Editorial Review
Here's a little no-nonsense advice for those of you who are considering Dreamweaver 4 as your future Web editor: don't skimp; buy this bundle. The seamless integration of Dreamweaver 4 with the nicely upgraded graphics application Fireworks 4 justifies the investment in this complete suite.
Macromedia's Dreamweaver 4 packs layer upon layer of powerful features, for just about any Web developer's needs and preferences. Perfect for individuals and professional Web-development teams alike, this latest version offers a fresh set of upgrades and improvements. Programmers who build sites by using only a basic text editor are rewarded with features for source-code inspection. Code View's text-editing environment offers such customizable features as live syntax coloring, tag balancing, and auto indenting. Noncoding types can click and drag sites together by using one of the finer visual editors available. Within those layers of features, there are resources for creating forms, Flash files, frames, cascading style sheets, Java and ActiveX files, and more. In Split View, the Code and Design views display simultaneously--providing the best of both worlds for ambidextrous types.
The quickest and easiest way to design graphics in the Dreamweaver world is via Fireworks 4. Fireworks' strengths lie in its focus on the creation and optimization of bitmapped and vector Web graphics. The files are integrated into Macromedia Flash and Dreamweaver easily, and importing/exporting Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator files is a breeze; especially with the program's improved layer mask handling, and a new Color Fill Live effect. Version 4 rolls out a new interface that Flash, Dreamweaver, and FreeHand users will recognize. This standardized format also offers tabbed menus for easy customization, and helps keep the screen tidy. New tools for adding interactive elements--rollovers, navigation bars, and pop-up menus--are a welcome sight. And a Live Animation feature creates frame-based GIF animations, using symbols, instances, and tweening features that are familiar to Flash users. With built-in HTML and JavaScript capabilities, version 4 delivers the goods to the Web graphics design community.
Convinced? If not, you can always buy Dreamweaver 4 at full retail, and then follow-up with a Fireworks 4 purchase, weeks or months later. Just don't blame us for the lingering red mark from your forehead slap. --Eric Twelker
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Customer Reviews
Excellent 
2002-03-03
I strayed away from Macromedia a few years ago after becoming disillusioned with the Director series. After just having had a horrible experience with compatability while using Microsoft web-editing software, I decided to purchase Dreamweaver and Fireworks and see how far the company had come. I am absolutely blown away by the power of this studio - it has singlehandedly replaced about seven different programs I was using, and making sure your content is accessable to all web users is a snap. The design tools are as simple or complex as you want to make them - I prefer to handle layout through the WYSIWYG editor, but I often need to insert custom tags and script. Both methods are simple and intuitive, as if the software always knows exactly what I'm trying to do, and it's helping me along the way. Dreamweaver integration with Flash and Fireworks media (etc.) is a bit of a plug, but it's wonderful if you're other Macromedia products (incidentally, picking up Flash along with this is a great idea). Fireworks is the definitive tool for web animation and "ka-pow!"; if you're considering just purchasing one of the two portions of this studio, forget it. You definitely want them both - you'll just end up paying more for the other half later.
Support through the Macromedia webpage and the built-in tutorials - as well as the expandability of the programs through extensions - is also excellent, and the FTP and site management is wonderful for someone as disorganized as I am. I can't recommend this product highly enough for any web designer, from the novice to the advanced.
Proficient developers that commonly use ASP and Java may want to upgrade to the UltraDev version to avoid too much custom code.
Macromedia is a god send 2002-01-24
The Dreamweaver4/Fireworks4 suite is excellent.
I can't say enough good things about it.
If you need to build a website and you don't have
the time to go to school buy and learn this suite.
PROFESSIONAL RESULTS - MINIMUM EFFORT 2001-12-26
I've had this product for about 6 months. I originally started writing web pages using HTML code. What a pain. I have used several web page development programs, but, the Dreamweaver 4/Fireworks 4 is the ultimate tool. I was up and running with it within a matter of a couple of hours. It's easy for the beginner to get cracking right away. However, for the more experienced web page designer, these programs are the ultimate in allowing your creativitity and productivity to be maximized with minimal effort. I just can't say enough. It is now my EXCLUSIVE development program.
Absolutely impressed 2001-12-18
I bought this item based on the user reviews for it, and this time I was not disappointed at all. This is a great program, and it is on the leading edge of web development. If you buy this software, and lack webdevelopment experience, I strongly suggest that you buy books to go with it. It'll only help you use all of the powerful features within this software.
If you are designing a website, then this is the software for you!!
Dreamweaver and Fireworks Studio 2001-11-11
I read all the reviews on Dreamweaver and Front Page and found Dreamweaver rated consistently higher than F.P. and with a whole lot fewer HTML errors. I upgraded from a shareware program called Actual Drawing by Pysoft Inc. Going to Dreamweaver and Fireworks fromActual Drawing was like moving from the stoneage to the 22nd Century. I found Dreamweaver and Fireworks loaded with lots of bells and whistles. It does have a learning curve to deal with but once you get past the first hurdle, it all begins to steamroll and use of the programs gets easier and easier day by day.
