Formerly owned by Allaire, Macromedia's HomeSite 5.0 is often referred to as the Web editor for hand coders. With this latest release, Macromedia proves that it is more than capable of providing this spectacular Web site editor with a very inviting new home. If you've used HomeSite before, not much has changed with regard to installation and startup. If you've never used the program before, you might want to either flip through the resourceful handbook or check out the long list of help references in the left-hand column. One topic that caught our eye was "Learn HTML and CSS," which is a rather in-depth tutorial for those who are just getting started with the language or who just need a refresher course. These online courses take about a half-hour to complete.
For new users and old hands alike, HomeSite 5.0 offers some very compelling new features, including XHTML support. Macromedia has also worked hard to improve code validation for many languages, including HTML, JSP, CFML, and more. Checking your code for errors is as simple as hitting Shift + F6, a big improvement over the days of scrutinizing code and straining your eyes in search of missing tags. Another important improvement is the new Secondary Files tab, which lets you access multiple files at once, making it much easier and faster to incorporate remote files into your HomeSite project. In addition, Macromedia has included an Auto Backup feature, designed to save your work as often as you decide is necessary.
Macromedia's acquisition of HomeSite has also resulted in better integration with Fireworks and Dreamweaver, their signature Web design and development products. In addition, you can now edit files that are included within your code, without having to open that file in a separate program.
The only pet peeve we have about HomeSite is this: HomeSite automatically inserts the proper end tag to correspond with whatever start tag you write. However, if you erase the start tag, HomeSite will not automatically erase the corresponding end tag, which often results in bad code. Not an earth-shattering flaw, but a small, needed improvement to an otherwise outstanding product. --Gisele Toueg
Developers can create professional Web sites fast with the code editing features of Macromedia HomeSite 5. The software delivers advanced hand coding features, productivity-enhancing wizards, and a customizable user interface to efficiently build, deploy, and manage your entire Web site. Effortlessly validate, reuse, navigate, and format your code with integrated coding tools. The wizards quickly create pages, tables, frames, and JavaScript elements for you.
With XHTML support, based on the W3C specifications for XHTML 1.0, developers can build pages with the latest Web technologies. The extensibility of XHTML provides the flexibility to incorporate new Web communication and presentation ideas as they emerge. Developers can use the new Secondary Files tab to browse local and remote files simultaneously and to drag and drop files between the two Files tabs, efficiently incorporating documents and images.
The new Folder Deployment settings enable developers to determine the deployment method for individual folders and files within a project. These new settings make deployment much more accessible to the novice user while maintaining the sophistication of the feature for the high-end user.
Note: This is an upgrade version for owners of HomeSite 3.x or 4.x.
