), and Macromedia ColdFusion. If you're interested in traveling this route, Dreamweaver's online help is a great place to begin, and there are many resources online to also help you get underway.

Taking the High Road with the Advanced Mode

Using the wizard, Dreamweaver essentially holds your hand through the site setup process. But after a few times through, you may find it a bit tedious. The Advanced mode lets you set up a site with a few clicks (assuming you know where to go) and gives you a wider range of optional site features. Once you're in, the Advanced window lists eight categories of items on the leftbut don't freak out; you'll probably use only the first few. Cloaking, Design Notes, Site Map Layout, File View Columns, and Contribute are, for the most part, used only when you're working with a team of designers.

So let's take a look at Advanced mode:

Choose Site > Manage Sites. Click New and then Site. At the top of the Site Definition dialog box that appears, click Advanced.

The Advanced window appears with the Local Info category selected at the far left and the Local Info screen displayed.

The Advanced mode allows you to make full use of all of Dreamweaver's site functions.

Sites of Significance

There are many types of sites out there to explore, even beyond the web. Here's a few different types of sites to get you started!

Construction sites: The Big Dig, Boston, MAThe problem: Downtown traffic in Boston that's thicker than Irish Guinness. The solution: The Central Artery/Tunnel Project (CA/T). Beginning in 1991, and on target for completion in mid 2005, Boston's Big Dig is comparable in scale and complexity to the construction of the English Channel Tunnel or the Panama Canal. The project will expand and bury the Central Artery and reunite city areas that have been cut off from the core of Boston since 1959. A little green on the subject? See [massturnpike.com/bigdig] for more.

Grave sites: Père-Lachaise Cemetery, ParisThe largest cemetery in Paris and the most frequented in the world, Père-Lachaise was opened by none other than notorious French conqueror Napoleon Bonaparte in 1804. At first, the cemetery didn't garner much attention, so the remains of the once famous were relocated as part of a marketing strategy. The plan worked, and now the cemetery is the immortal resting place of over 300 writers, painters, and statesmen. If you're thinking of purchasing a plot, you'll have some stiff competition. See [pere-lachaise.com] for more.

Web sites: [Thematrix101.com]The first movie was great, but the other two were cash cows, right? Think again, and let [thematrix101.com] be your guide. The site is an online community of Matrix fans and thinkers who attempt to distill the mythos and meaning behind the Wachowskis' work of genius. Suddenly you realize that the masses aren't supposed to "get it." Find out what Colonel Sanders, the Animatrix, and even the video games are really all about. Stay in Wonderland and see how deep the rabbit hole truly goes.

Parasites: Guinea Worm DiseaseHope you're not eating. The Dracunculiasis medinensis, or Guinea Worm Disease, is contracted by those who drink unsanitary water that contains the worm larva. The larva enters the host and heads for the small intestine, where it punctures the intestine wall and makes it's way into the body cavity. There, it can lie undetected for up to a year as it grows to adult size. Here's the tasty part: The worm then punctures the skin of its human host to release its eggs, hopefully into open water. Good news is they're common in only 12 sub-Saharan countries. For yummy pictures, hit up [www.biosci.ohio-state.edu/~parasite/dracunculu103]. On that note, lets eat. Who's ready for lunch?

Chapter 3, which uses an images folder, specify it in the Default Images Folder field.

Set the Links Relative To option to either Document or Site Root (using the default setting is fine) and if you know the URL for your site, enter it in the HTTP Address field.

Noteworthy

Keep Refresh Local File List Automatically checked. This will automatically update Dreamweaver's Files panel without you having to manually refresh it yourself.

If you don't know the URL just yet, you can leave this field blank for now, but know that Dreamweaver will use this URL when it checks the links in your site.

Now you'll tell Dreamweaver where your site will be published. You do this by specifying settings on the Remote Info screen.

On the far left of the Advanced window, click the Remote Info category.

The Remote Info screen appearsin the figure, for FTP access.

From the Access pull-down menu, select the type of transfer access you want to use. The options include:

Geek's Delight

To ensure that your site will appear on the web exactly as you've created it, you must duplicate your site into your remote web space exactly as it is on your computer.

None: Leave the menu set to None if you're unsure of your access type, or if you only want to develop your site for now and look after publishing it later.

FTP: FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is a common protocol for connecting to web servers. The sidebar "FTP for You and Me" later in this chapter goes into more detail about setting up an FTP connection.

Local/Network: Some companies run their own web servers internally; this option is used in that scenario. See the sidebar "Local/Network Perks" later on in this chapter for more on this type of setup.

WebDAV: If you're using the WebDAV (Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning) protocol, use this setting.

RDS: RDS (Remote Development Services) is used most commonly, though not exclusively, with ColdFusion sites.

Depending on the Access option that you pick, Dreamweaver asks for additional information.

Specify the rest of the Remote Info settings according the Access option you chose. Then click OK to close the Site Definition dialog box.

In the Manage Sites dialog box, click Done.

A Site Cache window may appear. Again, this will speed up your site work later, so just let it run.

Once the site definition process is complete, the Files panel should load in your new site. When you set up a site in Advanced mode, the only two categories you really need to specify are Local Info and Remote Info.

Geek's Delight

What's an intranet site? An intranet can be any number of things, including an internal only network. Many intranets are simply closed networks. More at: [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Intranet]

Stayin' Local With Local/Network

Larger organizations often host their own intranet sites. Other times, an organization is large enough to host its own public web site and doesn't have to rely on an external hosting company. In either of these two scenarios, you can choose Local/Network from the Access pull-down menu in Dreamweaver's Site Definition dialog box to specify where you'll be transferring your site.

Goin' after some Local/Network access.

In the Remote Info category, click the icon for Remote Folder to navigate to the location where you want the site transferred. Several additional options are also available: You can set the remote list of files to refresh automatically as you're transferring files, and you can take advantage of Dreamweaver's Check In/Check Out command.

Takin' the FTP Route

Finding a Web Host" later in this chapter for more on choosing a web hosting company.)

To start, enter your FTP host address. This is usually ftp.url.com, (where url is your site's address). Then enter your username and password and make sure that Save is checked so that you don't have to enter your password every time you connect. All other default settings should be fine, unless you're behind a firewall or want to use Dreamweaver's Check In/Check Out option.

Doin' it FTP style. The kids are all about this one.

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