Web design software turns the text and images that make up a Web page into a live site. By providing templates and supporting various scripts and languages, Website design software makes creating a professional-quality site a fast, easy and reliable process.
Features and Advantages of Web Page Design Software
Website design software provides templates for building pages as well as preview features that let you test out your creation and make any necessary changes without having to actually render the page elements you’ve built. It also provides support for placing meta tags and keywords, and supports rollover creation while providing site backup capabilities.
The best Web design software also supports all the scripts and languages that are widely used. Look for programs that can use not only HTML, XHTML and CSS, but also XML, XSL, JavaScript, VBScript and PHP.
You should look for Website design software that comes complete with detailed instructions and tutorials so your staff can get up to speed with the program’s features quickly. Also, the more operating systems that your Web design software is compatible with, the better. There are also products available for building specific types of Web pages; blog software is a good example.
The advantage of using Web page design software is that you can create professional-quality pages, even with a limited amount of specialized knowledge. By using the tutorials to familiarize yourself with the software, you can also avoid costly outsourcing of Web design work by taking a do-it-yourself approach.
Popular Web Design Software Applications
Free Web design software is available, but limited in its abilities. For example, it usually supports only a narrow selection of operating systems, scripts and languages. It may also be offered only for a trial period, at which time you’ll have to pay to keep using the product.
Currently, some of the best-performing Web design programs on the market include CoffeeCup Visual Site Designer, Serif WebPlus X2, Web Easy Professional, NetObjects Fusion, Evrsoft First Page, HTML-Kit Tools, AceHTML, UltraEdit, TopStyle and BestAddress HTML Editor.
Programs that support full website creation (rather than just page design) include Intuit Website Creator, Web Studio, SiteSpinner, Web Page Maker, Perfect Website Creator, Web Page Wizard, ThunderSite and Ezypage 12.