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[cazza42]

Hi,

Thanks for the recommendation for Net Object Fusion. I wanted to let you all know that the MX version is being given away free on the PC Advisor May 2004 issue here in the UK. There is also an upgrade price for the latest version in the mag.

I've installed it and had a play and it looks good so far. Anyone know if I can add a shopping cart to the site it generates?

[gwpriester]

Hello Carol

The latest version 7.5 supposedly is set up for shopping carts. I have had a copy of 7.5 for some time but I have been too busy to install it. So I keep working in 7.0. One of these days.

There are websites at which you can set up a shopping cart and link to from your site. Do a Google search for shopping cart websites or shopping carts. You should find quite a few. Some you can customize to look like your own site so your visitors never have to know they have left your site.

Gary

[amotl]

Hi Allison
I took your advice and downloaded the Fusion 7 trial with which I have been delighted. However, I've got some challenges in that I don't seem to be able to transfer ( Plug in ) the Webstyle Buttons and navigation bars onto NOF. Also when I open a Webstyle created web page parts of it are missing in NOF. I can not log on to GOTFUSION as their site refuses to accept my user name and password even though they constantly Email them when I make the request.
Is there some place else I can go to get the info? I guess I'm the design challenged individual I keep reading about
Regards
David Scott

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Allison Moore:
Hi David

You may be happier with NetObjects Fusion. It's very much "what you see is what you get". Powerful, but easier and faster than FrontPage or Dreamweaver.

Also, you can take the buttons you create in WebStyle and plug them into NOF's stylesheet. Then NOF will create your navbars for you and maintain the links automatically.

http://www.netobjects.com - Look under Fusion7 for the trial version.

Like Xara, NetObjects has a friendly and supportive newsgroup community. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

[RAMWolff44]

Not to kill all the excitment over NOF but I use Serifs PagePlus 9. You can create some very nice web pages, totally WYSIWYG interface and you can aslo create PDF's too. Nice working interface for creating rollovers and hotspots and yes, HTML is generated for you. It's not perfect but it did a fine job of creating the current web site (address below).

Serif's PagePlus 9 can be looked over here:

http://www.serif.com/pageplus/pageplus9/index.asp

No trial I'm afraid though. http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

Hope you get it all sorted out David! http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

Don't mind John, he's a nice fellow, just a bit nuts is all!! http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif I should talk!! http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/rolleyes.gif http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

[Albacore]

A lot of people making different recommendations are only going to confuse David. Like most folk who do web designs we do not have the memory to remember all the code and tags which "notepad" calls for and rely on some form of web editor to work from and with so many to use the selection is up to the individual to pick. With the industry leader being DW it is hard to look past this programme and with the huge resourses freely available on the web and with a huge number of tutorials there as well, with also a great number of mags offering videos and tutorials to show you how to set up a knockout site this would be the ideal software to use.

But do I use it, no, I went for the most unstable but highly designer oriented software called GoLive. The piont I am very slowly trying to make here is that you can use any bit of software out there but you should be comfortable with it. From John who prefers cutting his coding to a min. using "notepad" to myself who prefers to use GL over any other piece of software because I am happy with it.

I spent 6 months of research choosing the sofware that I was happy with. I tried using that awful MS FP because it came with the "Office" bundle, "Fusion 7" because it was given free with my server sign up, Nambo? as it was so cheap to buy, "Dreamweaver" as it was given to trial by every mag in the universe and "Golive" by the same method.

You can easily spend huge amount of money selecting the software to do the job but all of that goes out the window if you have no sence of design. Looking at David's site and I do not want to be rude or impolite here but to make his site successful as a tool to gain more work for his company he will need to spend a huge amount of his time and effort in:
1. thinking about what he wants from his site
2. as a proffessional person what his site presents to people who look at it.
3. Sketching ideas down on paper on how the site looks
4. Laying out the site, again on paper, in block diagrams or "postit" notes
5. Sketching out the navigation of the site.

I could go on making other suggestions before he even switches his computer on but that is enough for now. I should ask David if his time spent on tinkering around with Xara and "Fusion 7" would be better spent either making or selling kitchens and leaving web design to other people. He could sign up to a host company who offer site building as a free service or get a web designer to develop a personal site which is totally to his tastes as his present site is dreadful. "FrontPage" is bad but you can develop a reasonable site using that tool but this is not the case when viewing David's "NewKitchensDesign" it is not doing David's company any good by having this on the web. I would suggest that David uses someone else to produce his site or spend a huge amount of time learning how to design and build a web site which can take his company forward.

[amotl]

Dear Albacore
Thank you for your reply and your comments. Your comment about the present site being dreadful is, I am afraid,not far off the mark.
The person who put up the present site is a gem of a man who did so in an attempt to assist a friend start a unique business idea. I have known for some considerable time of the shortcomings of the NKD site but I will not offend a very sincere and decent man. The improvements are nearly ready for a dramatic makeover which hopefully will take us away from the dreadful category.
As far as planning for improvements is concerned I would challenge your suggestion that it is more efficient to do the design and planning on paper. With the superb facilities of Xara X and Webstyle 4.5 it is possible to do the planning and rough up work ready for publication on a test site, following which it could be taken to the next level by a pro.
Unless I am sadly mistaken there is a great deal to be gained by having hands on instantaneous editing capability for this kind of business. A great deal has been learned along the way which will, hopefully, prove useful. The development of business ideas is an enjoyable and sometimes laborious process where a little light relief with graphics helps.
I have a queue of eight new web sites waiting for development and subsequent publication some of which are for charitable purposes. I do not have the finances to launch these sites in a blaze of designer glory but that doesn't mean that we cannot progress.
Regards
David Scott

[Mickie]

David, great atttitude. I hope NOF works well for you.

My only caution would be to remember that any text statements that are exported from Xara for your site will be seen by search engines as graphics. So the trick is to pick and choose well which statements you want them to see as text and which you want to "pop" as a graphic for the viewing audience.

Best of luck...I hope you'll let us know/see how your site progresses.

Mickie

[RAMWolff44]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by JohnR:
Hi Anthony,

I must be nuts, this is the fiorst time this post has come up with something new since the 31st.... Hmmm... I wonder how many other people I have ignored? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

John?? JOHN!! Wake up dude!! Anthony did not post in this thread!! OK, now go back to sleep! http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

[RAMWolff44]

Me ignore YOU?? John, how could I, your everywhere!! http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

Hmmm, maybe there is another bug. Well, it's better than it was, I think Anthony will get it sorted out eventually.

Might I suggest that you post the issue in the Any problems? thread, I think Anthony is keeping close tabs on this one! http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

[AntonyF]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by gwpriester:
Don't take John seriously. He's still coding his HTML scripts by hand - Arrrrg! Spare me./QUOTE]

The problem being? http://www.talkgraphics.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

Hooray for hand coding!