Cells, as their name implies, are areas of the Web page that have their content constrained. This means that any text or pictures within that area will not interfere or run into other cells. You may be familiar with cells from spreadsheet programs such as Excel or Lotus 1-2-3, where the size of the cell can be altered both horizontally and vertically. In Dreamweaver, these cells are used to place objects with precise location and to create tables containing information like names and phone numbers.

To create a table (of cells) click on Insert > Table. A box will appear allowing you to enter the number of columns, number of rows, and the cell spacing. You can always modify these numbers once the table has been created. Once you have created this table, click on it and open the object properties box (Modify > Selection properties). You may also right-click on the cell or table when the cursor changes into a double-headed arrow to access a list of functions associated with editing the table.




In the sample cell above, the author has used three cells to organize his Web content. The cell on the left contains the navigation bar, the small cell on the right contains a picture, and the larger cell contains text (and the smaller cell). It is always a good idea to create a cell for pictures. This allows you to change and update the picture without distorting the surrounding text.

There are a series of commands associated with editing tables and cells. You may insert, add, or delete columns and rows, or even resize the cell by draging the cell's edges when the cursors turns into a double-headed arrow. One of the less obvious commands is to split or combine cells. To split a cell, select the individual cell and right-click it. Select Table > Split cell. Now the one cell will split in half, producing two equally sized cells. To combine (or merge) two cells, select two cells by holding down the Shift key on the keyboard and clicking on the two cells that you wish to combine. Right-click anywhere within these cells, and select Table > Merge cells. The two cells have now been merged into a single cell.

Tables are known as a series of cells and are often used to provide mass information in an organized fashion. The table below is such an example.



To create a table, click Insert > Table, and designate the number of cells. Once the table has been created, you can adjust the size of the columns or rows. Select Window > Properites. This window will also allow you to adjust the color and borders of the table.

Please proceed to the next section ...