Once again it’s been a while since I last posted, sorry, but I did warn you all! As most of you will know I’ve moved back to the UK now and started my new job (hence the quiet period). Over the last 3 weeks or so I have been working hard on an iWeb site for an interior designer/architect in California which has kept me busy. I used many of the techniques you can read about on this very site, and it was great to be able to get back using iWeb again after a break. So what have I missed? What’s been happening with iWeb? Well if my Twitter feed is anything to go by, quite a bit!
On the afternoon of Sunday 12 June MacRumors published a copy of an e-mail that an anxious iWeb user had sent to Mr Jobs asking whether or not they would have to look for an alternative to iWeb and MobileMe once iCloud went live, and in a one word answer ‘Yep’ iWeb was given the chop. You can read the full post by clicking on the image below.
So what do we think of that? Well I am in two minds. It may be me being naive but can I really believe that the ex-head of Apple would simply reply with just ‘Yep’? I’m not so sure. I know he’s a busy bloke but really????
But on the other hand, when iCloud was announced I took a look at the iCloud web page on the Apple site and iWeb hosting wasn’t mentioned, at all! So I decided to get in touch with Apple and had an on-line conversation with the MobileMe support team and asked them if iWeb would still get hosting on iCloud. They pointed me in the direction of the iCloud web page on the Apple site and told me that they knew as much as that web page told me! (I had to chuckle when they asked me if they had solved my problem, great support!!!)
So I’m not 100% sure that iWeb is going, that said I’m not 100% sure that it is staying. I hope it stays, but if it does it needs improvements to bring it up to date with the all singing all dancing browser that is Safari 5. If we are going to hear the death knoll for iWeb then oh dear, I’m going to have to find something else to blog about!
iWeb still isn’t available as a download on the App Store and something else that points to the demise of our favourite web design app is if you pop along to your local Apple store and purchase a brand-spanking new Mac you will find that iWeb is no longer included as part of iLife. That’s not to say iWeb is going to stop working, far from it. It works fine on OS X 10.7 Lion, it’s just that new users can’t get it anymore unless they get hold of an iLife 11 Disc (and apparently they are getting like gold hen’s teeth now).
So even if Apple have stopped releasing updates at least other companies are keeping up their support. Rage Software has released an update to the fantastic iWeb SEO Tool so it is now at version 2.1. Among the updates is the ability to add favicons to your iWeb site; it’s free to download so you have no excuses!
And to go with the update they have also released a great new tool for all iWeb bloggers who are getting a bit nervous about the discontinuation of MobileMe, it’s the iWeb to WordPress converter. Of course, you don’t have to worry too much as you can just find another host for your iWeb blog, but you will lose some of the extra bits you get with MobileMe like Blog Comments or Search. With WordPress it’s all done with plugins. I have been lucky enough to get a copy of this app and will be running a full review for you all in the very near future, and to go with that the great folks at Rage Software have promised me a couple of licenses to give away – so watch this space.
So that’s it for now, let me know what you think of the demise of iWeb. Will you keep using it and find another host or will you use a completely different app altogether? I’d love to know.
Tim,
I’ve never had a MobileMe account. My site is hosted by MacHighway. Everything there runs on Macs so if I have a problem, they can easily answer my questions and help me find solutions. I have the smallest account so it doesn’t cost me much either. You should check it out.
Hey Tim, Good to see another new post from you. I will be starting to use a lot of WordPress for my design from now on. While I have gotten so familiar and comfortable using iWeb for my site (webcentremi.com) and all my clients sites, I have to go with a product that works, and if iWeb doesn’t exist – well I can’t make any money from it. Now, is there a way to get iWeb on a brand new iMac?
Iweb is very good. And Adobe knows that too. Their new web design software Muse feels like iWeb 2.0 Check it out!
Tim,
As you said iWeb is probably dead, it still usable but will not be updated. I stop using it since February myself (have not updated my site since).
I’m looking for an alternative, Weebly is a strong possibility because it offer hosting and my parent’s in law can update their own website, they will not have to rely on me to update their site. Never use WordPress, I’m wondering if it’s easy to use.
I think it’s time to move on.
Thierry
Thierry,
WordPress is extremely easy to use. I have given beginners a quick 2 hour course and they were ready and able to use.
Joe B
Thanks Joe B.
I was thinking of using WordPress but I think it does not allow ecommerce.
Weebly seems closer to iWeb and allow ecommerce: http://help.weebly.com/e-commerce–ads.html
I have been looking at weebly for a while and I think I will go with them.
Thierry
Hi Tim, nice to read something of you. I still have three sites in iWeb, but am also working on Sandvox and it suits well.
Steven
Hi Tim,
been lurking here for some time after finding you on twitter (i think!) and enjoyed your tutorials and posts. I have been considering switching to a wordpress setup after being involved with my churches website creation (skycitychurch.com) since late last year, and lashing out on some decent hosting. I guess this is the time to do it! Although I will miss the ease of updating my site through iWeb, I seems there is more scope for this kind of setup, and now that iCloud is free, it won’t hurt so much to pay for hosting. Are there any other good non iWeb options that you know of?
