Editing in Dreamweaver

[Doc]

Hi
I tried to use Dreamweaver to add some tables to my index.html page (P_index.html), and when I save it in the PreviewHTML directory, Actinic overwrite this page with the old one...how do I make the changes permenant...
TIA

[Duncan Rounding]

You can't make permanent changes to any files in PreviewHTML, Actinic will always overwrite these files each time a preview is generated.

First make sure you have installed the Actinic extension in DW (The advanced user guide will explain this) Then what you need to do is open the file you wish to change in Dreamweaver, such as P_index.html, then look for the Actinic tags in the file, click on one and you should see the Actinic tag info at the bottom of the screen - this will give you the template name you will need to edit for that portion of the HTML.

Now open that template file (such as Act_Primary.html for example) from the root directory of your Site1 folder in DW - you can then make changes to it. The templates are used by Actinic each time it generates the HTML pages.

I'm still getting to grips with Actinic, I found the best way to learn how to change the templates was mostly trial and error whilst referencing the advanced user guide - and of course the knowledge from so many of the experienced users on this forum.

Make sure you always keep backups of your template files before you start making any changes to them.

Hope this helps a bit.

Duncan

[wjcampbe]

Steve,

You are still not getting one of the most basic Actinic features.

Actinic builds static HTML pages from data that you enter through the Actinic programme interface and html templates stored in the Site1 directory.

The current output is written to PreviewHTML when you preview the pages on your PC.

All changes/additions must be made through the Actinic programme interface OR by editing the templates in the site1 folder.

Dreamweaver - once the Actinic Dreamweaver extensions are loaded takes output that has been previewed with the Compact HTML/CGI checkbox in Design | Options - Miscellaneous tab unticked - and marks the beginning and end of each template within the output page.

To edit with Dreamweaver, you click the Actinic symbol, then look at the bottom of the Dreamweaver page for the name of the highlighted template. You then click edit beside that template name and the template file in your site1 folder will open. Make changes in this template (one change at a time till you see the effect) and save.

Go back to Actinic and Preview the page again to see what effect your changes had.

Really, until you have built at least one site, just using Actinic, I would leave Dreamweaver gathering dust on the shelf. Once you know how to drive Actinic itself, then you are ready to try driving it using Dreamweaver as a remote control.

[Doc]

HI Duncan
Thanks..you have just ruined my sunday lunch
I thought this was the case, that you would have to identify which template and go and edit it...
But there are a lot of these template tags that show up in dreamweaver...and my understanding is that these template tags are positional..if you move them around you may mess things up..so they got to stay where they are...
Question is how do you know which template to edit...I just put an extra table in dreamweaver...which of these large no. of templates do I edit and I see.......some of these templates show up more then once in the page...for example Act_BrochurePrimary.html shows up couple of times...
cheers

[Duncan Rounding]

The best way is to first get a good feel and understanding of what's going on. When I'm not sure I mess about changing some of the more likely templates to see the results. For example make a small layout change in Act_BrochurePrimary and have a look at the results.

I find it's quite a steep learning curve, but after a couple of weeks I'm starting to find my way around.

Sorry about your lunch.

Duncan

[Doc]

Hi Bill
Thanks..no..I got it now..I just changed Act_BrochurePrimary.html..i put in some extra tables and saved the tempalte..it works fine..I still like to use Dreamweaver to generate the html and give me a visual guide..
But most of these templates in my design are a single variable template like Act_BrochureNavItem.html etc.
The only one in the brochure section is act-BrochurePrimaty.html...which I have edited...
I have also noted some strange behaviour in dreanweaver when I opend an web page ...half the stuff in the web page does not show up in dreamweaver, but it shows up in IE...
TIA
steve

[Doc]

Duncan..
I think I will go and woner around in my garden for a while or maybe take out my Nikon D100...
No but seriously..most of these templates in my brochure page are a single one liner..
The only thing that is there is Act_BrochurePrimary.html which in anycase is derived from act_primary.html..so I guess you can change either..
How do you do your backups...through site snapshots or manually by copy/paste..
Hey..hope u r having a good lunch..
cheers
steve

[Duncan Rounding]

I perhaps go a bit over the top with backups - I create regular snapshots, make database backups as well as manually copy the whole of the Site1 folder.

I'd be interested to know what the more experienced users do.....? Maybe there's some other threads around about backups.

Duncan

[wjcampbe]

Post #7
Act_BrochurePrimary.html and Act_Primary.html are the main pages for, respectively, the Brochure Pages and the rest of the site. They do not intermingle, and changes made in Act_Primary.html will not show up in pages created from Act_BrochurePrimary.html.

To see ALL the templates used in creation of any page, you MUST first untick Compact HTML/CGI in Design | Options - Miscellaneous tab. If you forget to do this the additional template names will NOT appear in the Preview HTML page(s) and you cannot edit properly from Dreamweaver.

[Doc]

Bill
OK ..I see its not like inheritence in OO where the child inherits most of the features of the Parent..I asumed that Act_BrochurePrimary.html is a child of Act_Primary.html.
In OO tools like Powerbuilder if you inherit a window from a main window type , you inherit all the fatures of the Parent...Seems the templates are totally independent...
Also I am curious as to why Act_BrochurePrimary.html occurs twice in my P_Index.html...once in the top of the code/page and once in the bottom...

cheers
steve

[pinbrook]

if you have made a bit mess then simply change theme to get a clean set of templates back again.

this method of overwriting themes whilst in the playing around stage is very useful

otherwise go to the themes folder and locate the template you have destroyed and copy it into site1.

[wjcampbe]

Steve - there is nothing inherited EXCEPT that a change to any one of the templates will affect everywhere that template is used.

Nothing like getting a change you want made on one page and then finding it has also affected 20 other pages you did not want to change - the secret - save as - rename the templates when you make a change and apply the new template to the pages you want changed. Layout tab, select button, browse & select the new template name.

You will always see the template names a minimum of twice in dreamweaver (one opening tag and one closing tag). When you look at a complex product page, you will see the product layout template open and close tags several times each (equal numbers of each unless something is broken).

[Doc]

Bill
Thanks...point taken..I will do as much as I can with Actinic and then move over to DW for some fancy work or aligning of tables etc...
The layout in Page Preview in Actinic is a bit different from what it looks like in IE....If you look at Smart Theme in Designs, in actinic the Cart Details and the Right Title boxes are shifted to the right ...looks like they are past the 770 pixel mark...but when viewed in IE..they come out right...any reason?
thanks
steve

[wjcampbe]

Appearance of the Actinic live preview will depend on your PC screen resolution and whether or not Actinic is full screen - if the Actinic window is just a tad over 800 pixels wide then the preview screen should look much the same in Actinic and IE. If the Actinic window is 1200 pixels wide and some of the divs are right aligned or a table/cell width is set to 100% so it stretches to fill the screen... nuff said.

If the live preview was 100% accurate they could ditch the Preview menu options. But then again you get people like me, who work mainly in Opera and Firefox, only switching to IE for final checks and web apps that will not work in anything else. For me, no matter how closely the live preview resembles IE - it is seldom the same as I preview in Firefox unless I play with the css.