Rating: 
Summary: Too expensive and complicated
Review: I laugh when I read some of these reviews on Dreamweaver and they say how great it is. It's most likely someone who's never experienced another software, or was suckered into believeing Dreamweaver is God's gift to man. So what if Dreamweaver has "super feature X," or can double as a ray gun; bottom line is it's not easy to learn, and your average user will run into frustration with it. Your average person wants to get a site up and running in as little time as possible. And I really believe the other reviews that say Golive is better, because I've used both Dreamweaver and Golive and wished I had tried Golive first. But instead I believed the same junk spewing from Dreamweaver die-hards, and wound up paying for not just Dreamweaver but 2 more books to help me to understand it. If you're a professional and have the plenty of time to invest, and are going to fill up your Web site to the max, then go with Dreamweaver. If you don't have weeks to learn an application, and if you're not going to put every applet in the world into your site, then go with Golive.
Rating: 
Summary: Love the versatilitly
Review: I learned Dreamweaver 4 and love the versatility of using MX. Great being able platform to the art board of either DW4 or DW MX. Looking forward to learning the features of MX.
Rating:
Summary: Just did a Magnificent Building Job!
Review: I used to work solely in Front Page but a friend, in the advertising industry, kept nagging me about I really needed to learn Dreamweaver. So I've been taking a community college course in it this term. My assignment, due in a few days, is a 5 page website and I must say that I've done an excellent job building it in Dreamweaver. I don't use templates. I build from the white screen. I haven't begun to explore the depths of what Dreamweaver can do but already I can feel its power. Everything you need, and I do mean everything, covers the screen real estate while you work. If you need to get a better look at what you are building, you can easily collapse those other features so you can swell your web screen and html screen space. Perhaps my favorite feature is the html code itself being viewable the whole time I'm building and that I can go from my web building screen to my html screen just by moving my cursor. Dreamweaver also does not stick things I don't want into my html code which Front Page did. (However, to be fair, when I began using Front Page, I couldn't do anything with html code anyway so that was hardly a problem)! I also love that Dreamweaver prompts me, when I'm in the html view, about what I might want to add at that point. Could I have used this product this effectively if it were my very first time working with building a web? I doubt it. There are people in my class, though, who do have entry level ability and they've decided to learn Dreamweaver as their first and only web builder. In the long run, they probably will save themselves a lot of money and aggravation by doing so. I would call myself an intermediate level user so I cannot evaluate this program for advanced users or programmers. As an artist who uses Photoshop, Dreamweaver integrates beautifully with Photoshop. The two programs work very well together and I need that as I use far more images than text in my websites. For a user like myself, Dreamweaver is fabulous. For a beginner, it is going to be a challenge but doable with the right learning aids such as a community college class.
Rating:
Summary: Sad...
Review: I was very disappointed with Dreamweaver MX, especially after reading such good reviews for it in various computer magazines. First off, the software is slow and unstable. Stability and performance in Dreamweaver MX are just plain horrible. It shouldn't take 25 minutes to open a file, 15 minutes to save changes and 30 minutes to switch from Code View to Design View. MX also crashes on me at least twice a day, and what upset me the most was MX's amazing ability to crash on me WHILE it's saving a file to my harddrive (which defeats the whole purpose of trying to save it to begin with)... I'll admit it's good for building dynamic websites if you don't already know how (it can create recordsets, db connections, etc at the click of a button).. but as far as productivity goes, I'm better off with Notepad. I spend more time starring at the hourglass while dreamweaver sucks out all the memory on my computer than I actually do working in dreamweaver. (and I still have yet to understand what it's doing for half an hour while it's saving changes I've made.) ..and I'm running WinXP Pro 2.0GHz P4 with 256mb RAM which should suffice, even Adobe Photoshop runs with ease on my computer... Also, if I try to change focus (switch to a diff. application, miniminze MX, etc) without first saving changes I've made, I have to wait 25 minutes because MX just makes noise on my harddrive while it's switching views. Frustrating. I won't buy future versions of Dreamweaver. Sure, it's good for beginners who don't really understand how to write code, but I don't have time to sit and stare at my computer while Dreamweaver gives me an hourglass all day.
