Dreamweaver MX 2004 Extensions
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Most of the core program of Dreamweaver is built using the same API provided to developers for building extensions, making it easier to find the functionality you need to start developing extensions. Read in this chapter about the advantages of the Macromedia Extension Manager, see the popular Yaromat Check Form extension, and the Massimocorner CF Upload extension, and learn how to use the Dreamweaver Server Behavior Builder to build a CFML form mailer. (
ColdFusion Web Development with Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004, by Jen and Peter deHaan et al., Apress, 2004, ISBN: 1-59059-237-9.)
Introduction
One of the main reasons Dreamweaver MX 2004 has been so successful is undoubtedly its extensibility: its potential to be customized as required. Thanks to the efforts of some early Dreamweaver adopters—who have spent a lot of time digging into its program folders to find out ways to improve the application—the number of extensions available for Dreamweaver has reached a startling amount. Macromedia has always kept a close eye on this phenomenon and welcomed it with open arms, offering more and more tools and features to facilitate the development, distribution, and consumption of these extensions, as well as publishing numerous extensions in the form of Dev Net Resource Kits.
What distinguishes Dreamweaver extensibility from that of other web development tools is that most of the core program itself is built using the same API provided to developers for building extensions. Therefore, you don’t need to go far to find the functionality necessary for you to start developing extensions, and to gain insight into building your own functionality, you just need to have a look at how Dreamweaver’s core functionality has been created. What you will discover is that much of this great Dreamweaver functionality is built using familiar technologies such as HTML, XML, or JavaScript.
In this chapter we will:
- Look at the Macromedia Extension Manager and how it is used it to install, disable, and remove extensions, and package new extensions we have written ready for distribution
- Showcase a couple of the most popular extensions—the Yaromat Check Form extension, and the Massimocorner CF Upload extension
- Learn how to use the Dreamweaver Server Behavior Builder to build a CFML form mailer
Exploring Extensions An extension is something that permits us to add functionality to an application beyond its core out-of-the-box functionality. Extensions are employed to further increase productivity and reduce time spent solving problems during development by automating repetitive tasks or adding functionality to the base program. In Dreamweaver, extensions are nothing more than additional objects, behaviors, commands and the like added to the existing product.
To facilitate their distribution and installation, Macromedia Extensions are usually made available as Macromedia Extension Package (MXP) files (similar to zip archives) that contain all the files necessary to install an extension. These files contain Macromedia Extension Installation (MXI) files, which we show you how to create at the end of this chapter.
 This chapter is from ColdFusion Web Development with Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004, by Jen and Peter deHaan et al. (Apress, 2004, ISBN: 1-59059-237-9). Check it out at your favorite bookstore today.
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