1

A client I'm working with has a large CMS installed (Kentico) that they use for various sites. For their intranet they want to downsize to a simpler web system.

The site involves authentication (Active Directory), groups, and potentially some server-side code.

The client's on-staff web designer, who's in charge, really wants to be able to use DreamWeaver to manage/design the intranet. This is almost non-negotiable, and could be considered a requirement.

I'm not really sure what DreamWeaver allows. Being ignorant to DreamWeaver, I always saw it as a web-designer platform for static websites, or in use with php.

How feasible is it to use DreamWeaver to manage an intranet site that requires authentication, groups, etc., along with server-side code? Also, are there any CMS's that easily integrate DreamWeaver? Anything in .NET?

Daniel A. White
  • 187,200
  • 47
  • 362
  • 445
contactmatt
  • 18,116
  • 40
  • 128
  • 186

2 Answers2

4

Dreamweaver is mostly a front-end tool that was made for coding HTML, CSS, and JavaScript and being able to preview the design as you wrote your code. As an Adobe product, the real emphasis there is on design: it's made to make visualizing the front-end of a website easy. It's a good starting point for a lot graphic designers to step into web development (it's where I started a few years ago), but you'll rarely find a veteran web designer that still uses it. You'll certainly not find any .NET devs using it who know better.

Now, there's nothing wrong if that's this person's favorite tool. However, Dreamweaver is NOT the right tool for working with .NET applications like Kentico. This would be akin to someone wanting to build a house using nothing but bricks and mortar. Sure, you'll be able make the outside look nice, but there's a lot more to a house than just the siding.

If your client has their heart set on Kentico, then they should look into working with Visual Studio. The community edition is free to use, even for commercial applications. I believe the difference between community and pro editions is that pro editions allow you install plugins and extensions and integrate with other tools whereas community edition is just the vanilla IDE.

Dreamweaver can still be used as their HTML, CSS and JS editor. It may have added support for other languages, but that's irrelevant when we're talking about .NET applications. Visual Studio is Microsoft's IDE built specifically for working with .NET apps, and there's really nothing better (especially if you have a pro license and install Resharper from JetBrains). Many other devs will agree with me on this point.

EDIT: I forgot to address the other part of your question about Dreamweaver and other CMSs.

This series of video tutorials about working with Dreamweaver and WordPress should give you a good idea of what Dreamweaver is capable of. Notice when the narrator is actually using Dreamweaver and what he's using it for.

Community
  • 1
  • 1
Jerreck
  • 2,930
  • 3
  • 24
  • 42
1

Jerreck's comments are great, and I'll just add a slightly different spin on them:

  1. NET and Visual Studio live in the realm of developers. We use both for our core, cloud-based application, which is deployed in Microsoft Azure. Think: LEFT brain. I've worked with development teams for a long time. It is a rare developer who is also a strong designer. That's not a complaint; just an observation.
  2. Dreamweaver lives in the realm of the web designer, who needs to manipulate HTML and CSS to achieve the effect they wish. Many of these designers ALSO start their designs in PhotoShop before moving them over to HTML and CSS. Think: RIGHT brain. I've worked with designers of all stripes for a long time as well. It is a rare designer who is also a strong developer. That's not a complaint; just another observation.

The ideal workflow starts with the designer (like the one at your client who needs to use Dreamweaver), who then passes his or her work (along with the HTML and CSS) to the developer, who in our case implements it in .NET -- so this is where Jerreck's comments miss the mark a bit.

While I know nothing of the designer at your client, I can tell you based on my experience very FEW designers ever make the leap to Visual Studio, nor should they. Most will know HTML reasonably well. Some will know CSS -- though too many of them still depend on outdated tables to create their designs. A few can code with JavaScript or PHP -- though many will cut and paste code that will work for them without actually understanding HOW it works.

Now add to this content management. This isn't really for the designer OR the developer; it's for the people who have to maintain the site (who might otherwise design like welders and write code like plumbers; because that is sometimes what they actually do).

The best content management systems are WYSIWYG, and allow the author or editor to easily add or edit content. Most CMS users do not user Dreamweaver OR Visual Studio, and many of them use free (or purchased) templates for their pages (or have a designer and developer build templates).

If your client needs CMS and it must be in .NET, you might check out DNN (formerly known as DotNetNuke). Most CMS also offer a wide range of plugins that can enhance function (such as assuring responsive design, tying in to a shopping cart or providing authentication for users).

I'd say your work ahead is going to be spending some serious time defining requirements.

David McKnight
  • 11
  • 1