Rating:
Summary: Oh, This Is The One!
Review: I'd been struggling with a website. I mean, really struggling. It was a horrid thing done in Adobe Sitemill 3.0 that needed to be put out of its misery. So, I tried Microsoft Publisher. Aaarrggghhh! Then, I got out my copy of HoTMetaL Pro 5.0, purchased in a reckless moment, and never used. Five days of frustration followed, culminating in the site not uploading properly. [Among HTML Pro's failings: it defaults to .... names, it loses your graphics, the styles ..., the whole look of pages is unprofessional, it ... ah, forget it]. Money was at stake, so I bought Dreamweaver MX. Now, I'm not saying it was very, very simple. I did have to look at the manual briefly (30 minutes) to come to terms with its approach. And then, four hours later, I had a working website, that looked professionally done, almost designed. And, with the help of a textbook purchased yesterday, we're off to a Mk.2 site that'll be dazzling.
Rating:
Summary: Dreamweaver, Macromedia... suck, from a convert.
Review: I'll never understand people's love affair with Macromedia - they've become Microsoft junior!!! Time to tell it like it is. Dreamweaver SUCKS! It just does. If folks don't start complaining MM will continue to write crap, buggy software like DWMX, (ala Microsoft). Dreamweaver started as a fine html IDE - which I used to swear by. HOWEVER, my opinion has changed since then. DW is now trying to be too many things to too many different users. Here's my 2 cents: > If you're using it as a an HTML IDE:
- it has evolved into complicated bloatware (just like Microsoft's mature apps...). Instead of spending the time going through the learning curve of DW bloatware - just learn to write the code yourself. You will benefit by not being limited to what MM decides to give you. You will also understand what you're doing. There are zillions of excellently written and documented javascript, java, dhtml, asp, php etc.,scripts on the web (check out hotscripts.com as one example) that you can integrate into your code. DW doesn't give you anything you can't find "out there" in terms of behaviors, CSS, form validation, etc.
Suppose something isn't working correctly that's coded in DW? Brings me to next point:
>Ever try to read DW code? Forget it. > THIS IS THE WORST - Every try to set up and get this thing working on a remote (or local) server regardless if it's asp, jsp, or php? IT IS A NIGHTMARE! I have rarely ever gotten this thing's output to work as billed on a remote server. Crashes, weird errors you can't figure out.
>Again - same applies, ever try to debug DW's server code? Forget it. - get yourself a good php/asp/jsp book and code it yourself. It's not that hard! The time you spend learning DW and getting it to work, you will be well on your way to learning your prefered server-side scripting language. Master PHP Visual Quick Start, and you will be able to do what DWMX does, without all the headaches. Oh - and you'll save yourself or your company a few hundred per license. > I DON'T LIKE COLDFUSION!! GET IT MM? COLDFUSION WILL NEVER COMPETE WITH PHP OR OTHER FREE MIDDLEWARE! STOP TRYING TO LEVERAGE THE DW (AND FLASH) USER BASE TO PUSH COLDFUSION!!! Tactical error acquiring Allaire - forget it, move on. The web is powered by php and mysql - yet, because it's (cringe) "open source" you have yet to fully implement it in DW. GET WITH THE MARKET!!! GET WITH USER NEED!!! STOP TRYING TO DICTATED WHAT TECHNOLOGIES SHOULD BE USED TO THE MARKET!!! Again - shades of Microsoft!!! Bottom line DW sucks. Sorry, it just does. It has a long learning curve if you're new to it to the extent that you should just learn to write it yourself in edit plus. It is an absolute nightmare to get it working -consistently- on a server. It crashes a lot, it's a memory hog, it's buggy, and it writes indecipherable code. For example, DWMX crashed evertime I tried to preview in a browser from w/in DW UNLESS I had an OE session up. Also, often, I just want to look at a page, DW forces you to define remote, testing, and local servers. I started using a freeware editor that just lets me view the page in a browser w/o crashing and w/o setting up a whole new site. Also, DW "insists" on associating itself with my php pages - despite setting Windows XP to associate *.php's with my prefered text editor, forcing me to right-click and manually select the other editor *every* time I want to open and edit a php page. I HATE when some software manufacturer decides what's best for me and takes over my system!!! ANOTHER page from MS - worse, in fact! Grrrrrr. I got off the bus around DW4 Ultradev and didn't regret it. Learn to write the code yourself! Drumbeat (yes, Drumbeat) was much, much friendlier, stable, and better. The market is open for an IDE that supports server-side scripting languages,INCLUDING php, that actually works!
