Programs for a web designer web design basics. Overview of free software for publishing (creating a print layout) Special programs for design and layout

What are the purposes of the programs?

Before using website layout programs, you need to divide them into several categories.

Work with graphics. First of all, the layout designer must be able to work with the layout that he receives. If he cannot cut out the necessary parts from the layout, then further layout is impossible in principle.

Working with code. When you figure out the graphics and cut out everything you need, you will need to start the main work of the layout designer - writing code. To make it as fast and convenient as possible, you need to use the right software.

Checking work. When you have already done the main work, you will need to check its result. As a rule, in the process of writing, you can make many mistakes, especially if you do not have much experience. Also, different requirements are usually imposed on the finished layout. Checks will help to adjust it to these requirements.

To work with the layout

The layout designer needs to remember the need to work with the layout. There is PhotoShop for this, although you can use GIMP as a free alternative. Both are suitable, although Photoshop, of course, is a little more convenient.

You need to understand that the layout can contain hundreds of layers. To work with it without brakes, you need to work on more or less powerful hardware. Much depends on the layout itself. The fewer layers and elements, the smaller the file size, the faster it will be processed.

Actually layout

With the layout, everything is very clear, but what software can be useful for layout? Maybe you need a program for website layout only in html and css. In this case, you can choose something simpler. Whose work is more difficult, the more functional solution should be used.

Notebook. The simplest thing you can have for code editing. No functionality. In what cases will you need to use it? Let's say you need to show a friend some piece of code, but on his computer it will not be suitable program. Notepad is not suitable for editing, let alone writing code.

Rice. 1. Notepad does not have syntax highlighting, so it is not suitable for working with code.

notepad++. But this is a much more advanced tool. It is often referred to as a programmer's notebook. It supports syntax highlighting, many languages ​​and encodings. Writing code is easy, convenient, it is possible to connect plugins and work with a large number of files at the same time. Depending on your knowledge of languages, you can enable or disable hints. Experienced typesetters usually turn them off because they only get in the way of writing code.

Rice. 2. Notepad++ has excellent syntax highlighting. Tags, attributes, attribute values, and plain text are highlighted differently.

Adobe DreamViewer. A more powerful program that includes not only an editor, but also tools for completely visual creation of pages and elements. Work with it will have to be studied, since it is quite complicated. I must say that any visual editor inserts a lot of extra code.

This is true in the case of Dreamviewer, but here you have to pay for speed. The program is suitable for professionals when you need to quickly get the page code to show it to the customer.

sublimetext. Very similar to Notepad++. It differs mainly only in the interface and various plugins that can be connected.

front page. Another program from Microsoft. It also allows you to work with images, videos and JavaScript.

Again, the choice depends on whether you need a visual component or if you intend to write more code yourself.

Statistics show that most developers use Sublime and Notepad++. This best programs for site layout. But they will suit you if you already know the code and don't really need help. Then these editors will give you more freedom.

You can also select UltraEdit. Although the program is not very popular, it quickly opens large files and it is also convenient to write code in it.

Also many people praise NetBeans. This development environment is well suited for writing web scripts and scripts. Recommended for beginner programmers.

Of the more modern software, it can be noted text editor vim. In terms of functionality, it is considered one of the most powerful. For example, you can work with many files in one window, compare two files, and then quickly make changes. Another feature is the unlimited ability to undo and redo some of your actions.

Layout check

As a rule, normal code editors already contain tools for checking what is written. For example, code highlighting makes it easy to spot random typos and minor errors (an unclosed tag, an extra semicolon, etc.)

But the layout check is not only about that. For more complete testing, you need to use other programs. For example, the same debugger. I have already mentioned it several times. Firstly, it is an opportunity to quickly find a problem and solve it. Since you can turn off any styles in the debugger, this allows you to quickly find it, you can use it to check the operation of media rules if you also implement adaptability.

This may not be enough either. If the template should look the same in most popular browsers, you need to check the layout for cross-browser compatibility. There are several online services for this. One of the most popular is crossbrowsertesting.com/. Certain features on the site are available only for money. The service gained popularity due to the ability to check the site in more than a hundred versions. different browsers.

Rice. 3. Crossbrowsertesting is one of the resources that offers crossbrowser testing in hundreds of browser versions.

