Web Page Design Software
There are two ways to approach a website design project: self-designing or utilizing a commercial design. Although commercially designed websites offer the greatest degree of versatility, allowing the site to get explicitly tailored to specific needs, this method is often cost prohibitive. Self-designing a website is a viable option for those who already possess design skills, those who wish to learn design basics and those who are on a limited budget. Keep reading to learn about web page design software for your self-designed website.
Understanding the full project
A key component of finding the ideal website design program for individual use is an understanding of the needs of the designer and how to create a site that meets those needs. It is recommended to map out a design for a website on paper before beginning to code for a greater understanding of how the overall site is intended to function.
Freeware
Plenty of free programs are available for download. Windows Live Writer is a program developed by Microsoft that is designed to create versatile blogs with minimal background setup. Evrsoft First Page is another very practical website design package that is available for free; this software package allows for creating and editing web pages through both "What You See Is What You Get" or WYSIWYG interfaces and through direct access to the web page code.
Paid software packages
Microsoft Expression Web 2 is a fully-featured website design suite offering access to a number of included templates and a wide variety of current coding languages. This program is similar in form and function to Adobe Dreamweaver. Dreamweaver is a long-standing and often updated software program that also allows for building websites in a variety of coding languages and offers the ability to manipulate and change web pages, even if they are already live on a server. For those seeking a greater degree of simplicity, Realmac RapidWeaver is a viable option and integrates easily with other Mac-based software programs.
There are a number of website design programs available for a fee or for free to individuals interested in designing their own unique web presence.