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General Discussion

julia pak
julia pak
2,345 Points
Posted by julia pak
julia pak
2,345 Points

What software do I need to have?

Hi there! I just joined your site an hour ago. I joined the become a web designer adventure. I downloaded some of the files from the lessons and noticed there is some .css files. I tried to open them but apparently I need dreamweaver? My free trial version has run out so I guess I need to buy this. I was thinking of going with Adobe's creative cloud package for $20/month, would this be worth my while?

I also downloaded sublime text editor, but just went with the trial for now. I tried looking around their site for this, but how long does the trial version last? $70 is a bit pricey, but if I need it I will pay. I have a text editor called TextWrangler, but if sublime has advantages over that I will buy it.

5 Answers

samiff
samiff
31,206 Points
samiff
samiff
31,206 Points

Hey Julia, welcome to the community :wave: CSS files can be opened in any ol' text editor pretty much, so you don't need to purchase Dreamweaver. While you could technically use Sublime indefinitely for free, if it's software you use and enjoy, you should support it! For beginners, you won't even need the more advanced features something like Sublime has.

I don't use a Mac, but it sounds like the ".css" file-type is associated with Dreamweaver on your computer. You can change those associations, or while in your text-editor of choice, you can "File -> Open" those file-types directly.

Andrew Whitfield
Andrew Whitfield
5,239 Points
Andrew Whitfield
Andrew Whitfield
5,239 Points

TextMate or NotePad are two good choices. Coda is popular on the Mac as well because it's got a lot more items built in that don't require much configuration compared to Sublime, use a free one until you get a feel for what you'd like to have in your editor. Don't spend money on one yet until you're sure you know what you want.

James Barnett
James Barnett
39,199 Points
James Barnett
James Barnett
39,199 Points

@julia -

Text Wrangler is a good choice on a Mac, try it out for a while and see if you like it.

To change the program that opens .css files from Dreamweaver to Text Wrangler

  1. Single Click the .css file you want to open
  2. Then at the top bar click File and then Get Info (Command+I also works)
  3. Click the triangle next to Open with
  4. Select TextWrangler
  5. Then Click Change All…

source: http://www.completewebresources.com/make-textwrangler-the-default-for-mac-os-x/

julia pak
julia pak
2,345 Points
julia pak
julia pak
2,345 Points

Thanks for all the help!

I think I am going to stick with TextWrangler and this free version of sublime and see what I like better.

As for the adobe stuff I decided to go with their $20 monthly membership. I know how to make iphone apps so I figure that some of the adobe programs would help me make better graphics and some other cool stuff.

samiff
samiff
31,206 Points
samiff
samiff
31,206 Points

Cool! I'm currently learning Adobe Illustrator to help with creating vector content which is awesome for responsive/retina design.