It may still be necessary to adapt the layout for older versions of browsers. As you know, most problems always arose with Internet Explorer. Earlier I already wrote about IE Tester - a program where you can check for free how the site will look in older versions of this browser. NetRederender is also suitable for this. It allows you to see appearance site in IE versions from 5.5 to 9.

Conclusion

A lot of services and programs may be required for website layout. In the minimum configuration, this is a program for working with graphics, 1 code editor and 2-3 services for checking the layout. I have seen people who have a much larger toolbox. It all depends on the complexity of your activity as a web developer. That's all for today. Subscribe to our blog if you want to know everything about website building.

It will not be difficult for an experienced layout designer or web programmer to make up the simplest web page using a regular text editor. But to perform complex tasks in this area of ​​activity, it is recommended to use specialized software. These can be advanced text editors, multifunctional complex applications called integrated development tools, image editors, etc. In this article, we will just look at software, intended for site layout.

First of all, let's start with a description of advanced text editors designed to facilitate the work of a layout designer. By far the most famous program of this type is Notepad++. This software solution supports the syntax of many programming languages, as well as text encodings. Code highlighting and line numbering greatly facilitate the work of programmers of various directions. Application regular expressions makes it easier to find and change sections of code that are similar in structure. To quickly perform the same type of actions, it is proposed to record macros. You can significantly expand the already rich functionality with the help of built-in plugins.

Among the shortcomings, one can name only such a dubious "minus" as the presence of a large number of functions that are incomprehensible to the average user.

SublimeText

Another advanced text editor for web developers is SublimeText. He also knows how to work with many languages, including Java, HTML, CSS, C++. When working with code, highlighting, auto-completion and numbering are used. Very convenient function is support for snippets, with which you can apply blanks. The use of regular expressions and macros can also provide significant time savings for the task at hand. SublimeText allows you to work on four panels at the same time. The functionality of the program is extended by installing plugins.

The main drawback of the application, when compared with Notepad ++, is the lack of a Russian-language interface, which causes certain inconveniences, especially for inexperienced users. Also, not all users like the notification that appears with a suggestion to purchase a license in the window free version product.

Brackets

We will complete the description of text editors designed for web page layout with an overview of the Brackets application. This tool, like previous analogues, supports all major markup and programming languages ​​with highlighting of the corresponding expressions and line numbering. The highlight of the application is the presence of a function "Live Preview", with which you can view all the changes made to the document in real time through the browser, as well as integration into context menu "Explorer". The Brackets toolkit allows you to view web pages in debug mode. Through the program window, you can manipulate several files at the same time. The ability to install third-party extensions further pushes the boundaries of functionality.

Only the presence of some non-Russian sections in the program upsets, as well as the possibility of using the function "Live Preview" exclusively in the Google Chrome browser.

GIMP

One of the most popular among advanced image editors that can be successfully used, including for generating web content, is GIMP. It is especially convenient to use the program to draw the design of the site. With the help of this product, it is possible to draw and edit finished images using a variety of tools (brushes, filters, blurring, selection, and much more). GIMP supports working with layers and saving blanks in own format, with which you can resume work at the same place where it was finished, even after restarting. The history of changes helps to keep track of all the actions that were applied to the picture and, if necessary, undo them. In addition, the program can work with text applied to the image. This is the only free app among analogues, which can offer such a rich functionality.

Among the shortcomings, one can single out the sometimes occurring slowdown effect due to the high resource intensity of the program, as well as significant difficulties in understanding the operation algorithm for beginners.

Adobe Photoshop

Paid analogue of GIMP is Adobe program Photoshop. It is even more famous because it was released much earlier and has more advanced functionality. Photoshop is used in many areas of web development. With it, you can create edit and convert images. The program can work with layers and 3D models. In this case, the user has the opportunity to use an even larger set of tools and filters than in GIMP.

Among the main disadvantages should be called the difficulty in mastering all the functionality of Adobe Photoshop. Also, unlike GIMP, this tool paid with a trial period of only 30 days.

Aptana Studio

The next group of programs for web page layout is integrated development tools. One of its most popular representatives is Aptana Studio. This software solution is a comprehensive website creation tool that includes a text editor, a debugger, a compiler, and a build automation tool. With the application, you can work with program code in many programming languages. Aptana Studio supports simultaneous manipulation of several projects, integration with other systems (in particular, with the Aptana Cloud service), as well as remote editing of site content.