Cheers,
Craig
Welcome back TIm.
I maintain 4 websites, all iWeb, and love that I can open a single Master site on iWeb and have all the other sites there at my finger tips. I shift items between them constantly, so this feature is important (managing multiple sites from one platform). I have pushed iWeb to its limits in the customization department and it has not disappointed me. If you would like to check out my main site, go to: http://www.WorldNouveau.com or one of my sub-domain sites: http://www.StoryMakersGuild.com. I will be very sad to lose MobileMe hosting because I love the one button, no-brainer publishing it offers, (I republish my main site about once a week) but when it goes, I will still use iWeb as my creation tool and just publish in another hosting venue. Will you be posting entries on how best to go about switching when D-Day arrives? Hope so. Really appreciate all you’ve done to help us iWebers!
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Hi Tim,
There is a new (adobe) kid in town, codename ‘Muse’ and this is based on iWeb. Check it out (free download) – http://muse.adobe.com/
I love the read what you think about this project.
Marcel
I will end up finding a new application and redoing my website. I love the ease of iWeb, but if it’s never going to grow with technology then I need to move on. Kinda sucks Apple. I think you’re making a bad statement here. We live in an internet world… it’s not all about music and movies.
A few months ago, I began studying HTML and CSS because I want to code my own site from scratch. I still expect to use iWeb off-line as a design tool. This WYSIWYG editor gives instant feedback when you move text boxes around, create overlapping layers, experiment with fonts, colors, and so on. Once I decide the layout and typography style, I will code that up in TextWrangler. Only one CSS file will be necessary for the entire site.
I reached this decision before the June 2011 announcement. iWeb has good potential, but fell behind the times. When I heard Apple was disenchanted with iWeb to the point of dropping it, I just shook my head. Why didn’t Apple listen to developers (those far more experienced than I) about adding non-JavaScript navigation, and reducing the need to redo, redo, redo such things as meta tags every time we re-publish a page?
The reason I’m writing: I think a lot could be made of iWeb. What would happen if it became an open source project, like Firefox? My field is physics, not marketing, but it occurs to me Apple might give permission as it would increase the market share of Macs.
My website is: Medical Justice (Canada)
Thanks for all the help over the years, i have found a pretty fun alternative right now…
check out “Hype” in the AppStore or go to http://tumultco.com/hype/
Its like HTML, still in beta but its really nice cuz it generates HTML content similar to an iWeb crossed with Flash style interface.
Hopefully someday Apple will release a new web developing app…
Well, I jumped ship about two weeks ago and went to Weebly. It is a nice tool, easy to use and very similar to iWeb. You can see our Work In Progress here: http://www.wesdotphotography.weebly.com
We are having fun to recreate this site and we hope it will be easier and faster to update than iWeb. So now no more iWeb, no more iWeb SEO, no more MasReplaceIt, no more TexWrangler…
Seems a lot of less work before posting a decent looking site. We are going to the pro version that will allow some extra features than the free one, we have included the hosting (although it is free posting with the free Weebly) but no Weebly ads and all of these for $48 for two years. It is a great deal.
Does Weebly has drawback? Yes of course, I’m sure but so far I have not meet one that may make me think twice.
Please still visiting our site and I hope you enjoy it.
thierry
PS: we have the wesdotphotography subdomain of Weebly but soon we will have our own address back.
I forgot, you can now leave a comment in our blog page our access our forum on the site. Features that iWeb does not have.
Blog comment in iWeb are possible only if you post to mobileme but by june next year it will be gone.
So if you visit us and want to leave a comment feel free.
Thierry
the iweb is gonna die man….im so sorry to say that…
Hey Jeremy,
I have been doing Freelance design for a number of years and started building sites for clients through iWeb a little less than a year ago. I have concerns about iWeb mostly because eventually it will be obsolete. I am considering moving over to rapid weaver but am hesitant because it’s more advanced than iWeb. Plus it’s not free haha. The plugins etc can get pretty pricey. I guess I am asking for your opinion. I would hate to get into something other than iWeb then apple come out with something new that is comparable to iWeb yet better. Input?
My opinion is stick with iWeb for now. There’s no reason to switch just yet. iWeb is still around, and you’ll be able to use it for another year, probably more (depending on when you get a new computer). So don’t switch yet. I’ll keep you guys posted as I do my research and try to find suitable replacements (when I believe it is time).
My problem is my O.S. on my Mac computer is old so increasingly unable to support things. I didn’t discover iweb’s demise until I bought an iPad & hoped to download iWeb and update my site from that.
I have an independent server for web hosting. Is there an app I can use to up date my iWeb website from my iPad?
Hello everyone,
In 2016 I am a Graphic Designer who is making a living with iWeb (not only). I just love this Software.
And the most important thing is, with iWeb You can do practically everything is “trending” nowadays! Even with iWeb you can create a mobile website, using a Html Snippet to detect the screen size and redirect the user to a mobile website.
You can verify my work at my website (link at my name). Anyone here stills using iWeb?