Foundation Dreamweaver MX 2004

By Craig Grannell, George McLachlan, David Powers

For additional information concerning changes to PHP since publication of this title, please refer to the notes at the foot of this page.

Dreamweaver MX 2004 is the latest version of Macromedia’s world-class visual web-authoring tool, which includes powerful yet easy-to-use database integration. Unlike many other books, Foundation Dreamweaver MX 2004 focuses on both sides of coin – no matter what your background, this book will give you a solid foundation in graphic design and layout issues as well as full training in the powerful server-side and database integration features that Dreamweaver offers. The truth is that in today's climate database integration is no more of an extra than faultless visual design, and this book is here to guide you through this new world, covering dynamic scripting with PHP and the popular MySQL database. This book covers:

• Site design and layout principles
• Using templates and Cascading Style Sheets to create advanced site designs
• Adding interactivity to pages with PHP script
  Setting up PHP and MySQL to create powerful dynamic database-driven applications

Even if you are already using Dreamweaver and want to extend your skills towards dynamic content, interactive and engaging to your visitors. Or maybe you’re a developer who wants to make the most of this sophisticated productivity tool and take full advantage of the renowned Dreamweaver interface to improve your workflow. Foundation Dreamweaver MX 2004 gives you the essential grounding that you’ll need in the all-important design context. Whether a complete novice or a past user, after reading this book, you’ll be fluent in the full breadth of the powerful functionality that Dreamweaver MX 2004 has to offer. This book presents a unique learning curve backed up by solid real-world case studies and tutorials.

Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 makes this all possible, and Foundation Dreamweaver MX 2004 makes it easier than you could have imagined! This book will benefit you if you're:

• Someone who wants to learn Dreamweaver MX 2004, but only wants a static site.
• The same, but who might take a look at dynamic sites later.
• Someone who already has a static site, but wants to make it dynamic.
• Someone who wants to create a dynamic site from scratch.
• Those who want to improve their sites and learn best practices and web standards.

Summary of Contents:

• Chapter 01: Introducing Dreamweaver MX 2004
• Chapter 02: Introducing our Case study
• Chapter 03: Working with Dreamweaver
• Chapter 04: Creating a Layout
• Chapter 05: Beginning Page Layout in Dreamweaver
• Chapter 06: Internal Page Layout in Dreamweaver
• Chapter 07: Creating a Template
• Chapter 08: Adding Content
• Chapter 09: Working with Code
• Chapter 10. Introducing dynamic content with PHP
• Chapter 11. Getting interactive with forms
• Chapter 12. Pages that think for themselves
• Chapter 13. PHP/MySQL: the real dynamic duo
• Chapter 14: Secure Login and Registration
• Chapter 15: Case Study: Content Management System
• Appendix A: Dreamweaver Extensions

Several months after the publication of this title, PHP 5 was released, and the PHP development team made considerable changes both to the configuration and to the recommended method of installation on Windows. If installing PHP 5, it is recommended you follow these revised instructions for both PHP and Apache.

This book is part of friends of ED's 'Foundation' series

The Foundation series is perfect for beginners to a technology, because it doesn't assume any previous knowledge. Each book in the series takes you step by step through your chosen technology, starting with the absolute fundamentals and working through all aspects of the technology, ultimately providing you with a firm grasp of the basics that will enable you to create your own applications or web sites. You will learn by following complete examples at every stage of your journey, often by extended case studies that you will build upon throughout the book. The Foundation series will give you the broad and solid base you need in order to progress to a higher level of expertise.