The main disadvantages of Aptana Studio are the difficulty in learning and the lack of a Russian-language interface.

webstorm

An analogue of the Aptana Studio program is WebStorm, which also belongs to the class of integrated development systems. This software product has a convenient code editor that supports an impressive list of different programming languages. For greater user comfort, the developers have provided the ability to choose the design of the design of the workspace. Among the "pluses" of WebStorm, one can single out the presence of a Node.js debugging tool and fine-tuning libraries. Function "Live Edit" provides the ability to view through the browser all the changes made. The tool for interacting with the web server allows you to remotely edit and configure the site.

In addition to the lack of a Russian-language interface, WebStorm has another "minus" that, by the way, Aptana Studio does not have, namely, the need to pay for the use of the program.

front page

Now consider a block of applications called visual HTML editors. Let's start with a product overview Microsoft called Front Page. This program had considerable popularity, as at one time it was part of Microsoft package office. It offers the ability to layout web pages in a visual editor that works on the principle of WYSIWYG ("what you see is what you get"), as in the Word word processor. If desired, the user can open a standard html editor to work with the code or combine both modes on a separate page. Many text formatting tools are built into the application's interface. There is a spell check feature. In a separate window, you can see how the web page will look through the browser.

With so many advantages, the program has even more disadvantages. The most important is that the developers have not supported it since 2003, which means that the product is hopelessly behind the development of web technologies. But even in its best days, Front Page did not support a large list of standards, which, in turn, led to the fact that web pages created in this application, were displayed only in the Internet Explorer browser.

KompoZer

The next visual HTML code editor - KompoZer is also not supported by developers for a long period. But unlike Front Page, the project was stopped only in 2010, which means that this program still able to support newer standards and technologies than the above competitor. She also knows how to work in WYSIWYG mode and in code editing mode. There are opportunities to combine both options, work simultaneously with several documents in different tabs and preview the results. In addition, Composer has a built-in FTP client.

The main "minus", like the Front Page, is the termination of support for KompoZer by developers. In addition, this program has only an English-language interface.

Adobe Dreamweaver

Let's complete this article overview visual HTML editor Adobe Dreamweaver. Unlike previous analogues, this software product is still supported by its developers, which ensures its relevance in terms of compliance with modern standards and technologies, as well as more powerful functionality. Dreamviewer provides the ability to work in WYSIWYG, regular code editor (with highlight) and split. In addition, you can view all changes in real time. The program also includes a set additional features, making it easier to work with the code.

QuarkXPress is a program designed for layout layout of a variety of printed products - newspapers, magazines, brochures, catalogs, etc. QuarkXPress allows you to create not only "paper" layouts, but also design for e-books, websites and interactive applications (Flash). Over the 25 years of its presence on the market, QuarkXPress has managed to gain respect among designers and layout designers around the world - the program supports international color standards and can automatically detect potential problems already at the prepress stage. The application supports drag-and-drop and hotkeys, allows you to work with transparency and effects (drop shadow, etc.), manage layers, align graphic elements on the layout, fine-tune text parameters (kerning, tracking, wrapping, etc.). ). QuarkXPress supports Unicode encoding and OpenType fonts, can import tables and texts from Word documents and Excel, and is also capable of importing graphics in PSD, EPS, GIF, JPG, PDF, PNG, PostScript, and TIFF formats. QuarkXPress can automatically update the elements used in layouts (texts, images), allows you to apply styles and automatically control compliance with the project specification.

Key features and functions

• a wide range of tools for working with layouts, texts and graphics;
• automatic control over compliance with the project specification;
• automatic identification of potential problems at the prepress stage;
• support for many graphic formats;
• import data from Excel and Word;
• the ability to design e-books, websites and web applications.

I welcome you to my blog. Today I decided to prepare a useful selection for designers. I visited the most popular webmaster sites and found the top 50 tools to help you design.

I present to your attention programs for web design, best online services and professionally recognized tools. I do not agree with all the points, but who am I to argue with experts working on sites such as Netology , vc.ru, say-hi and others.

I added a little to this list on my own and divided it into categories. Now I present it to your attention.

Basic programs

Of course, no web developer can do without a standard set from Adobe, through which all work is carried out. It is now the end of 2016 and many professionals claim that the growing popularity of the program Sketch , which has been replacing Photoshop, which is familiar to many for several years, is about to do it. In 2017, we will all be actively studying this particular program.