My research shows that professional web designers prefer D.W. over F.P. hands down. I could not find one professional web designer that would endorse F.P. Each one I spoke to advised that F.P. is good for the person who wants to put out a personal web page or a company that wants something simple to work with, but for serious web publishing get D.W.
D.W. requirements are a Pentium 166 or faster. I run it on a Pentium 133 and it is a little slow and will cause system lock ups when you ask it to do more than the processor can handle.
I highly recommend Dreamweaver and Fireworks 4 Studio for those serious about putting together a good web page with lots of zoo zoo's and zam zam's restricted only by your imagination.
The ultimate in web design software 2002-09-17
Being a web developer just got a whole lot easier thanks to Macromedia. Dreamweaver and Fireworks are both excellent programs in-and-of themselves, but together they make a lethal combination.
Packed with features for anyone ranging from the most inexperienced beginner to the mightiest webmaster, Studio 4 is very versatile. This package is fun to use because it takes the headache out of web design--all you have to do is actually design, and Studio takes care of all the technicalities.
Fireworks is easy to use and, while not quite Photoshop, a very capable program. The graphics, animated gifs, and buttons you create are fully compatible with Dreamweaver, making it easy to use them on your site.
Dreamweaver is very user-friendly. All you have to do is organize the components of your site and Dreamweaver will build it for you. The result is a very attractive website.
This is the only web design software an amateur will ever need, and provides a good groundwork for professional designers too.
Saviour of All Web Geeks/ Gurus, Designers, & Techies 2002-06-23
The DreamWeaver / Fireworks combo is an Amazing & Wonderful way to design webpages, graphics, Retouch Photos, etc. I love my Adobe Photoshop, but nothing compares to Fireworks, for the Detailed work, converting Images to High Res/low K images that do not Bore surfers, waiting for the page to load (average give-up time = 30 seconds). With Fireworks, you can tweak your graphics, until they are Perfect, but keep the SIZE of the graphic down to a minimum, thus increasing your webpage hits, astronomically.
My wife is a Web Designer / Artist / Graphic Artist, who has trained at Lynda Weinman.com ( ISBN # 1562059491 ) in beautiful "Ojai, CA." My wife swears-by Fireworks & Dreamweaver.
Luckily, I learned a lot of the tricks of the trade & I was astounded at how-often I needed Fireworks & Dreamweaver in the profession I held (until I turned to IT), as a "Document Specialist."
In today's world of High-Tech, Online Docs, etc., even Administrative Assistants need Dreamweaver & Frieworks. As a Document Specialist, I used Dreamweaver daily, for a long time.
Fireworks, comes in-handy, as well, when the A.A.'s need to scan a Signature for their Boss, for documents.
Be the only person on your floor, who knows how to use Fireworks, and you will make yourself a much-needed employee. Your Signature scans will look better than everyone-else's and you may have a bit more job security.
Fireworks & Dreamweaver are not Just for Web Geeks & Gurus. Anyone who works in an Office environment should know these programs, and use them regulalry. Fireworks is the Greatest Graphics program I have ever used.
Simply THE best web dev combination 2002-06-15
DreamWeaver Rocks. Fireworks Rocks. Together they make for a spectacular web design/development combination.
Dreamweaver is packed with features for the beginner through advanced web developer; it's easy and intuitive to use. It may take you a while to learn all the capabilities, but with each successive feature you discover and master, the development process becomes easier and faster.
Fireworks is the best in class web graphics software. It integrates very well with DreamWeaver. Creating animated GIFs is a snap, as is image optimization (file compression), image map creation, and exploring full tables (HTML and all!) for use in DreamWeaver.
You simply cannot go wrong with this package. Photoshop still has its place, but if you focus exclusively on the web and don't need to do exquisite image editing this bundle is all you need.
best of the bunch 2002-06-12
The best web site design tool on the market. After using frontpage for 2 years, I can say, without a doubt, Dreamweaver is number one and will be my only site design tool in the future. Cant beat the price for both applications.
Best tool a web designer could ask for! 2002-04-24
I can't say enough about this bundle. Whether you are a novice or a professional, Dreamweaver and Fireworks 4 will make your life a heck of a lot easier! As a professional, I rely on it to quickly work on new sites and update existing sites efficiently. It's ease of use, learning curve, functionality and abundance of free tutorials on disk and online make me wonder how Macromedia can price this so low! This is the definitive tool set for those wanting to make their web design much easier and quicker.
Dreamweaver 4
This does not excuse one from not learning HTML, JavaScript, and more. However, using this, you can learn as you do it by reviewing the code. This is the tool I used to learn (since Dreamweaver 1) web design. I'm now making twice as much as I was a professional counselor with over a decade of experience at my first corporate job! If you take the time to work the tutorials and have patience, you'll master it quickly. If you aren't as patient, you can still put up pretty decent sites.
Fireworks 4
My primary tool for web design graphics is PhotoShop and Illustrator. However, when I want to modify graphics while in Dreamweaver, I always pull Fireworks 4 to come to the rescue. It's quick, easy and makes life much easier.
Support for the product is excellent and again, this is the premium tool for serious web designers as well as your hobbyist. Buy it, you'll be glad you did! Try the free trial period for 30 days...
