- Professional design tool to create modern, standards-based sites that deliver superior quality on the Web
- Seamlessly integrate Web design and development teams with Expression Web and Visual Studio’s superior support for XML, ASP.NET and XHTML
- Built-in support for latest Web standards means your sites will be optimized for accessibility and cross-browser compatibility
- Advanced CSS rendering engine lets you make decision making on the fly
- Harnesses the power of ASP.NET 2.0 to transform your sites into dynamic, interactive Web applications
Product Description
Build Dynamic Web Sites
Expression Web is a professional design tool to create modern,standards-based sites which deliver superior quality on the Web. Easilyintegrate XML data and take advantage of superior support for Microsoft ASP.NETand XHTML. Bring your Web sites to life with sophisticated CSS designfeatures and tools that give you precise control of page layout andformatting. Create standards-based CSS and XHTML-compliant Web sites thatdeliver compelling user experiences.
Realize greater productivity with Microsoft Expression Web. Explore newcreative possibilities and deliver superior quality.
CSS Based Layout
Create CSS-based, XHTML 1.0 Transitional-conforming Web sites by default. Workbetter across browsers, simplifying deployment and maintenance. Configureflexible schema settings to support all combinations of HTML, XHTML, Strict,Transitional, Frameset and CSS 1.0, 2.0, and 2.1 plus browser-specific schemas.Validate your site with compatibility and accessibility reporting and againstSection 508 and W3C Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
CSS Layout
Generate elegant, modern CSS layouts with state-of-the-art surface design tools. Directly manipulate positioning, sizing, margins and padding. A sophisticated CSS rendering engine inside gives you the confidence to make design decisions on the fly. Try out CSS styles on the page with drag-and-drop style management, and migrate them to a central repository. Typing aids and IntelliSense in the Code View make your process efficient and fast.
Rich Data Presentation
BuildAmazon.com
The Microsoft Expression suite of professional design tools and innovative technologies will take your creative possibilities to a new level. Whether you are designing standards-based Web sites, rich user experiences on the desktop, or managing digital assets and content, Microsoft Expression applications will help. Microsoft Expression Web is a professional design tool to create modern, standards-based sites that deliver superior quality on the Web.
Build and format views of industry-standard XML data using drag-and drop tools for quick visualization. |
Design customized views of industry-standard XML data using powerful drag-and-drop tools, and see how your data will look within your CSS site design. |
Create CSS-based, XHTML 1.0 Transitional-conforming Web sites by default. View larger. |
Generate elegant, modern CSS layouts with state-of-the-art surface design tools. View larger. |
New Era, New Tool
Microsoft Expression Web helps you to reduce complexity and ease data integration by using powerful design tools and task panes to quickly incorporate XML data. You can seamlessly integrate Web design and development teams with Expression Web and Visual Studio’s superior support for XML, ASP.NET and XHTML. The software is also designed to help you unleash your creative ideas and bring your Web sites to life with sophisticated CSS design features. Visual designers, specialized task panes, and tool bars give you precise control of page layout and formatting. These superior tools will let you build dynamic, interactive pages that harness the power of the Web, and the built-in support for today’s modern Web standards means that it’s easier than ever to optimize your sites for accessibility and cross-browser compatibility. This all translates to superior performance with the same Microsoft passion about delivering the highest quality and standards possible.
Standards-Based Web Sites
With Expressions Web, you can create CSS-based, XHTML 1.0 Transitional-conforming Web sites by default. This means that you creations will work better across browsers, simplifying deployment and maintenance. You’ll be able to configure flexible schema settings to support all combinations of HTML, XHTML, Strict, Transitional, Frameset and CSS 1.0, 2.0, and 2.1 plus browser-specific schemas, and validate your site with compatibility and accessibility reporting and against Section 508 and W3C Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
Generating elegant, modern CSS layouts with state-of-the-art surface design tools has never been easier. A sophisticated CSS rendering engine inside gives you the confidence to make design decisions on the fly, and you can even try out CSS styles on the page with drag-and-drop style management and migrate them to a central repository. Typing aids and IntelliSense in the Code View make your process extremely efficient and fast.
