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Since my original reason for building this site (before tech rights issues took it over!) was to practice and improve my Web developing skills. I intentionally took a minimalist approach when selecting software tools to build it. I particularly concentrated on shareware, since I've always been a fan of the genre, and it always seems to spawn the most innovative software You'll note this also often has a side benefit of being the cheapest way out as well (I was on a poor GI's budget at the time)!

The following are software packages I have used to build this site, and include links to their respective publishers' Web sites, in case you want to check them out yourselves! I'm posting these credits here partly to give credit where credit is due, but also to make others, who may be interested in learning Web development on the cheap, aware of these excellent, inexpensive tools.

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DreamWeaver
DreamWeaver MX

I used the freeware version 1.2 of HomeSite as my primary HTML code editor for many years. But when I needed to develop a feature-rich Web site for my Senior Project, I moved over to Macromedia DreamWeaver MX 2004. This package has its roots in HomeSite, so it has that program's clean interface and color-coded tags. It also allows you to switch from code view to a "Design View" that displays a very close approximation of what the page will look like in the browser! You can even edit text in Design view! DreamWeaver has emerged as one of the most popular Web site development tools for those developing sites using open-source technologies like Apache Web server and the PHP programming language. And use by professionals is the best praise I know of for any tool! However: note that Dreamweaver's publisher Macromedia was recently bought out by Adobe. They claimed at the time they bought it they would be continuing to support and update Dreamweaver, and so far they have, although the new version is currently a subscription at $20.99 per month [sigh!]. Fortunately, the older version I have still works fine on Windows 10, so I'm happy to keep on using it!
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Paint Shop Pro
Paint Shop Pro

This $99 graphics package is almost as good as the industry-standard Adobe Photoshop, but without the $600 price tag! Although you can find it on computer store shelves these days, it started out as shareware! If you can only afford one graphics package, this is the one to buy! It manipulates virtually every graphics file type out there, includes a program for creating and editing animated graphics files, and even directly imports Photoshop PSD files! Note, however, that since Corel bought out JASC, they have been repositioning Paint Shop as a high-end photo editing solution, and the Web-friendly resources disappeared [sigh again!]. This doesn't work under Windows 10, so, for now, I've been using the open source paint.net instead.
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Alchemy Mindworks
GIF Construction Set

This is an inexpensive shareware program, and the best little GIF tool on the market! There are better animators out there (and more expensive ones too!), but this one will get you in and out faster! It's particularly adept at color pallette reduction, and for turning transparency and interleaving on. Every GIF on this site has been through this tool!
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Map This!
Map This!

A nice, simple, freeware graphical-interface tool for turning GIF files into image maps. Unless you want to create complex map shapes (why?!), this will be all the tool you ever need to create image maps.
Note! The link is to the executable file itself, so make sure you choose "Save As"!
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SetWebColor
SetWebColor

A simple freeware tool I wrote for computing color hex numbers. Unlike other "color pickers" out there this one has the capability to copy the hex code for the selected color into the clipboard, so you can simply paste it into your code.
Note! Again, the link is to the executable file itself, so make sure you choose "Save As"!
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HTML Reference Library 4.0
HTML Reference Library 4.0
An excellent freeware stand-alone HTML 4.0 command reference library. Unfortunately, this software-based reference is no longer available. Fortunately, numerous replacements have sprung up on the Web. My favorite right now is the Web Design Group’s HTML 4 Reference
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CSE HTML Validator Lite

This sweet little freeware program checks your HTML code to make sure it's written to spec. Now that the new XHTML standard requires end tags that used to be optional (</P>, </LI>, etc.), adding them back in has become every HTML author's favorite pastime (not!). This tool will check to make sure you didn't miss one (or any other syntax rule for that matter)!
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URLs Out
PC Magazine's Faves2Go

A nice freeware tool for converting Internet Explorer Favorites to an HTML list! Unfortunately, this tool is no longer available. Fortunately, Microsoft has since added a similar capability to Internet Explorer, and now Edge.
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Get WinZip Here!
WinZip

This shareware program is the "Cadillac" of file compression utilities! All the Zip files on my site were built with it! If you're not using WinZip to manipulate compressed files, you're working way too hard! But remember: WinZip is comercial software, so if you like it, buy it!




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