Previewing pages in Dreamweaver

Live view differs from the traditional Dreamweaver design view in that it provides a non-editable, more realistic rendering of what your page will look like in a browser. Live view does not replace the Preview in Browser command, but rather provides another way of seeing what your page looks like “live” without having to leave the Dreamweaver workspace.

You can switch to Live view any time you are in Design view. Switching to Live view, however, is not related to switching between any of the other traditional views in Dreamweaver (Code/Split/Design). When you switch to Live view from Design view, you are simply toggling the Design view between editable and “live”.

While Design view remains frozen once you enter Live view, Code view remains editable, so you can change your code, and then refresh Live view to see your changes take effect. When you’re in Live view, you have the additional option of viewing live code. Live Code view is like Live view in that it displays a version of the code that the browser is executing in order to render the page. Like Live view, Live Code view is a non-editable view.

An additional advantage of Live view is the ability to freeze JavaScript. For example, you can switch to Live view and hover over Spry-based table rows that change color as the result of user interaction. When you freeze JavaScript, Live view freezes the page in its current state. You can then edit your CSS or JavaScript and refresh the page to see the changes take effect. Freezing JavaScript in Live view is useful if you want to see and change properties for the different states of pop-up menus or other interactive elements that you can’t see in traditional Design view.

For a video tutorial on working with Live View, related files, and the Code Navigator, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4044_dw.

1. Make sure that you are in Design view (View > Design) or Code and Design views (View > Code and Design).

2. Click the Live view button .

3. (Optional) Make your changes in Code view, in the CSS Styles panel, in an external CSS style sheet, or in another related file.

   Even though you can’t edit in Live view, your options for making edits in other areas (for example, in the CSS Styles panel or in Code view) change as you click in Live view.

   You can work with related files (such as CSS style sheets) while keeping Live view in focus by opening the related file from the Related Files toolbar at the top of the document.

4. If you’ve made changes in Code view or in a related file, refresh Live view by clicking the Refresh button in the Document tool bar, or by pressing F5.

5. To return to the editable Design view, click the Live view button again.

The code displayed in Live Code view is similar to what you would see if you viewed the page source from a browser. While such page sources are static, providing you with only the source of the page from the browser, Live Code view is dynamic, and updates as you interact with the page in Live view.

1. Make sure that you are in Live view.

2. Click the Live Code button .

   Dreamweaver displays the live code that the browser would use to execute the page. The code is highlighted in yellow and is uneditable.

3. To return to the editable Code view, click the Live Code button again.

Do one of the following:

• Press F6

• Select Freeze JavaScript from the Live View button’s pop-up menu.

An info bar at the top of the document tells you that JavaScript is frozen. To close the info bar, click the close link.

Besides the Freeze JavaScript option, there are some other options available from the Live View button’s pop-up menu, or from the View > Live View Options menu item.

Freeze JavaScript

Freezes elements affected by JavaScript in their current state.

Disable JavaScript

Disables JavaScript and re-renders the page as it would look if a browser did not have JavaScript enabled.

Disable Plug-ins

Disables plug-ins and re-renders the page as it would look if a browser did not have plug-ins enabled.

Use Testing Server for Document Source

Used mainly by dynamic pages (such as ColdFusion pages), and selected by default for dynamic pages. When this option is selected, Dreamweaver uses the version of the file on the site’s testing server as the source for the Live view display.

Use Local Files for Document Links

The default setting for non-dynamic sites. When this option is selected for dynamic sites that use a testing server, Dreamweaver uses the local versions of files that are linked to the document (for example, CSS and JavaScript files), instead of the files on the testing server. You can then make local changes to related files so that you can see how they look before putting them to the testing server. If this option is deselected, Dreamweaver uses the testing server versions of related files.

HTTP Request Settings

Takes you to an advanced settings dialog box where you can enter values for displaying live data. For more information, click the Help button in the dialog box.