Hand coding VS HTML editors

[Jason Batten]

Hey all,

Five years ago I begun web designing with Win98's version of Frontpage, then moved to NetObjects Fusion (scored a free version with a magazine). Both are WYSIWYG editors. Then I learnt HTML and from then I have been hand coding everything. I have installed Dreamweaver at least 5 times and uninstalling it with-in hours.

Is it really "better" to let a program generate the HTML for you? I like knowing exactly what every line of my code does but for the time saving are programs like Dreamweaver truly better? :bemused:

Cheers

[planetsim]

Currently the couse Im doing we are forced to use Dreamweaver as many companies use it for Developing.

I tried my hardest to get out of it because of the bloated code Dreamweaver gives, just try doing PHP with it, easy to do but being a programmer it made me sick looking at it.

So basically as much as I hate it there not going to be going anywhere anytime soon except MS Frontpage.

I personally prefer to hand code, as firstly you know what your doing, you dont need to go through bloated code (unless thats the way you code) to fix something, you can document your code unlike Dreamweaver which has very little if any (tries not to bring back supressed memories).

Hand coding you can also optimize the code of course with Dreamweaver you can to however dreamweaver wont display that optimized code correctly if its HTML.

But like I said companies still use it, and if you want a job doing web development your going to have to know how to use it. And also fix bloated bits of code which are undocumented.

[leatherback]

Also,

have a look at this old thread:

Do you use a WYSIWYG editor! (http://www.phpbuilder.com/board/showthread.php?&threadid=10264772)

J.

[vaaaska]

With CSS styling everything these days (and for good reason) coding html any way besides by hand doesn't really work. At least for me...

[pohopo]

For PHP I personally would never use DW or notepad. If you are going to program in PHP you should use something like PhpEd or Zend Studios. In both editors you still hand code your DHTML, but the debugging and php code help features are invaluable.

[Jason Batten]

I use TextPad, it works great for HTML, CSS and PHP.

I agree that notepad has out run its days of use. I use to use it for HTML but without syntax highlighting, its just annoying now.

MS should improve notepad.

[fire_cracker]

I've been hand coding for my entire career. I can't stand using WYSIWYG editors; however, recently I have been turned back on by dreamweaver...I could care less about the design view, it is worthless, and I allways have to go back into the code to change the way dreamweaver thought it should go.

I like the program for it's file check in/check out abilities, how it can FTP on save, decent code highlighting no mater what language I happen to be coding in, etc. etc.

I do agree that the windows notepad is worthless, especially when you have an error on line 134234123, and you have to go hunting for it.

[mattd123]

Originally posted by NetNerd85

I begun web designing with Win98's version of Frontpage, then moved to NetObjects Fusion (scored a free version with a magazine). Both are WYSIWYG editors. Then I learnt HTML and from then I have been hand coding everything. I have installed Dreamweaver at least 5 times and uninstalling it with-in hours.


Strange...I have exactly the same story as you! :cool:

Nowadays, I always prefer hand coding. It's the only real way, in my opinion, to acieve what you really want, and HTML isn't exactly difficult to understand (who would have thought that the 'table' element would create a table, and that the 'width' attribute would define width?!)

Forced to use Frontpage for ICT GCSE though...oh joy.

[halojoy]

:cool:

I write most everything from scratch. In plain text editor.
Of course I copy and paste a lot, to insert code snippets or functions downloaded or found on the web.

I have 2 rather basic text editors I do my work with:
NEdit and EditPad Lite. Both are Linux versions.
I have Quanta Plus installed.
It is said to be a very good web editor. Haven't used it yet.

:cool:

[Elizabeth]

I still love my Dreamweaver; it has its place within my set of tools. I do love the awesome FTP functionality and the wysiwyg layout for tables and junk... mostly because I'm lazy and usually trying to move on to the next project.

But if I'm doing anything PHP-related I use TextPad.

Incidentally, is anybody using PHPEclipse? I haven't had 10 minutes to play around with it but I understand it has similar instantaneous FTP capabilities as DW.

[Drakla]

I'm exactly the same as Elizabeth. Use DW but it's 99.9% of the time in code view, then sometimes flit across to put in tables / links and append the appropriate css class. It saves me time with HTML, not PHP.

I've tried recently to get into using other PHP environments (about 6 or the, but not tried Zend yet) and found them all revolting. Trouble is I can imagine if I'd started with one of them in the first place I'd find Dreamweaver an absolute horror.

I still find DW's inability to set the backgrounds on code colouring individually for each document type, but for the whole document really annoying as I started programming using Borland C++ and just love that blue background tranquility.

[stolzyboy]

i just use homesite, cuz i like the purdy colors :)

DW is too heavy a program for me to keep open in just code view when i can have my homesite open for next to nothing of resources...

and i like to know what i get for code...

stolzyboy

[leatherback]

OK,

Here goes: I am using JEXT, your basic syntax highlite prog. Nothing more, nothing less. It is time for me to get some prog that will keep track of

- defined CSS classes
- PhP functions

and offer an auto-finish + the arguments / definition of the classes & functions.

It would be nice if it can keep track of database / tables / fields, safes me a lot of typo-debugging

I do not need a preview-window

Any suggestions which would suit me?

Obviously.. Money is always an issue, but if it is worth the money, it is worth it..

J./

[kender]

best of both worlds

notepad2 - http://www.flos-freeware.ch/notepad2.html

good highlighting (basic) for php and html, with the speed of notepad