This is despite the fact that it is not yet available in Russian and it is only suitable for Mac OS. Most professionals say that for interface design, it suits much better than Photoshop.

If we talk about other Adobe products, then it's up to you to study them or not. And yet they are still on the list.

• illustrator like best tool for working with vector graphics and creating illustrations.
• InDesign as the optimal utility for printing.
• Adobe Muse as the perfect platform for creating

In addition to Adobe products, professionals recommend paying attention to other brands and their products. Macaw recognized as one of the most popular web design programs. Unlike Sketch, it is suitable for Windows and allows you to program without knowing the code. It automatically generates . You can download it for free directly from the official website. True only for English language.

The Creative Bloq edition offers another modern service as an alternative to Adobe Muse Pinegrow , it is suitable for drawing any site with subsequent automatic conversion of the image into code. The same can be achieved on Jetstrap.

Well, if you need to work with applications, then this will help you more Foundation for Apps .

Graphics bank

Every designer needs graphics. If you draw everything yourself, it will take a lot of time. Some items can be ordered from someone else, or you can purchase or pick up already finished pictures from banks. A good designer will never steal, but download from a good site - why not.

For example, on endlessicons.com you can find icons, and on coverr.co video covers.

On freepik.com And icon store you can find many free images. Vectors and even PSD layouts. I can offer myself Photoshop-master And pixabay .

Stripemania.com – generate graphics quickly. Add your colors and get a striped picture. Want to create your own animated background With smooth transition colors? The site will help you with this. gradient-animator.com . It will not only show the result in real time, but also create a code that will only have to be inserted into the site.

Findguidelin.es this is a collection where you can find icons and all the information for designers about popular brands: WatsApp, Facebook, Vkontakte and so on.

Logo and favicon maker

I was surprised, but on many popular and prestigious sites for designers you can find a link to a service that helps. On Netology, for example, they offer withoomph.com or designrails.com . I prefer Logaster .

For quick creation you can use the portal www.favicon.cc . By the way, I already wrote about him. Good thing.

Working with color

A bad designer is one who does not trust the help of professional services to create the best combination colors. To do this, you can find many resources on the Internet. For example, I like color scheme .

Service Material Palette offers to choose two colors, and she will complete the rest of the scheme for you: fonts, separators, and so on.

On 0to255 you can see different shades, although you also have a Russian alternative - Yandex.

If you saw a beautiful picture, you can use the service pictaculous.com extract from it color scheme. By the way, it helps a lot to decide exactly whether to use this or that image on your portal. If it does not successfully combine with the main scheme, then the answer is obvious.

Working with fonts

First and most best resource for working with Google Fonts. This is a huge collection of fonts, including in Russian. Easy to choose, easy to use.

To find the perfect combination of fonts, experts recommend using the service: canva.com/font-combinations or typewolf.com .

You may also need a browser extension fontface.ninja . Find beautiful font, hover over it with the mouse and get information. It remains only to find it.

And in the online editor on the site prototypo.io you can change it a bit and make it unique.

Final stage

When the project is ready, you need to check how everything will look in standard browsers from computers and on the screen mobile phone. resizemybrowser.com help you do it quickly.

With the help of the service dunnnk.com you can insert your screenshot into thousands of images of phones and computers and see how your site will look on different gadgets from several angles.

A very useful list is located on the site webdesignerschecklist.com . Have you done everything right, is it possible to hand over the project? Just check the boxes and make sure you don't forget anything. Sorry, but the service is only suitable for those who speak English.

If, in addition to design, you are also engaged in layout, you can embed the utility in the code tota11y . It will highlight the errors.

Well, do not forget about development. I think that it will be useful for any designer to take a course on missing knowledge from Photoshop-Master Commands .

In addition, I invite you to subscribe to my blog mailing list and Vkontakte group. This will allow you not to stop for a second in design development and improve every day.

OK it's all over Now. See you again and good luck.

So, let's define: you need a tool to speed up your work. That is, you do not need to master all the functionality perfectly, you need to learn how to work quickly. Whichever tool you choose, learn the key features and master all the hotkeys.

Learn how to use them automatically, and then move on to more advanced features. To design simple websites, you only need to know how to set a font, draw simple shapes, work with layers, change colors, and so on.

