KompoZer downloads for the month of September soared to more than 80,000 copies. The latest release offers significant improvements in capability and reliability when compared to Nvu WYSIWYG HTML editor code on which it is based.KompoZer’s developer, Kazé, should be encouraged by the reception his work is receiving. The latest KompoZer release, 0.7.10, has been out for only a month but interest has pushed the project toward the top of the SourceForge list.
KompoZer was in the top 100 projects for downloads last week and ranks 329 in the project activity list. That’s pretty good when you consider that Notepadd++, Filezilla, phpMyAdmin and a host of other popular projects are on that list.
KompoZer Advantages
A significant amount of work went into developing the code that is the foundation of KompoZer. Even with all that work a number of bugs frustrated users including Kazé. He set out and quickly resolved most of the identified bugs that got in the way of web authoring. He then added new features and improved the user interface. He recently restarted KompoZer development after a hiatus that seemed to last forever to some of us.
The advantages offered by KompoZer are:
- Free, open source software. KompoZer can replace packages costing hundred’s of US dollars.
- WYSIWYG operation. Web pages can be created by novice authors.
- Cross-platform. KompoZer runs on Windows, Linux and Mac platforms.
- Multi-language. Localized versions are available.
I always thought the main advantage to KompoZer was the appeal to a wide range of user talents. Kazé views KompoZer as targeted to advanced users. Clearly it has capabilities that folks who understand code can appreciate but the rest of us can kind of ignore those features. KompoZer is a useful tool for novices without a lot of technical background.
The current release builds on the editor’s ability to deal with CSS – Cascading Style Sheets. Improvements to Cascades, the built-in CSS editor, help new web authors to learn how to use CSS. The user can see how changes in CSS rules will influence the appearance of the page and can adjust accordingly.
KompoZer is designed to be extremely easy to use, making it ideal for non-technical computer users who want to create an attractive, professional-looking web site…
Web Authoring Tool
KompoZer is a great tool to use to prepare or maintain a web site. A simple site can be created by anyone including students, housewives, and retirees. I know that is true because I have helped them over obstacles in web authoring. The web sites they have created are fairly impressive. The resulting code is compliant with web standards and plays well on modern browsers.
KompoZer is also a great learning tool. For those willing to learn more about web authoring, KompoZer’s CSS editor will get you to the head of the class in appearance as well as search engine ranking. The package is well documented in the User’s Guide and supported by a number of forums.
So be one of the 120,000 (est) who will download KompoZer in October and start creating.
Wysi
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2 comments:
Hi, I just couldn't resist responding to this post as I see I'm rapidly becoming a Ludite in my inability to embrace CSS. KZ doesn't make creating style sheets intuitive or easy, IMO, and I'm still stuck with connecting the terminology to the concept. While the concept makes sense, I just don't see how to create a style sheet that actually works.
Yours in tableland,
Joan (aka unohoo)
I share your concern about the arguably "easy" transition to CSS, uno.
We battle along with tables and just when we think we are getting somewhere within our modest expectations, it's like "Nooooo, wrong tram guys - get onto CSS, the only way to travel".
Derrr. Who says?
krc
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