How to Build a Website with Dreamweaver and Multimedia Flash

Dreamweaver and Flash can be referred to as the Rolls Royce of web design. These two multimedia software programs, specifically Adobe Dreamweaver CS5 and Adobe Creative Suite 5 (which include Flash Professional) bring your Web pages to life with interactivity and animation. In addition, a well crafted Flash website created with Dreamweaver is typically more user-friendly. The software allows the incorporation of sound, video and text that help the web surfer find germane and appropriate information. The bells and whistles created with Adobe Dreamweaver CS5 also keep the visitor’s attention long enough to accomplish the goals of the site designer and owner.

<b><u>Create a Web Document</b></u>

Step 1

Click on the desired document from the “Create New” list. If the “Start Page” does not display when Dreamweaver opens, click “File” and “New” to open the “New Document” dialog box.

Step 2

Select the “HTML” document type from the “Document Type” drop-down list. Click “Create” and a new dialog box opens as “Untitled Document.” The “General” tab of the “New Document” dialog box gives you access to various templates. Select a template or work with a blank page, then click “File” and “Save As” to open the save dialog box. Browse to the folder where you want to save the file, type in a filename in the “File Name” text box. The file extension will always be .HTM or .HTML, and one or the other will be set as the default. Click “Save” and you will see the name change at the top of the window.

Step 3

Add text and images to your palate or document by selecting “File” and “Insert Text” or “Insert Images.” The images can be manipulated and animated by right clicking on the picture and selecting from the available choices.

<b><u>Set Page Properties</b></u>

Step 1

Choose “Modify” and “Page Properties” to set the Title, Margin, Color Scheme, Font, and Background. Setting the page properties is important because this will create the foundation for all the pages included in your website. Most Flash websites stay with a particular theme, therefore you can omit this step when adding more information to additional pages.

Step 2

Choose “Modify,” “Page Properties” and “Appearance” to change the font style, color, weight (bold, italics, size), links, and page headings. Click on “Apply” or “OK” to record the color scheme for the current page and for subsequent pages.

Step 3

Open the “Color Picker” box and click the “System Colors” button. Click a color and adjust if you desire by using the “Intensity Slider” or you can actually type in the hexadecimal number specific to a particular color. You can also utilize the “Color Picker” icon that resembles and “eye-dropper” to change and modify your colors.

<b><u>Enter and Edit Text</b></u>

Step 1

Start typing in your open document as you would on any other word processing program. The difference takes place behind the scenes as the built-in HTML editor turns your plain text into a language that is compatible to the Internet. Once you have a sentence or paragraph completed you are ready to edit your text.

Step 2

Click once to move the insertion point and double-click to select a word or group of words. Once a word or words are selected the information can be copied, deleted, moved, set to bold, font changed, or the background color can be changed. Right-click on your selection and choose from the various options presented.

Step 3

Insert an image into your text if you so desire. Highlight the image once it is placed into your document and select “Alignment” from the menu to align the image right, left, or center. Add a border to your image by highlighting, right-clicking, and going into the “Picture Properties.”

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