With Dreamweaver being semi-mothballed what are we supposed to use now?

[Swandive stream]

Do people no longer need websites? From what I can tell, the intended route is Dreamweaver being replaced with... 🤷🏻‍:male_sign:

[Ben M]

Websites are a different animal then they were 10 years ago. People still need websites, but the development branched in 2 directions. The hosted solutions like Webflow, Wix, etc. that allowed people to have more of the drag and drop interface without the need to code or worry about how to manage hosting, and the more technical route which necessitated the need for development branches and controlled testing to develop technologically sophisticated sites. So there is no one route that has replaced DW entirely but depending on your specialty and focus there is likely a solution that will meet your needs.

[Swandive stream]

Designing a website from code is kind of satisfying but I also don't really know what I'm doing half the time. The trouble with Wix et al is requires a constant subscription and ties you to a specific service whereas a website that is just code can be moved around between hosts as long as the data is moved across without losing anything. You also hit the limits of what the platform can do. For example I was using Adobe Portfolio which is very basic and it felt like I didn't have much control over the design of the website.

[Ben M]

I get that. However, I would say that everything is a constant subscription even your hosting and while you could move, if you are using a dynamic technology like Wordpress you are still stuck with them unless you move out of that ecosystem. That has given way to more advanced systems like a headless cms to further separate the code and development branches from the content. On the other hand, there are businesses who want cheap websites quick so those systems work, or they get bundled into something like Hubspot that gives them a website there. I don't know that I would put Adobe Portfolio in any of those categories as it is very niche for designers to showcase their work and nothing more. There are definitely options out there and I still keep software like Nova around for some more advanced projects that need quick code edits that can often go into those platforms.

[Nancy OShea]

Building safe & secure websites are not fun & games anymore. The web is shark-infested waters for folks who don't know what they don't know about cybersecurity, privacy laws, and web accessibility.  Site ownership is complicated enough without going down the coding rabbit hole all alone.  

Most people have shifted to CMSs (content management systems) that do most of the heavy lifting for them, so they can focus more on content. WordPress is an open source option. But it's not plug & play & walk away. You need to know how to lock your WP site down to protect it from unwanted hackers & other malicious threats. Webflow & Squarespace are other good options, but you'll pay more for that extra convenience & ease of use.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• What do I need my site to do for me? Be specific.
• Do I have all the required skills to achieve this goal?
• What's my budget?
• How much time will I be able to devote to this?
• Is my personal time worth more to me than I would spend on a CMS?

[Nancy OShea]

Do people no longer need websites?

By @Swandive stream

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Some do, some don't. Facebook pages and social media have replaced many personal websites. Few people use Blogs anymore.  

Business owners are more invested in websites.