getting started with golive
Pages designed to be displayed on the world wide web are generally written using a coding system called HTML. Adobe GoLive allows you to design a page in an interface that looks and works like a word processor, without becoming an expert in HTML.
This introduction covers the basics of using GoLive to create a site or to import one you already have and then to edit the pages of your site. If you don't already have a general understanding of web publishing, read the introductory material in the Getting Started section of this site.
Before continuing, change the resolution of your display to 1028x768 or higher. GoLive will work at a lower resolution but the program is much easier to use if you give yourself more screen space.
Why GoLive?
If you look around, you'll find many tools for creating and publishing sites to the web. Some people write their pages in HTML, others use programs like Dreamweaver or FrontPage. As you might expect, I recommend Adobe's GoLive program. Here are some reasons for my preference:
- GoLive has excellent site management tools. Often, the hardest part of publishing on the web is maintaining and expanding the site. GoLive does a great job of finding errors, organize the site, making site-wide changes easy, and basically keeping track of where all the little pieces are.
- The page layout options in GoLive are easy to use. The program offers tables, of course, with the usual HTML settings. But for more control, you can use a layout grid that allows placing elements literally anywhere on the page.
- Cascading style sheets provide the greatest flexibility in designing web sites and GoLive's CSS tools are easier to use than those in Dreamweaver. Neither program, however, displays CSS pages accurately so previews must be done in a browser rather than in the edit window.
- As you might expect, GoLive has outstanding integration with Photoshop and other Adobe products which allows you to edit an image using Photoshop tools without ever leaving GoLive. Of course, Dreamweaver features smooth integration with Flash and the other pieces of the Macromedia Studio. However, I don't use Flash nearly as much as Photoshop.
Is the program perfect? Of course not - show me one that is! But every time I compare new versions of GoLive to Dreamweaver, I never find anything compelling enough to change. I just find it easier to use, especially for those of us who are amateur webmasters.
If you've decided you might like to use GoLive, head for the next page to continue this introduction.
