If you rely on the opinions of others to make decisions, your decisions will
never be more successful than the people whose opinions you rely on. For
this reason, first, don't rely on the opinions of strangers, as you have no
idea what their track record in terms of success is. Only the opinions of
verifiable experts are likely to be helpful to you.
Second, if you think that by getting a broad range of opinions you are
likely to get a better idea of the truth, remember that statistically
speaking, the average quality of a random range of opinions is going to be
average. In fact, it is likely to be below average, as those who are most
likely to broadcast opinions are generally not very smart. An opinion is a
poor substitute for a fact. And that is a fact.
Third, "nobody" is an absolute, and as there are 7 billion people in the
world of all varieties, the likelihood that "nobody" will take you seriously
is infinitessimally small.
Fourth, of what value is being "taken seriously?" Robert Fulton, who
invented the first effective steamship, was the object of ridicule when he
launched his prototype. It was referred to as "Fulton's Folly." However, it
was incredibly successful, and made Robert Fulton a very rich man
(
http://everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1225287).
As my Uncle Chutney would say, "Neither a follower nor a lender be."
Opinions are easy to come by, and those who rely on them are generally
either very young and inexperienced, or just plain lazy. With the Internet,
Google, and the easy access to world-wide information these days, not having
and using facts is inexcusable.
Now, as to the crux of your question: FrontPage, like all other successful
software, has evolved over the years, as has the Internet and the World-Wide
Web. FrontPage is, like Expression, Dreamweaver and other web development
software, a set of productivity tools. These tools enable you to work
faster, to do more work in less time, in much the same way that a car will
get you to work faster than walking. FrontPage provides a user interface
that enables you to write HTML in a more human-intuitive, visual way, as do
all of these other web development productivity tools.
The quality of the work you do will eventually depend upon how hard you work
to do it. Having a $300.00 camera will not make you a good photographer. To
be a good photographer, you must study photography, practice it, and
discipline yourself. Having a $300.00 camera will enable you to use all of
the capabilities of the camera, and that is all.
Ultimately, you must decide for yourself what your goals are. Do you want to
be a web developer? If so, and if you are diligent and self-disciplined, you
will become a successful web developer, regardless of what tools you use. On
the other hand, if you want to be popular with fools, then by all means,
stick your finger up into the wind, find out which way it's blowing, and go
where it leads you. But don't be surprised if the crowd you're following
turns out to be a herd of Lemmings.
--
HTH,
Kevin Spencer
Microsoft MVP
Short Order Coder
http://unclechutney.blogspot.com
The devil is in the yada yada yada
