Note: This review is personal opinion from a CuteSITE Builder user's point of view.Well, after a couple hours working with this program, I have to tell you I am impressed with it.
If I had never used Trellix/CSB, I would grab this program and hold on to it.It is fast, flexible and the design window looks very similar to CSB, clean and uncluttered.
But will it suit current CSB users? For most, YES if they consider everything that comes included in it!
PRICE: Free download with all features but all A's are changed to E's for full testing. The program is $120 which is pricey. But since it has so many built in EXTRA features that it might be worth it to you.
- automatic menus (only available in the templates and options are dependent on templates)
- button maker for other rollover buttons
- photo editing (beyond the basics in CSB)
- photo gallery (thumbnail to pop up)
- slide show maker (many variations, excellent results)
- simple flash banners (they call them flashdings)
- site search
- calendar
- mp3 player
- each template has several predefined styles and colors
- OVERLIB hover caption boxes are built-in for over your links or images! WONDERFUL FEATURE!
- AND MORE
PROGRAM SETTINGS: Can set this to always open to same project, or allow you to choose from your stored projects. Like CSB, you can start a new project by choosing the template style (preview opens in full screen for a good look at it) and you can choose which of the various page styles this project should have. Exceeds CSB: Similar to CSB, but more flexible choices)
SITE MAP: This program has a site map (vertical representation only) of the pages in the file like CSB. You can choose which of these show up in menu (in CSB, we move pages off a sequence line so they are not in menu). The site map can be published in 3 different ways for your visitors use and will contain only the pages you want on it.
DESIGN WINDOW: Main menu is similar to CSB. Exceeds CSB: there are tabs at the bottom of the page that allow you to switch back and forth between EDIT and BROWSE mode. Browse is a preview of the page, without having to publish a "preview of the file". NICE and fast.
LIMITATION: Design window allows for only one page at a time. CSB allows you to have a split screen to look at two pages at the same time, which comes in handy for some people.
PAGE PROPERTIES: You can define the page name, keywords, put code into the HEAD and page body. You can set overall global properties (ex: all pages have a background image, or individual page properties.
FOOTER: can insert some text, table, links, etc that will show up at the bottom of EVERY PAGE. Fine for copywrite statement.
LIMITATION: Can not turn this off some pages.
TABLES: can insert tables, define them as needed (colors, borders, etc), size including pixel or % to make them stretch for higher resolutions. Exceeds CSB: can set image for background but once set can not be edited again without reinserting image into background.
IMAGES: Insert images like CSB, but when you insert, you can tweak the image. You can NOT tweak after insert so get it right the first time!
FONTS/LINKS: Full control over font and links, when you add a new style then set your font to that style! Ex: want bold, green font, you simply make a style for that. Then anytime you want to use that type font, you assign that style. Creates nice style sheet.
CSB can create styles too, but most people do not take advantage of that option! Links can be made to internal and external pages/files and the link options are quite flexible.
PUBLISHING: Same as CSB with built-in FTP. Can make many sites, publish to your own host and even make subdirectories. Preview publishes to your own computer like CSB.
GOODIES/EXTRAS: Exceeds CSB: Click one button for horizontal line, pre-defined "framed tables" 3 per template that can be tweaked, allow for an image border around a table and the feature list has only begun.
INSERTABLE STUFF: You can insert HTML code,flash, music, and so much more into your web pages and the program will load it to the web just like CSB. Exceeds CSB: You can put MP3 music in and the program will load it as flash in their flash player! Iframes are easily defined. And built in codes for a few items are available, like when page was last updated.
LIMITATION: the placeholder can not be defined. Always says
HTML in a fixed size. This might cause problems fitting into tiny areas (small column, etc)
Ok...here's where we get sticky. Some folks will LOVE this, Some folks will feel limited.
TEMPLATES: CSB has a few basic templates...premade designs that give you settings for backgrounds, top and left sides, and font/link colors. GREAT starting point but you have FULL CONTROL over the four areas/borders around the screen TOP, LEFT, RIGHT, BOTTOM.
Many CSB users begin with a template and tweak it to fit their needs. Turn on or off a border to get the feel that they want. You can select whether you want frames or not. If you do use frames, you can decide if you want the scroll bar or not.
EZ Generator is template driven! You have a couple thousand templates to choose from. Each with their own preset options. These are TERRIFIC looking. You can usually change out the TOP IMAGE (they give you a size to replace with). Each template comes with different variations (v1 through v10) in different color modes.
And each template has several page styles to choose from. The page styles have built-in tables, headers, etc that help to space things out for you. You can define WHICH of the styles you load including the ever popular 1, 2 and 3 column pages. Some are very specialized (music, photo layouts, sales, etc). These preset designs would save a TON of design time!!!
You have the ability to adjust some colors, text, links, delete tables, insert different tables, DESIGN YOUR OWN pages within the template system so even if you don't like the fill in the blank feel when you open a template, it takes SECONDS to delete exisiting tables and put in your own!Menu styles come with the templates so they match well. You can choose IMAGE menus or better yet TEXT menus within the same template.
DOWNSIDES:1) NO SPELL CHECK!
2) If you choose a design with top & left side, you can not put anything below the menu on the left side. And you can NOT adjust which borders show. You have to load another template to change which borders show.
3) The template design will determine if you can publish with or without frames! I choose a couple designs and tweaked. Both were set to NON-FRAMES in the template and could not be reset.
4) Some templates have tables that are set to % for stretchable. Some are not.
5) When you choose templates, there is a preview image and you can click it to load the template into a full sized browser window for better view/testing before you load it. BUT you are not given a description about it (framed/non-framed, 2 editable images, etc). That would make choosing a template far easier! I did hit and miss to find one that I could work with well.
6) The template I liked best had a glitch in the MENU. When you choose to use the default image menu, great. When you choose to use TEXT menu, my preference because search engines need the content, the preview was exactly what I wanted to start with (colors behind the text menu) but those colors did not show up in the real thing! Another template (OK, but not quite what I had in mind) kept the colors when I changed to text style.
7) Menu design is part of the template. Will play with this more....You MAY be able to use a menu from another template, or you MAY be limited to the one that came with that template.
ON THE BRIGHT SIDE FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT WANT TO DESIGN FROM SCRATCH:- You can set the ZERO template to no template and insert your OWN tables, images, links.
- No menus, you got to do your own. You can use the button factory to create BUTTON IMAGE menus, or define a FONT/LINK STYLE for rollover links for a TEXT MENU, but nothing is automatic with the blank template.
- Site search CAN BE USED on the blank zero template.
- Still testing this feature but first glance tells me that this feature will end up being just like starting with CSB. But better because we can put background images in tables. When I get a chance, will try making a page similar to my existing home page and see how it goes.
MY SUMMARY: Interface felt like CSB. Comfortable and not intimidating. Similar functionality and was EASY.
My first instinct is I LIKE THIS ONE. This program has WOW factor, even when you don't use all the specialty templates (shopping, photo galleries,etc) or the insertables (music, flash, etc). The more you wander through and play with the options, the better for even the novice user that doesn't want to do advanced options!
When/if you test it, I recommend you download and choose NEW PROJECT to ge the feel of how you would go through the start to finish. Look at the pages in preview to see the different looks that can be made.
I will spend more time with it before I consider purchasing because of price, but it is very nice and deserves more involved testing. Would like to compare it to Site Spinner (which I have not tested yet) since they seem to generate the most interest so far.
