Dreamweaver MX: The Missing Manual

Inserting a Table in Standard View

While the Layout view is a great way to lay out a page, it can’t do everything. You can’t, for instance, add a background image to a table or cell in Layout view. Nor can you add color to a row of cells, or even insert a simple table for displaying data. Likewise, if you’re already comfortable visualizing table-based layouts in your head (or if you find the Layout tools cumbersome), you may prefer the basic approach offered by the Table drawing object. In fact, even if you’re sold on the Layout view, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with these steps so that you can troubleshoot tables more easily.

To insert a table, first switch to Standard view by clicking the Standard View button on the Layout tab of the Insert bar (see Figure 6-3) or by choosing View→Table View→Standard View. Then proceed as follows.

1. Place the insertion point in the document window where you’d like to insert a table.

   You can add a table anywhere you can add graphics or text. You can even add a table to another table, by clicking inside a table cell.

2. Choose Insert → Table.

   You can also click the Table button on the Insert bar. It appears under both the Common tab and the Layout tab. You can also press Ctrl+Alt+T (Option--T). Either way, the Insert Table dialog box opens (see Figure 6-12).

   Figure 6-12.  The Insert Table dialog box lets you define the properties of the table. ...