I love DreamWeaver, its a powerful tool. But let’s be honest, unless you’re serious about web design, do you really want to spend 399$  on software? Is it worth a chance to gamble on illegal downloads or cracked software possibly full of viruses and trojans? Of course not! But there are other issues. Sure you can get a free alternative, but for a web newbie, notepad or notepad plus are not an option not even with the help of w3schools. The easiest way to create a webpage, is with something called  a WYSIWYG editor. What is a WYSIWYG editor?  WYSIWYG is an acronym for: “What you see is what you get”. Basically it works like a word document.  Just as you can in a word document, you can change text colors, sizes  fonts, and insert images. when you’re done you simply save the page as an HTML document and load it to the server/host. It’s really that easy. The problem, though, is that the easiest tool to use  as an WYSIWYG editor was the since obsoleted  Microsoft Front Page Express 2.0 (from 1997)  or some really subpar alternatives. That was until several years ago when a little project was  started by Linspire, Inc. With the Nvu Open Source project the WYSIWYG editor was created, and  development since 2008 was taken up by KompoZer. KompoZer is by far the best free WYSIWYG editor on the market. Here is a screen shot:

Best of all, those who are familiar with the DreamWeaver will feel right at home with KompoZer too. Some of the features include:

• WYSIWYG editor
• Integrated file management via FTP. Simply login to your web site and navigate through your files, editing web pages on the fly, directly from your site.
• Reliable HTML code creation that work with today’s most popular browsers.
• Jump between WYSIWYG Editing Mode and HTML using tabs.
• Tabbed editing to make working on multiple pages a snap.
• Support for forms, tables, and templates.

Most importantly, KompoZer has a small learning curve with great tips and tools embedded to help the web newbie. The main benefit of having a WYSIWYG editor is to allow you more control on the content of your site. With a basic hosting package and KompoZer, you can easily set up a site, change the data on your pages and get online easily. If for nothing else, KompoZer gives you an opportunity to get your hands dirty and learn some basic coding. If you are ready for the challenge, download KompoZer.