Do you use Dreamweaver’s built-in layouts and sample pages to start a new design? Then this information is for you.
My precise topic is the ability to add more than one style sheet when you select a CSS layout. In Dreamweaver, when you open a brand new page, go to Blank Page > HTML. You can select a built in CSS layout, such as the 2-column elastic left sidebar one shown here. Among other options on the lower right, you have the option to attach a second style sheet to your layout page when it is created.
That’s really swell, if you have another style sheet all ready and waiting. Since the CSS layouts are all just shades of gray, it would nice to have a color scheme and some font choices all ready to go and to attach them from the first step. Click the link icon, browse for the style sheet, and when you click the Create button, your new page has both attached. Easy, right?
But here’s where it gets tricky. What if you don’t have a style sheet ready and waiting? What if you want to use one of the color schemes built in to Dreamweaver? These are found in the new file dialog under Page from Sample > CSS Style Sheet. They sport names like “Full design Arial Blue/Green/Gray.
It will be easy to use this style sheet. The trick is that you have to start by picking this Page from Sample before you pick your CSS Layout. When you’ve picked one and click the Create button, you get this message.
Click View. You get an untitled style sheet that you can save by any name you want. Now you have a style sheet ready and waiting to link to your CSS Layout. Go through the new dialog again, pick your layout, and attach this style sheet at the same time.
You still have some work to do integrating the rules in your two style sheets so that they aren’t conflicting with each other. But you are off to a built-in Dreamweaver start.