ColdFusion

To David's excellent advice I would add...

Don't let your host influence your decision. I would take a good look at
ColdFusion and PHP and see which one "clicks" best for you. Then find a host
that supports *your* choice instead of you supporting theirs. It's much
easier to switch hosts than struggle with an app language that doesn't
click.
--
Lawrence Cramer *Adobe Community Expert*
email: lawrence at cartweaver dot com

Cartweaver CF, ASP & PHP Shopping Cart for Dreamweaver
www.cartweaver.com
news://support.cartweaver.com
=====================================================


"David Powers" <david@example.com> wrote in message
news:ej7873$1u2$1@forums.macromedia.com...
> *JoJo* wrote:
> > I read that an application server such as ColdFusion
> > is necessary but am unsure which to choose. I would like one that is
easy to
> > learn, cheep to buy (if it can be downloaded for free that would be
great), and
> > compatible with DW.
>
> The web servers supported by DW are:
>
> ASP - widely available, and very popular, but no longer being actively
> developed by Microsoft. So it's not a good choice if you have never used
> it before.
>
> ASP.NET - very powerful, but has a steep learning curve. Also,
> Dreamweaver doesn't support the latest version. Also not a good choice
> for the needs you have stated.
>
> ColdFusion - very easy to learn and the developer version is free.
> However, it's not as widely available as ASP or PHP. You would need to
> check whether your hosting company supports it or be prepared to move to
> one that does.
>
> JSP - for propellerheads. Forget it.
>
> PHP - very widely available. It's also free and relatively easy to
> learn. It's the one I prefer, having tried both ASP and ColdFusion.
>
> So, my suggestion would be to check with your hosting company to see if
> it supports either PHP or ColdFusion. If it doesn't support either, see
> what others say about the different server models and make a choice.
> ColdFusion hosting packages used to be more expensive than PHP, but I
> don't know whether that's still the case.
>
> Neither PHP nor ColdFusion is particularly difficult, and Dreamweaver
> does a lot of the coding for you automatically. However, don't expect to
> learn everything overnight. If you decide on PHP, you may find my book
> helpful. If you're looking for books on ColdFusion, the acknowledged
> expert is Ben Forta.
>
> --
> David Powers
> Adobe Community Expert
> Author, "Foundation PHP for Dreamweaver 8" (friends of ED)
> http://foundationphp.com/

*JoJo* wrote:
> I read that an application server such as ColdFusion
> is necessary but am unsure which to choose. I would like one that is easy to
> learn, cheep to buy (if it can be downloaded for free that would be great), and
> compatible with DW.

The web servers supported by DW are:

ASP - widely available, and very popular, but no longer being actively
developed by Microsoft. So it's not a good choice if you have never used
it before.

ASP.NET - very powerful, but has a steep learning curve. Also,
Dreamweaver doesn't support the latest version. Also not a good choice
for the needs you have stated.

ColdFusion - very easy to learn and the developer version is free.
However, it's not as widely available as ASP or PHP. You would need to
check whether your hosting company supports it or be prepared to move to
one that does.

JSP - for propellerheads. Forget it.

PHP - very widely available. It's also free and relatively easy to
learn. It's the one I prefer, having tried both ASP and ColdFusion.

So, my suggestion would be to check with your hosting company to see if
it supports either PHP or ColdFusion. If it doesn't support either, see
what others say about the different server models and make a choice.
ColdFusion hosting packages used to be more expensive than PHP, but I
don't know whether that's still the case.

Neither PHP nor ColdFusion is particularly difficult, and Dreamweaver
does a lot of the coding for you automatically. However, don't expect to
learn everything overnight. If you decide on PHP, you may find my book
helpful. If you're looking for books on ColdFusion, the acknowledged
expert is Ben Forta.

--
David Powers
Adobe Community Expert
Author, "Foundation PHP for Dreamweaver 8" (friends of ED)
http://foundationphp.com/