Rich Data Presentation and Powerful Server Technology
Using drag-and drop tools for quick visualization, you can build and format views of industry-standard XML data. An XPath Expression Builder allows you to create complex queries, and XSL Transform (XSLT) support gives you the flexibility to present data any way you want. The software can also help you retrieve and present XML data via live RSS feeds that match your site’s formatting.
Expressions Web harnesses the power of ASP.NET 2. to transform your sites into dynamic, interactive Web applications. No code data binding is required with the application’s integrated support for server and user controls. Expressions Web also makes inserting and configuring ASP.NET controls a snap with the controls toolbox, properties grid, and on-control “action menus,” while the ASP.NET Master Pages make site-wide changes quick and easy.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
I bought this because I had a website in frontpage that is being discontinued by Microsoft. I watched the tutorial which was just an overview…but when I have tried to watch it again to study it….it is frozen up. It is not my computer because it is new and top of the line. I called the company that produced it (a microsoft vendor) and they have yet to get back with me with the resolution.
This program is extremely more complicated than frontpage and does not have a simple way to learn exactly how and when to use all of the many features. It seem like 3 programs in one overlayed on top of each other.
Background: I am not professional user in the sense of making a living from Web site construction but I have created and maintained personal, commercial, and informational sites. Typically using either Frontpage or Dreamweaver depending on the project but always on the look out for something better.
As other reviewers have pointed out, Expression is not an upgrade to Frontpage but something else entirely—Microsoft’s attempt to compete with Adobe Dreamweaver. So if you are looking for an entry level Web site creation tool, stop reading now and look elsewhere. Start with an Amazon or Google search of “create website.” You’ll get tons of advice, some good and some not so good. Like other reviewers here I am hoping that some software company picks up the torch and produces something decent for the folks that don’t spend their lives doing this stuff. (Expression is not it!)
Others have covered most of the important differences between Expression and Dreamweaver. My recommendation first of all is to stay away until there is a version 2.0—this is definitely beta software. I can not complete a single session without at least one crash. (And yes to those of you muttering to your selves, I am always on the latest available MS patches to both applications and OS.) Given that caveat, there are important differences and I highly recommend you skim the other detailed reviews to see if those are differences that are important to you. Most important to me is that it is built from the ground up with CSS support. Also nice; the UI is more intuitive than Dreamweaver (maybe someday Adobe will actually figure out that the UI is important, maybe…) and the drag and drop aspect of authoring. On the down side is that access to common page properties is not as convenient as Dramweaver.
Bottom line, wait for a later version and look elsewhere if you are new to Web site authoring or looking to upgrade Frontpage.
I’ve been publishing websites since 1998, first using FrontPage1998, then switching to Yahoo’s SiteBuilder. I bought Expression, feeling like I needed to step up to “standards-based” web design tool.
After three weeks of work, including studying “Expression Web for Dummies” and “Using Microsoft Expression Web,” I am NO closer to figuring out how to put up a decent looking web page. The tutorial CD that came with the package didn’t work either, which should have been a clue.
I have had no luck figuring out how to “float divs,” or get CSS to lay out in columns, or any such things. The stuff I have been able to do is no more than I would have been able to do it SiteBuilder, which is free.
I loved the old FrontPage because it was intuitive. You didn’t have to dig and dig and risk spraining your brain to figure it out. SiteBuilder is a solid tool, though. If I could get my money back from this, I would.
What a disappointment!
I’ve been building web pages using Frontpage since its first release. I’ve upgraded all the way through 2003. I thought upgrading to Expression was a good idea, but it has been nothing but frustrating.
I’m not a novice. I work in Photoshop to build my own graphics for all my websites – personal and professional – never used a template in Frontpage. I built everything from the ground up, and I found Expression to be an exercise in tooth gnashing. Nothing works the way it should.
The help files are useless, and unless you want to pay for video tutoring on line you’re left in the cold. I’ve bought two books, and neither was much help either. If I tried to build anything more complex than a basic html page, it failed. The CSS wouldn’t attach. The files wouldn’t read each other once they were on the server.
This morning I went back to Frontpage 2003. I can edit the CSS files the old fashioned way there – the way that works.
I spent the money and I am not stupid but this I was not able to master so I paid a professional. Doesn’t mean I won’t continue trying but not friendly like I thought.
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