CSS/HTML Editor?

[paddy_za]

Hi,

I was wondering if you guys could help. I have been asked to do some basic content changes on our website which has all been fairly simple up until recently (I have no experience with CSS and HTML).

I do this by opening the .php files in Visual Studio, making the changes and then uploading them.

I would now like to add something a bit more complex and don't feel comfortable fiddling with the CSS styles page. Is there an application that you can add your source code to and then it provides you with a real-time design interface to make changes?

Apologies if this question seems stupid!

Thanks,
Patrick

[DevSign]

You could try dreamweaver and then obviously there'll be other free software that would have the same capabilities as dreamweaver...

One negative with this kind of WYSIWYG(what you see is what you get) software is that it doesn't always work so great, like dreamweaver for example, it's preview window doesn't always render properly, or it renders properly, but in a browser it renders differently.

The best way to do this is
(1) Learn CSS, it's not so difficult
(2) Get a freelancer to assist

In the end of the day, the time you spend on learning CSS, could've paid for a professional.
On the other hand, the the time you spend learning CSS, improves your skills.

There's no quick fix in life...quick fixes ALWAYS have complications.

[ChocolateBadger]

Hi,

I was wondering if you guys could help. I have been asked to do some basic content changes on our website which has all been fairly simple up until recently (I have no experience with CSS and HTML).

I do this by opening the .php files in Visual Studio, making the changes and then uploading them.

I would now like to add something a bit more complex and don't feel comfortable fiddling with the CSS styles page. Is there an application that you can add your source code to and then it provides you with a real-time design interface to make changes?

Apologies if this question seems stupid!

Thanks,
Patrick

Oh boy good luck. Dreamweaver is a good option

[Faultyboy]

++Notepad is awesome... you can run your code in a variety of browsers. It also has loads of plugins and is very customizable..

only way to go when using HTML/CSS/PHP

[Solitude]

Try Microsoft WebMatrix. It's a free HTML/CSS WYSIWYG editor. I haven't tried it myself but I've heard good things about it and it sounds ideal for what you want to do.

http://www.microsoft.com/web/

[paddy_za]

Try Microsoft WebMatrix. It's a free HTML/CSS WYSIWYG editor. I haven't tried it myself but I've heard good things about it and it sounds ideal for what you want to do.

http://www.microsoft.com/web/

Thanks for the responses everyone. I have installed WebMatrix. Seems very cool so far. Will let you know how it goes!

[paddy_za]

It doesn't seem to apply the CSS when I click on Run.. It just shows the basic page in HTML. Any ideas?

[Solitude]

Sorry paddy_za, I've never used it so I have no idea how it works.

[scudsucker]

Can't you edit PHP files in the Visual Studio "visual" editor?

[koeksGHT]

Notepad++

[Japster]

Sublime is also very handy and you can edit php, css, html and many more with it

[HeftyCrab]

iirc, a while back someone recommended amaya?i believe its open source.

[clod]

I recommend to try Codelobster PHP Edition
It is very cute free editor

[GarethC]

I've always just used Notepadd++ (as some people have already suggested). I keep a copy of the website I'm working on locally, and the just open the file to see how it's working. If I'm happy I upload the finished product.

If you've got php files, then you may want to install a program like WAMP. Which effectively runs a websever on your computer. It's capable of displaying php websites, so you can test the changes you make locally, before uploading the files to your server.

[timmie23]

Notepad++ all the way, and avoid WYSIWYG editors.
Seriously, nothing good is going to come of it. Just google what you want to do, you're very likely to find exactly the source for what you need to do. W3C even lets you edit most of the examples in real time, so you can see and learn at the same time.
A quick fix is going to look like a quick fix.
If you don't have the time, cough up a few USD and pay a freelancer to do it. If you hire a capable freelancer, the results will be more than worth it.