Rice. 7.0: I designed my site with a few basic tools, one font and three colors.

When you get comfortable with your tool, you can quickly test different ideas (which will help you achieve better results) and finish work on time (which will make your clients and employers happy!).

If you are just starting to learn design or have been wanting to switch to another tool for a long time, I advise you to experiment with several options and choose the most convenient one. We all have our own life experiences and habits. If for some reason you liked a program, most likely you will master it much faster.

It is important to understand that at some point you may have to switch to another tool. Most of us have been using Photoshop for years because there were no alternatives on the market. Over the past couple of years, the situation has changed radically.

Design on the web has long ceased to be static, and we are trying to fill the gap between design and code. Most likely, in the near future there will be many new features and even tools.

Popular Design Software

When choosing a design tool, an important role is played not only by the speed and quality of the program itself, but also by its popularity in a professional environment. It will be easier for you to work with other designers and developers (for example, as part of a large-scale project) if you use the same software.

1. Sketch- $99/year (Mac only)

I use Sketch for most of my current projects. The tool is very fast, intuitive and quite easy to use (I switched to it from Photoshop without any problems). Sketch is one of the most popular design apps, so most developers and designers are familiar with it.

Sketch has everything you need for design: guides, grids, symbols, transforming images in perspective (to preview designs on iOS), vector editing, prototyping, libraries, asset export, cloud (to share designs and libraries), and even code export . And there are a lot of plugins and resources for it.

The biggest disadvantage of Sketch is that it only works on Mac. However, it is possible to export projects for applications such as InVision And Zeplin to create specifications and developer guides.

2. Figma– Free or $12/mo (web app)

Figma is relative new program for design. It's probably Sketch's biggest competitor - and it's growing very fast. Figma has all the same features as Sketch - plus multiple designers can work on the same project at the same time.

The coolest thing is that Figma is completely free if you have up to three projects, and for just $12 a month you unlock all the features and can create an infinite number of projects. The application works directly in the browser - therefore, on almost any operating system. The user interface is reminiscent of Sketch and Adobe XD: if you are familiar with these tools, then you don’t even have to master anything.

This is a great option if you are a beginner designer and would like to try your hand without investing in expensive software yet. I used Figma in several of my projects and it worked very simply and quickly for me.

3. Adobe XD– Free (Mac and Windows)

Adobe XD is another strong player in the world professional applications for design. I think it's great for UI design, wireframing, and prototyping, although it lacks a few advanced features compared to Sketch or Figma.

The upside is that the tool is free for both Mac and Windows (although it will probably be paid when it is brought to mind). Plus, it's an Adobe product line - so you'll be able to swap assets with other tools like Photoshop or Illustrator.

The interface is very similar to Sketch and Figma, so you can use three tools at the same time - and switch between them without any problems (except that some hotkeys are different!).

4. InVision Studio– Free (beta version, with the possibility of early access)

InVision Studio is a new full stack tool that is still in beta but looks promising. The interface is a copy of Sketch and Figma, which have already become the modern standard for design tools.

I've been playing around with InVision Studio a bit and since I've had a good overall experience with other InVision products, I'm sure the guys will be a success when the official release comes out.

5. webflow– Free or $16/mo (web app)

Webflow is a full-stack tool for building functional and responsive websites that can be hosted directly on their platform (or exported and hosted elsewhere).

I'm not a big fan of design-to-code tools because the generated code usually doesn't perform very well, plus it's hard to work with. However, Webflow is very good. You have complete control over the CSS code, plus the tool shows you how HTML and CSS work because all design elements in the browser behave as they should.

I think Webflow is great for building rapid prototypes, simple websites, one pagers, and the like. Many professional designers I know use Webflow - so it's worth taking a closer look!

6. Adobe Photoshop– $20.99/mo or as part of Creative Cloud ($52.99/mo)

It's no coincidence that I put Photoshop at the very end of the list. Photoshop is very popular program for website design, but it loses the battle against Sketch, Figma and other tools. If you're still using Photoshop, that's fine, but be prepared to move to another tool in the near future.

The current web development standards force us to make projects more flexible, move closer to the code, work within the framework of the design system. Photoshop is too slow and generates too large files compared to the above tools.

However, I still use Photoshop for photo manipulation, graphics, and illustrations.

Other tools I use at work:

Here full list tools that I use in my work.