Macromedia Dreamweaver 8

Managing Library Items

Once a Library item has been successfully created, follow these directions to learn how to insert, delete, and edit the item.

Inserting a Library Item
Editing a Library Item
Detaching an Item from the Library
Copying a Library Item to Another Site
Deleting an Item from the Library

Inserting a Library Item

Once a Library item has been created, it can be inserted on to a web page.

If the Assets panel is not displayed, from the Window menu, select Assets
OR
Press [F11]
On the Assets toolbar, click LIBRARY
Position the insertion point where the Library item is to appear
From the list of Library items, select the item that is to be used
At the bottom of the Assets pane, click INSERT
The Library item now appears where the insertion point was placed.
NOTE: You can also drag a Library item from the Library item list to the web page.

Editing a Library Item

To edit Library items, you must use a special editing window identified by the double-angle brackets surrounding the phrase "Library Item" in the title bar that is provided by Dreamweaver.

If the Assets panel is not displayed, from the Window menu, select Assets
OR
Press [F11]
On the Assets tab, from the Categories list, click LIBRARY
From Library item list, right click the item you wish to edit » select Edit
The item will open in a new window.
OR
Select the desired item from the Library item list and insert it on to the web page
Select the item
The Library Properties pane appears.
In the Library Properties pane, click OPEN
A new document window opens with the selected Library item inside.
Make any necessary changes to the item
When you are finished editing the item, press [Ctrl] + [S]
The item is saved to the Library.

Detaching an Item from the Library

Detaching an item from the Library allows you to break the link between the item and the page.

In the Design view window, select the item that you want to detach from the Library
The Library Properties pane appears.
In the Properties pane, click DETACH FROM ORIGINAL
A confirmation dialog box appears.
Click OK

Copying a Library Item to Another Site

If the Assets panel is not displayed, from the Window menu, select Assets
OR
Press [F11]
On the Assets tab, from the Categories list, click LIBRARY
From the Library item list, right click the item you want to copy to another site » select Copy to Site » the desired site
The Library item is now in both sites.

Deleting an Item from the Library

Removing an item from the Library is a two-step process. First, delete the item from your Library item list, then, if the item is to remain on the web page and editable, the item must be detached. If the item is not detached, Dreamweaver will not permit the item to be modified later on.

If the Assets panel is not displayed, from the Window menu, select Assets
OR
Press [F11]
On the Assets toolbar, click LIBRARY
From the Library item list, select the item to be delete
Click DELETE
A confirmation dialog box appears.
Click YES
The item is removed.
If you are still using this item content on a web page, detach the item from the library
HINT: If the item is not detached, Dreamweaver will not permit the item to be modified later on.