How To Create A Simple Navigation Menu In Dreamweaver 4.0

Tutorial: Simple Navigation Menu
Software: Macromedia Dreamweaver 4.0
Tutorial Status: Complete Novice

This Dreamweaver tutorial will guide you and explain to you how to implement a simple navigation menu into your web site or web page.

Step 1 - Firing Up Dreamweaver: From your start menu go to Programs + Macromedia Dreamweaver 4 and then click the dreamweaver logo to fire up Dreamweaver. Alternatively use your Dreamweaver shortcut usually placed on your desktop.

Step 2 - Saving Your Page: Dreamweaver will present you with a blank page - save that blank page as test.htm To do this go to File + Save As at the top of dreamweaver. A Save As box will now appear as shown below. Where it is circled in red type test and click Save. Dreamweaver will automatically save the file as .htm so don't bother typing.htm



Step 3 - Inserting A Table: Now we will begin with the first phase of the navigation menu by inserting a table. To do this go to Insert + Table at the top of Dreamweaver. A Insert Table box will now appear as shown below. Follow the exact selections as shown in the diagram. Rows 0 - Cell Padding 2 - Columns 4 - Cell Spacing 2 - Width 100 - Percent Border 0 and then click OK.



You will now see a table with 4 columns displaying exactly like shown below;


What are the following table elements?;

Rows: Rows are like a ladder. If we had selected 2 Rows instead of 0 then your 4 column table would look like this.

Columns: Columns are like partitions in a wall - they are there to separate cells.

Cell Padding: Cell Padding is basically an outer padding.

Cell Spacing: Cell Spacing is basically like an inner padding.

Cell: Table Cells are basically what a dictionary calls - 'A small enclosed cavity or space'. Except with web design you can make your cell as big or as small as you want to. Think of a cell as a place to house things - links, images, text etc.

Here is a more specific briefing of what rows, columns, cell padding, cell spacing and cells are exactly.

Step 4 - Creating Your Navigation Menu: The 4 column table that you have created is basically the skeleton for your navigation menu. Now we will start to turn it into a link navigation menu!

Step 4A - Inserting Text Into Your Table Cells: Click inside your the first cell in your table and type Home. You will notice that your other cells have moved further to the right of your table - ignore this. In your second cell - type About Us. In your 3rd cell - type Resources. In your 4th cell - type Contact. You will now notice that your table cells have formatted themselves.

Step 4B - Linking The Text In Your Table Cells: Within your screen area, look for the below Properties palate;



If you can not find it click Window + Properties at the top of Dreamweaver. It will now appear. Basically the Properties pallate allows you to set the font size, colors, font type and many other things. We will be using it to convert the text in your tables into links.

Now select the Home text in the first cell of your table. Select as you would when copying text to paste into a URL - but without the actual copy.

Click inside the Link area of you Properties pallate and type in a # dash for now - as highlighted with the red circle on the below diagram.



The Home text in your table cell will now be a link. Follow Step 4B again for the the text in each table cell. Now the text in each cell will be a link. This is your simple navigation menu!

Step 5 - Adding A Border To Your Navigation Menu: Select your whole navigation menu and click inside the Border area of the properties pallete and type 1 - as highlighted with the red circle on the below diagram.



Your navigation menu will now have a border of 1 pixel.

Step 6 - Adding A Color To Your Navigation Menu: Again Select your whole navigation menu and click inside the Bg Color area of the properties pallate then click the small box - a box will appear with lots of colors, hover over a color that you like and click it as highlighted with the red circle on the below diagram.



I chose the color #CCCCCC (Light Grey)

Your Navigation Menu will now be in your chosen color.

Step 7 - Making The Links In Your Navigation Menu Active: Follow Step 1 again, but save your test.htm page as index - Follow Step 1 again, but save your index.htm page as aboutus - Follow Step 1 again, but save your aboutus.htm page as resources - Follow Step 1 again, but save your resources.htm page as contact - finally save contact.htm as index.

Now your page will be index.htm

Step 7A - Linking To Your Pages: Select the Second link in your table cell and go to the Link area of your properties pallate and replace the # by typing aboutus.htm as highlighted with the red circle on the below diagram;



Repeat Step 7A with the Resources link and the Contact link - making sure to add the respective links - resources.htm - contact.htm to the respective text.

Now follow Step 7 again by saving your index.htm as aboutus, then resources.htm, then contact.htm and finally back to index.htm

Once you have done this you can unlink the Home text on index.htm and link the Home text to index.htm on the other pages.

I hope this tutorial is of help.

Chris Richardson A1webtemplates.com

DISCLAIMER: The content provided in this article is not warranted or guaranteed by Developer Shed, Inc. The content provided is intended for entertainment and/or educational purposes in order to introduce to the reader key ideas, concepts, and/or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon the reader to employ real-world tactics for security and implementation of best practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from implementing any information covered in our articles or tutorials. If this is a hardware review, it is not recommended to open and/or modify your hardware.

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