Website Editors

If you want to make a website but you don't know HTML or you don't want to do it in Notepad, there are lots of programs out there that will do it for you. Don't take my word for the prices, I did them from memory and they are subject to change. You should be able to find the current prices on their websites.

Freeware
Shareware
Commercial

Nvu

Type: WYSIWYG/HTML
Licence: Freeware
Nvu, pronounced "en-view", is the best of the lot when it comes to freeware website editors. It runs on pretty much every platform (including Linux) too, so it doesn't matter what OS you're using. It's made by the people from the Mozilla Project (the same team behind Firefox) and is aimed to be a freeware alternative to Dreamweaver. While it isn't quite there yet, it's stuffed with features and is remarkably easy to use. Get it, even if you already have something like Dreamweaver. Even I use it sometimes.

1site LITE

Type: WYSIWYG/HTML
Licence: Freeware (commercial versions available)
1site LITE is a useful WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) and HTML editor. If you don't know HTML, you probably need a WYSIWYG, and this was the best for the price pre-Nvu. It's reasonably easy to use and you can buy a commercial version if you want more features.

Netscape Composer

Type: WYSIWYG/HTML
Licence: Freeware
Netscape Composer is the editor that comes with Netscape Navigator. For a Netscape program, it's actually quite good. It's easy to use and it's nice for the eyes. However, it doesn't have a built-in publish function. If you can't be bothered installing another program and you already have Netscape, this is probably the way to go. To access Composer, in Navigator click "File > New > Blank Page to Edit".

Frontpage Express

Type: WYSIWYG/HTML
Licence: Freeware
Frontpage Express comes with Internet Explorer (or it's supposed to), and it's a cut-down version of Frontpage. It has some nice features, but I'd recommend sticking to Nvu if you want WYSIWYG.

HTML-Kit

Type: HTML
Licence: Freeware
HTML-Kit doesn't have any WYSIWYG features, but if you like to code by hand then this is the best program you can get. It has tools which help you to code in HTML, XML, and a whole heap of scripting languages, and debugging and code-validation tools. Colour-coding helps you see which tags and values belong to which language. It has a built-in FTP uploader and spelling and grammar checker. It also integrates with any other web and graphics editors you have installed, for example Dreamweaver, Frontpage, Notepad, Word and Paint. Basically, if all you want is an HTML editor, this is the best program you will ever find, especially at this price.

Macromedia Dreamweaver

Type: WYSIWYG/HTML
Licence: Commercial (~AU$870)
Dreamweaver is the web design industry standard, and it shows in the price. It's a great program and it's very powerful. It has heaps of features to help you with HTML, CSS, PHP, Javascript and everything else, as well as great WYSIWYG features. There are very good template functions as well. If you are serious about web design, Dreamweaver is the way to go. However, it's a bit of a steep learning curve so if you're a beginner maybe you should start with FrontPage. If you're not prepared to pay that much, there are student and academic versions available for students and teachers, which are a lot cheaper.

Microsoft Frontpage

Type: WYSIWYG/HTML
Licence: Commercial (~AU$300)
I used to think Frontpage was awesome, until I had to recode this entire website BY HAND due to its terrible coding - and so it no longer gets the PW Top Pick rating. Frontpage is Microsoft's web design product, and it's very popular with those on a budget. It's easy to use, with a familiar Microsoft Office interface, and it has some good features. Unfortunately, it's sometimes hard to find a host that has Frontpage Extensions so you can use some of these features. There are also some coding problems which require workarounds and really ugly code, and sometimes Frontpage puts in unnecessary code. However, if you want to try web design and you're on a budget, then you should think about trying Frontpage. It makes it very easy to handle big websites. Then again, you could just use Nvu, although it's not as beginner-friendly.