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Macromedia Dreamweaver UltraDev 4
A Closer Look At Some Of The Key Features
Douglas Smith

We discussed some of the new features of UltraDev 4 earlier in the review now we will give you some insight on what they do, or as we like to say an inside view. Connecting very quickly to databases is done very easily using the Data Bindings Inspector where you simply drop it onto a layout or HTML tag, bind the text together without writing code, and use Live Objects to lay out common database forms for your relationships. With the Split View, you can visually see the code as it is being written simultaneously, this is especially helpful for novice users or those not quite as good with code as they should be by allowing you to see just what is being written. Script writing has always been my biggest downfall, but with UltraDev 4 and the new integrated Text Editor, keyword color-coding makes the job that much easier. You get Automatic indents on your code making it easier to understand, Color codes in HTML, JavaScript, VB Script, CFML tag and Java keywords, and you can edit code-only files such as global.asa and application.cfm.

Viewing live server-side data is done on the fly. This is one of our favorite features, as we mentioned earlier. In the past developers had to upload the files to a server to see how content was displayed on a page--not anymore! With UltraDev 4 you can preview and edit with dynamically generated output in the design environment. You see exactly what your pages will look like in real time. Connecting to ODBC, JDBC or ADO databases including Oracle, Sybase, Informix, Microsoft SQL Server and Microsoft Access is made simple with UltraDev by allowing you to connect directly to the database through your Web application server without defining connections. Integration of application development processes are made easy with WebDAV protocol. What this does is allows the developer the ability to add third party version control to a project directly through the Site Window. You can than view version history and roll back to previous versions of a file or entire Web site.

One key to developing and keeping projects current is the ability to adapt to changing development needs. With UltraDev 4 you can use the new Server Behavior Builder to create reusable libraries of server-side scripts without programming. Or in other words you can take code blocks into Server Behaviors and still maintain control over generated code. JavaBeans sort of sound like some new fancy French coffee, but they are really compiled Java files that execute on a JSP application server. Each JavaBean contains properties that can be set and retrieved allowing you to connect and display properties on Web pages using standard JSP tags instead of in-line Java code. You probably remember that earlier we mentioned Roundtrip Graphics Editing. Well, what this does is to allow you to launch and edit and launch and optimize graphics using Fireworks 4, which is part of Macromedia's suite of tools for Web editing. Since most Web developers develop there sites graphics, RoundTrip editing allows for smooth transition between the Graphics editor and HTML editor.

Macromedia has really listened to its users and created some great enhancements to UltraDev 4. As you can see the program just keeps getting better with each new version, and it's leaps and bounds ahead of the competition.

Next: The Bottom Line »

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Contents:
1. UltraDev 4 Has Got It All Together!
2. A Closer Look At Some Of The Key Features
3. The Bottom Line

Additional Articles: