Is Macromedia Dreamweaver 3 Compatible with Windows 7?

[johnb41024281]

I have Windows 7 on my laptop, and will until December.  I have Dreamweaver 3.0 inbound.  I need to know if I can successfully install it on Windows 7.  How about 10?

Why 3.0?  It was cheep.  I am not an advanced web programmer.  DW 3.0 has more than I need at this stage. My current skills include intermediate HTML and entry Java.  I'd like to experiment with CSS.  PHP and ASP are somewhere a year down the road, maybe more.

[Paul-M]

There won't be any guarantess such an old version works. Only way is to try it.

Latest versions of Dreamweaver are compatible with Windows 7:  Dreamweaver system requirements

[johnb41024281]

(big grin)  Of course!  If I had unlimited money.  Also, the latest and greatest is way overkill for what I want to do.  Too bad Adobe doesn't make a "Lite" version.  Microsoft does that with their development packages, and MS gives away the Lite version as a free download.  For me, buying the latest version is like buying a 40 passenger bus to drive to the mailbox and back, when all I need is a 4 wheeler.

If you are an Adobe employee, put in a suggestion for a Lite version.  Have it do Java, HTML, XML, CSS, and database attachment plus have a decent tutorial book.  Charge, say, $69.95.  This would profoundly hook the new user, like me.  Then, you can have the full version do PHP, ASP, full motion audio and video, security, include Flash, and other popular utilities, and charge what you currently charge.

I'm getting, from other threads, that there is a registry fail, sometimes, when installing an old version.  I don't mind spontaneous color or font changes.  That can be worked out in the code.  A registry fail is a show-stopper.

This package is due in Tuesday.  If it fails, I'll be back in touch.

[Ben M]

Adobe does have a lite version of Dreamweaver that is free, it's called Brackets ( Brackets - A modern, open source code editor that understands web design.​ ).  Dreamweaver's code view is based on that, and all brackets themes are able to be used in Dreamweaver.

To put in automotive terms what you are trying to do, you are trying to see if you can use a part from a '69 Chevy and use it inside of a Tesla.  There's been a lot of change since DW 3.0 - you are talking about comparing Win 98/ME/2000/NT 4.0 as the current operating system as opposed to your Windows 7.  You may be able to run a virtual environment, with an older OS to make it work, but if you are running into registry fails there is really no way around that other than virtualization.

If you don't want to get into the code as much, but you want to maintain websites, I would look towards installing a CMS in your instance. This is exactly the use case for why you would want something like a Wordpress with a good theme so that you can maintain a site without having to worry as much about code.  Have you considered going down this path with a CMS?

[johnb41024281]

Thank you.  I'll check out Brackets.

BTW, what is CMS?

I'm not yet deploying websites to customers.  I'm in the learning phase.

[Nancy OShea]

johnb41024281  wrote

BTW, what is CMS?

Content Management System.  An online platform that allows you to log-in and edit your site from any computer that has Internet access.   No other stand alone software is required.  WordPress is a very popular CMS platform for novices.  

[johnb41024281]

Mild disappointment.  Brackets is not WYSIWYG.  The help system is, well, definitely, er, different.  I can tell I'm going to be asking a lot of questions.

I guess I do load DW 3.0 after all.  It's WYSIWYG.  At this point, I don't mind all my effort in HTML4.  I'll learn 5 later.

[Nancy OShea]

Assuming you can even install it and get it activated, DW 3  cannot recognize CSS code so it is definitely NOT WYSIWYG.   It's basically just too damned old.

HTML4 is from the last century and  no use whatsoever.   See links below.  Read the chapters, do the code exercises in Brackets or another code editor.  Preview your work in real browsers.

• HTML5 Introduction
• CSS Tutorial
• JavaScript Tutorial

[Ben M]

johnb41024281  wrote

Mild disappointment.  Brackets is not WYSIWYG.  The help system is, well, definitely, er, different.  I can tell I'm going to be asking a lot of questions.

I guess I do load DW 3.0 after all.  It's WYSIWYG.  At this point, I don't mind all my effort in HTML4.  I'll learn 5 later.

Unfortunately modern web development for the most part is not WYSIWYG.  And DW 3 as Nancy eluded to is definitely not that either as the code it generates is very old.  If you need something drag and drop for layouts, then I would highly recommend learning CSS for styling and using a CMS like Wordpress with an addon like a WPBakery or Divi page builder on the backend to help you drag and drop elements on the page and just use CSS to style the elements.

If you want to stay completely away from the code altogether and just want to try and visually build pages and trust someone else's code, then you are looking at hosted web page builders like squarespace or wix. 

[johnb41024281 · Accepted solution]

DW 3.0 arrived.  It installed OK, but the vendor did not supply the software key.  Ahhhh.  Bye, bye $20.  I downloaded it free from OldVersion,com.  It is the 30 day trial version. At least I get 30 days.  Dreamweaver 3.0 will run on Windows 7, but you have to run it as administrator.

BUT WAIT!  Awesome manual!  Totally worth more than the software!

You see, I don't care about latest and greatest code.  I'm not competing with high speed 20 somethings for an IT position in a mid level company.  I'm not selling phony vitamin supplements to health paranoid 40 somethings.  I'm learning for the sake of learning.  I'm 70 and retired.  I weld.  I machine.  I do very crude woodworking, only when it supports my machine hobby.  I USED TO BE Info Tech.  I was Army, then Wal Mart Information Systems.  That was a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.  I'm trying to re-learn what has ebbed away since 2003.

Well, Dreamweaver is a bust, but the manual was worth the money, and then some.  I guess, on to try Blue Griffon and Kompozer.

I'll let you know.

[Nancy OShea]

Dreamweaver 3 is obsolete software.  It reached its end of life  ages ago.  Why anyone would want to use it in 2019 boggles my mind.  It has zero support for modern HTML5, PHP 7, CSS or JavaScript.   Java is another programming language that is not used much on the web.    If you're serious about learning to work with modern code for the modern web, download  Adobe Brackets or Micrsoft's Visual Studio Code.  

• Brackets - A modern, open source code editor that understands web design.
• Visual Studio Code - Code Editing. Redefined

[johnb41024281]

Brackets is installed.  Now to work its tutorial. 

Thank you all for your help,

Since I spent less than $20 for Dreamweaver 3.0, it won't break my heart just to leave the package unopened, for now.

I'm thrilled by the possibilities of the "extensions" tab.  I have found (ab)user built extensions to be very useful in Photoshop Elements 15.

I'll let you know in a couple of days.