Mac

Windows

New – 30-day trial

Adobe GoLive is a top Web development application that should satisfy allmost all your needs. Now in version 6, it's even more powerful and offers greater productivity. GoLive is geared towards collaborative, networked development environments and can also deliver content to wireless devices.

Some new features in version 6: Custom Workspace and Palette Stashing allow you to reposition the program components on the screen so you can work more as you wish; context menu options have been expanded; custom text formatting styles at your fingertips; Source Code Editor view while laying out pages; CSS Editor has been streamlined; Syntax Checker to help conform to standards; integrates seamlessly with other Adobe applications; project design diagramming has been greatly enhanced; many new advanced workgroup features; extensive wireless authoring capabilities; support for ASP, JSP and PHP. Please read the magazine feature for more details.

Web link: www.adobe.com

New – 30-day trial

Macromedia's latest version of its industry standard Web development package, Dreamweaver MX, should provide you with just about all the tools you need to develop sophisticated Web sites. New features include a more intuitive workspace with customisation options; more powerful template features; new support for ASP.NET and PHP; imporved CSS2 support; high powered coding features and loads more. See the magazine and the Macromedia Web site for more details.

Web link: www.macromedia.com

30-day trial

ScriptWorx Pro is a powerful text-based Web development tool, good for creating dynamic Web pages and applications. There is support for XML, JavaScript and VBScript, and all the tools you'd expect from such an application. The Professional version includes database connectivity.

Web link: www.softlite.net

Free

This is a cut down and free version of the very popular CoffeeCup HTML Editor (see below). It still has great features and is ideal for the novice Web page builder.

Web link: www.coffeecup.com

30-day trial

WebMenu Studio lets you create DHTML pop-up menu systems easily. Put together a good navigation system and people will have a far more rewarding time while on your Web site. The menu structure is designed using a hierarchical tree view, and the live Preview window shows each change instantly. The compiled JavaScript source code is separated into individual browser compatible files which are loaded dynamically, so each visitor downloads only the relevant code for their browser.

Web link: www.coalesys.com

30-day trial version

PHP Master Editor is a program for editing PHP scripts. The slick interface has all the tools you need to help you develop dynamic Web sites, including syntax highlighting, an internal browser, script debugger, built-in FTP client, customisable code templates and good error reporting to help you fix problems in your code. A basic HTML editor is thrown in for good measure as well as support for UNIX and MAC file types.

Web link: http://ka-software.hypermart.net

Mac OS

NOTE: The Mac programs are mostly in archived 'HQX' (BinHex) files – they can be extracted with several applications, including Stuffit Expander (which is on the CD...). Clicking on the links below should set the process in motion. You may receive a message that the file cannot be loaded into Simple Text — if so, start Stuffit and then open the HQX file you want from within Stuffit.

New 30-day trial

HTML Creator makes the task of creating Web pages easier through its built in assistants. The program's powerful editing tools make it suitable for professional users as well as novices.

With this version HTML Creator is now Carbonized and features new tools, updated assistants, and numerous bug fixes.

Web link: http://tmdc.org/aramk

Updated demo version

WebDesign is an HTML editor with many helpful features. The interface has a tools palette, main editor window and properties palette. The editor window features advanced syntax colouring, syntax checking and optimisation controls. There is a handful of HTML wizards that output HTML code or XHTML code. The tools palette lets you drag and drop HTML elements onto the editor including links, tables, form controls and so on. The context sensitive properties palette then allows you to tweak the attributes of the selected element.

Other features include a find-and-replace tool, a built-in FTP client for transferring files to your Web server, plug-in support to extend WebDesign's functionality, and more. WebDesign supports XHTML, CSS and JavaScript.

This update fixes a problem with previewing files in a selected Web browser.

Web link: www.ragesw.com

Updated 30-day trial

Oxygen is an XML editor written entirely in Java that creates XML, XSL, TXT, XSD and DTD documents. Being a Java application, it is available for most major platforms. The slick looking interface has all the tools you'd want in a modern Integrated Development Environment (IDE) including XML, XSL, DTD validation, tag auto completion, syntax highlighting and Code Insight which helps you write valid code. Code Insight also allows the program to generate DTDs from a sample XML document, cutting down development time. It has Unicode support and the interface messages are translated in English, French, German, Italian and Romanian.

You must have Java Virtual Machine 1.4 or later installed.

Note: you will need to register on the Oxygen Web site for your free 30-day licence. This version delivers some relatively minor enhancements.

Web link: http://oxygen.sync.ro

31-day trial version

The makers of Style Master now bring you an all-round Web design application – Layout Master. It helps you develop Web page layouts using CSS2 and HTML/XHTML. Each element of the page can be selected and positioned according to your preferences. Layout Master uses drag-and-drop and properties editors to let you easily create the pages that you want. If your favourite HTML editor isn't so hot on page layout, Layout Master could be a great complement if used in tandem. The program contains a user-configurable grid, rulers and guides to make working with Web page layouts easy.

Web link: www.westciv.com

Latest update – 21-day trial

Note: needs CarbonLib 1.5 or later (downloadable from Apple) if not using OS X.

PageSpinner is a powerful HTML editor designed to allow novices as well as experts to create good looking Web pages. More experienced users can enter HTML code manually, or PageSpinner's built-in tools can be used to build the page automatically. It also features an updated Database Publishing Kit with support for AppleWorks 6 databases, QuickTime tags compatibility with Internet Explorer 5.5 and 6.0 for Windows, improved linking of MS Office files, a floating Preferences palette, and preference support for the Edit Tag Appearance plug-in from Cyrk.

This latest update features a new insert menu to simplify insertion of frequently used HTML tags and contents, a new text tools menu, an updated table assistant, scripts that can create simple photo albums and file lists, plus bug fixes.

Web link: www.optima-system.com

30-day trial version

Note: needs CarbonLib 1.2.5 or later if not using OS X.

Flash MX brings a whole new approach to building Macromedia Flash content and applications – it is much more than just an upgrade to Flash 5.

There is new native support for video playback and dynamic loading of JPEG and MP3 files at runtime. Work more efficientlly and faster with the new Free Transform tool and pixel-level snapping control. Color Mixer enhancements make creating, editing, and using colours and gradients easier than before, with consistent colour selection models and interfaces.

Flash MX offers a complete environment for developing data-driven Web applications and you can integrate your Flash applications with any application server that uses URL-encoded or XML data.

User interface enhancements include collapsible panels and a new context-sensitive Property Inspector. With named anchors, Flash MX content can now be bookmarked, allowing for the use of the browser Back and Forward buttons. Macromedia Flash Player 6 (included in the Flash MX package) now supports technologies such as screen readers. In addition, Flash MX now integrates tools for creating accessible content. To add descriptive text to animations and user interface elements, select an item and enter the appropriate description – users with disabilities will be able to experience your content.

Accelerate development with a core set of pre-built, customisable components for common application interfaces, including scrollbars, rich text fields, input buttons, radio buttons and check boxes, and list and combo boxes.

Although Flash MX will run on a machine with a minimum of 64Mb RAM, you are advised to have at least 128Mb of RAM.

Web link: www.macromedia.com