Rating:
Summary: Too complex for this beginner
Review: I'm new to web design and heard DW was powerful, so that's what I got. I found it overwhealming, way too much for a beginner. I've had it a couple months, I've spent a lot on tutorial books, and still haven't gotten usable results -- though I'm so frustrated now I've mostly given up. To be fair, if you're an experienced web design professional, it looks like a useful program.
Rating: 
Summary: Awesome program, but be sure to update immediatley
Review: I'm not going to go too much into the amazing robustness of this program. It is hands down the best wysiwyg + coding program out there. Even if you are a hand coder, it will help you be more productive. Be sure you have a lot of computer resources for it as it is still a hog, but better than previous versions.
**Mainly, I just wanted y'all to know to go to Dreamweaver's site immediatley after getting this program so that you can install v6.1 updater.** I was surprised it shipped as the older version.
Rating: 
Summary: Not very good
Review: I've been a web professional for over seven years. I loved Dreamweaver 2,3 and 4. I also have the utmost respect for Macromedia. However... Macromedia fell short on Dreamweaver MX. It seems as if the good folks at Macromedia tried to accomodate both front end (html) and back end developers (asp, php, etc). I have yet to see a backend developer use Dreamweaver and why should the front end developers pay extra for features designed for the backend developer. Me, being a front end developer, will hardly use half of the menu items and buttons Dreamweaver is nice in that combined some of the features of Homesite for those of us who know HTML code, the CSS features are also good...but here are other problems 1). Properties window changes when working on text. I want to see right align, center, and left align icons, but suddenly, I get none of these! I have to right click on the text and use the menu there. 2). The software has bugs! Crashes alot even doing the simplest tasks. 3). No longer can we copy and paste from a source code into the Dreamweaver platform...that was a nice feature in previous versions of Dreamweaver. 4).The software is a very much of a MEMORY HOG! To develop, I softimes need Photoshop, Flash, and Dreamweaver open at the same time. In addition, I surf the net, get my emails...so I usually have five or six applications running at the same time.
When I shut down Dreamweaver, the performance of my other apps improve. So in other words, I will uninstall Dreamweaver MX and go back to Dreamweaver 3.0.
Rating:
Summary: Not very good
Review: I've been a web professional for over seven years. I loved Dreamweaver 2,3 and 4. I also have the utmost respect for Macromedia. However... Macromedia fell short on Dreamweaver MX. It seems as if the good folks at Macromedia tried to accomodate both front end (html) and back end developers (asp, php, etc). I have yet to see a backend developer use Dreamweaver and why should the front end developers pay extra for features designed for the backend developer. Me, being a front end developer, will hardly use half of the menu items and buttons Dreamweaver is nice in that combined some of the features of Homesite for those of us who know HTML code, the CSS features are also good...but here are other problems 1). Properties window changes when working on text. I want to see right align, center, and left align icons, but suddenly, I get none of these! I have to right click on the text and use the menu there. 2). The software has bugs! Crashes alot even doing the simplest tasks. 3). No longer can we copy and paste from a source code into the Dreamweaver platform...that was a nice feature in previous versions of Dreamweaver. 4).The software is a very much of a MEMORY HOG! To develop, I softimes need Photoshop, Flash, and Dreamweaver open at the same time. In addition, I surf the net, get my emails...so I usually have five or six applications running at the same time.
When I shut down Dreamweaver, the performance of my other apps improve. So in other words, I will uninstall Dreamweaver MX and go back to Dreamweaver 3.0.
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