Build a Website with Dreamweaver

1. Define a site

First you have to define a site in Dreamweaver. The following are the basic information you need for now:

• Site name
• Local root folder
• Default images folder

2. Make a template

To make tutorial easier, I have made a basic website layout consisted of the follwing: header, left column, right column, and footer. Save this HTML file as Dreamweaver template, File > Save as Template. Then you need to make two editable regions: left_column and right_column.

How to make Editable Regions:

Left Column:
Select the left table cell, Insert > Template Objects > Editable Region (Ctrl+Alt+V) and name it left_column.

Right Column
Select the right table cell, Insert > Template Objects > Editable Region (Ctrl+Alt+V) and name it right_column.

3. New from Template

Now create a new html document from template and save it as index.html in the root folder.

Note that the html document is locked except the left_column and right_column editable region. Add the following to the left side menu: About Me, See My Portfolio, and Email Me. I put a blank link(#) to the menu for now and they will be replaced as soon I have all the pages ready.

4. Library Item

Select the left side menu, go to Assets/Library pallate, click on the (+) icon to make the selected codes into a Library Item and name it "main_sidenav". Note that the side menu is now locked and placed in the library. When you update this Library Item, Dreamweaver will update all the pages within your site that use this item. Library Item is good for common content such as sub navigation, page signature, column content, etc.

5. Save As

Make a new folder 'about', and save this page as "about.html" in the 'about' folder. Select the side menu, in the Properties pallate, click Detach from original. This will detach from the Library and become editable. Change the menu to: About Me, Biography, and Resume. Now select the menu again, convert it into Library Item and name it "about_subnav".

More pages:

Now save the "about.html" as "bio.html" and "resume.html" in the 'about' folder.

Repeat these steps and create the following pages and Library Items:

6. Update template

Now you have all the pages ready and it is time to go back to the template and plug in the links for the navigation. Select each navigation button and enter the according link.

Save your changes and Dreamweaver will ask if you would like to update all pages based on this template, click Update. Go preview your site and note that the changes applied to all the pages. This will save a lot of time since you don't have to go to each individual page and edit manually.

7. Update Library Items

Go to the Library, open each Library Item and plug in the according link to each menu button. Be sure to click Update to the update the files.

8. Synchronize

This is the last step and it is also a very important step. I will show you how to synchronize your site, in other words, upload your site.

Before you can synchronize your files, you need to set up your server in the Site Manager. Go to Site > Manage Sites, in the Advanced tab, select Remote Info, select FTP Access and enter your server information. You may test your server information by clicking the Test button. Be sure to check Maintain synchronization information.

Right click on your site folder, select

Dreamweaver will then show the action to all the files. Click Ok to upload all the files to your server.

Try this:

Rename one of your files in the Files pallate. For example, rename "about.html" to "about_me.html", now Dreamweaver will ask you to update the links that link to this file. This will prevent broken link within your site.

Try update your template or files and Synchronize again. Dreamweaver will compare your local files with the remote server and see which one is newer version. Then it allows you to put your updated or new file(s) to the remote server. With Dreamweaver Synchronization tool, you don't even need to upload your files manually by a FTP software.

Create a new image in the 'image' folder and synchronize the 'image' folder, Dreamweaver will automatically detect the new file and upload it to the server.

Some Website Maintenance Tips

• Use template to keep your site consistent
• Organize your files with folders
• Save all your images in the 'images' folder
• Use Library Item for common codes