TopStyle

Type of Program: CSS Editor
Supported Platforms: Windows 95-XP
Company Name: BradSoft
Version: 3.0
Price: $79.95
Installed Size: 7.0mb

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Awhile back I had the opportunity to review this program here on this site. This time I’d like to bring you up to date with the advancements that TopStyle has made. With the newest release of TopStyle 3.0 it brings with it many advancements. While TopStyle is a pleasure to work with, it is also easy to use and do doubt will come in very handy when you have any Web project to create. So let’s get right to it and look at several of the newest additions to this already great program.

If you’re already familiar with what a CSS is you may want to skip this paragraph. For those who want to know, please read this paragraph. When creating a Web site you’ve most likely used your own assortment of tags such as <font>, <font size="2"> or any number of tags of this nature. Tags we know are what gives your Web pages its own unique look. You set background colors, text styles and more by using these tags. Now, this is all good in itself until you want to go back through your site (especially if it’s a large site) to change let’s say all of the text attributes. Imagine how hard it would be to go through each and every line of code to make these changes. In order to make these changes you would have to go back through each and every page! Style Sheets allow you to do design one overall layout of how you want your site to look. Then, if you want to make all these numerous changes you simply modify your one Style Sheet. Couldn’t be easier, could it?

So now we get back to TopStyle. TopStyle is the friendliest Cascading Style Sheet (CSS) Editor I have seen. Not only is it the best in its class, but you can rest assured that it should remain on top for a long time to come. Why? Because of its author. TopStyle was created by one of the leading developers that brought us one of the first, most popular HTML Editors of its kind. Visit their site to find out which popular HTML Editor I’m talking about.

Moving on to some of the newest features. Listed here in no particular order are some of TopStyle’s newer features:
1. Related Styles: By a simple right-click within any HTML tag or CSS rule you can now see a list of related styles.
2. Full Screen Preview: This is just what it says. This enables you to quickly view the current style sheet or HTML document in a maximized browser window.
3. File Explorer: This gives you quick navigation of your files.
4. Style Upgrade: This "upgrades" your HTML document by replacing presentational markup with embedded styles.
5. HTML and XHTML Editing: Now you have the ability to open any HTML document for editing.
6. Color Picker and Custom Palettes: This may not be totally new but is completely redesigned for even greater easy and possibilities.
7. Custom Keyboard Sets: Another really great feature that takes customizable keyboard shortcuts to a new level by enabling you to create multiple sets of keyboard shortcuts.
8. HTML Tidy Integration: Simply the easiest way to convert your HTML files into XHTML!
9. Thumbnails: Along the left-hand side of the interface you have a display of thumbnails of all your images in a specific directory. Simply right click on a thumbnail to display a context menu which enables you to select a different directory for the thumbnails, insert the image into the current document or even edit the image in the associated application. How much easier can it get?
10. Clip Library: This is really a great feature! It enables you to store commonly used snippets in a central location for easy insertion at your command.

If you’re needing to create any type of CSS, TopStyle lets you do so with an abundance of tools. Manage a complete Web site with it, use the Style Checker to see how your site will perform under the different versions of browsers as well as pin point any problems. You can also customize the program to meet your own particular needs. But don’t stop there. Even though you may not want to stop using other popular Web authoring Editors, TopStyle integrates easily with other 3rd party programs!

Honestly I could not find any real problems using TopStyle. It gives you all the needed tools to create great looking Style Sheets, is easy to work with, will greatly decrease your time in designing Style Sheets and Web site. The support is fantastic (both email support as well as the Help Files) should you need it! Visit their Web site to see it in action or better yet, download the Trial Version and witness firsthand how well it performs!

Performance
User Friendly
Cost
Ease of Installation
Support
Reviewed by Robert Hall

Purchases can be made via their Web site.

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