Getting Started
If you are a graphic designer, business owner, or anyone who wants to design and create professional, original websites without ever touching code, Adobe Muse CC is the program you’ve been waiting for.
With Muse, you can quickly and easily design and create user-friendly, interactive websites without the help of a developer. You just design your site in Muse using design-savvy graphic tools that leverage the same skills as Adobe InDesign and Adobe Photoshop. Then, after creating your site in Muse, you can take your site live using Adobe hosting or export to a provider of your choice, publishing your site as original HTML pages that conform to the latest web standards.
Muse really is that easy and that powerful, and Adobe Muse CC Classroom in a Book (2014 Release) will help you make the most of it.
About Classroom in a Book
Adobe Muse CC Classroom in a Book is part of the official training series for Adobe graphics and publishing software developed with the support of Adobe product experts. The lessons are designed so you can learn at your own pace. If you’re new to Adobe Muse, you’ll learn the fundamentals you need to master to put the application to work. If you are an experienced user, you’ll find that Classroom in a Book teaches many advanced features, including tips and techniques for using the latest version of Adobe Muse.
Although each lesson provides step-by-step instructions for creating a specific project, there’s room for exploration and experimentation. You can follow the book from start to finish, or do only the lessons that correspond to your interests and needs. Each lesson concludes with a review section summarizing what you’ve covered.
Prerequisites
Before beginning to use Adobe Muse CC Classroom in a Book, you should have a working knowledge of your computer and its operating system. Make sure that you know how to use the mouse and standard menus and commands, and also how to open, save, and close files. If you need to review these techniques, see the printed or online documentation included with your Microsoft Windows or Mac OS software.
Installing Muse
Before you begin using Adobe Muse CC Classroom in a Book, make sure that your system is set up correctly and that you’ve installed the required software and hardware.
The Adobe Muse software is not included with Adobe Muse CC Classroom in a Book; you must purchase the software separately. You can purchase Muse as a single-app membership or with a Creative Cloud complete membership, which also includes Photoshop, InDesign, Edge Animate, and more.
Fonts used in this book
The fonts used with the Adobe Muse CC Classroom in a Book can be downloaded with the lesson files for this book. (Please see the next section, “Accessing the Classroom in a Book files,” for instructions on downloading these files.) These fonts can be installed in the following locations:
• Windows: [startup drive]WindowsFonts
• Mac OS X: [startup drive]/Library/Fonts/
For more information about fonts and installation, see www.adobe.com/products/type/install-instructions.html.
Accessing the Classroom in a Book files
To work through the exercises in this book, you’ll need to download the lesson files from your Account page at Peachpit.com. You can download the entire Lessons folder before you begin. The files are compressed into ZIP archives to speed up download time and to protect the contents from damage during transfer. You must uncompress (or “unzip”) the files to restore them to their original size and format before you use them with the book. Modern Mac and Windows systems are set up to open ZIP archives by simply double-clicking.
Your Account page is also where you’ll find any updates to the lesson files or to the content of the book.
Downloading the Adobe Muse CC Classroom in a Book lesson files
1. On a Mac or PC, go to www.peachpit.com.
2. If you don’t yet have a Peachpit.com account, you will need to create one.
3. Enter the book’s ISBN (9780133854145) or go directly to the book’s product page to register. Once on the book’s page, click the Register Your Product link. The book will show up in your list of registered products along with a link to the book’s bonus content.
4. Click the link to access the lesson files for the book. When the download is complete, double-click the archive to decompress it. You will end up with a folder called Lessons.
Restoring default program preferences
The preference files control how command settings appear on your screen when you open the Adobe Muse program. Each time you quit Adobe Muse, the position of the panels and certain command settings are recorded in different preference files. If you want to restore the tools and settings to their original default settings, you can delete the current Adobe Muse preference files. Adobe Muse creates new preference files, if they don’t already exist, the next time you start the program and save a file.
To save current Muse preferences
If you want to restore the current preferences for Muse after completing the lessons, you can do so by following these steps.
1. Exit Adobe Muse.
Note
If you cannot locate the preferences folder, use your operating system’s Find command and search for AdobeMuse.
2. Locate the AdobeMuse preferences folder as follows:
• (Windows) The AdobeMuse folder is located in the folder [startup drive]Users[username]AppDataRoamingAdobeAdobe Muse CC.
• (Mac OS X) The AdobeMuse folder is located in the folder [startup drive]/Users/[username]/Library/Preferences/Adobe/Adobe Muse CC.
Keep in mind that your folder name may be different depending on the language version you have installed. If you can’t find the file, you either haven’t started Adobe Muse yet or you have moved the preferences folder. The preferences folder is created after you open Muse the first time and is updated thereafter.
Note
In certain versions of Mac OS, the Library folder will be hidden. You can show the Library folder by opening the Finder, selecting the Go menu, and holding down the Option key to reveal the Library folder menu item. Click the Library folder menu item to open the folder.
3. Copy the folder, and save it to another folder on your hard drive.
4. Start Adobe Muse.
Tip
To quickly locate and delete the Adobe Muse CC preferences folder each time you begin a new lesson, create a shortcut (Windows) or an alias (Mac OS) to the Adobe Muse CC folder.
To delete current Muse preferences
If you are entering the lessons using Jumpstart, you need to delete the current preference files for Muse by following these steps.
1. Exit Adobe Muse.
2. Locate the AdobeMuse folder as follows:
• (Windows) The AdobeMuse folder is located in the folder [startup drive]Users[username]AppDataRoamingAdobeAdobe Muse CC.
• (Mac OS X) The AdobeMuse folder is located in the folder [startup drive]/Users/[username]/Library/Preferences/Adobe/Adobe Muse CC.
Remember that the folder name may be different depending on the language version you have installed.
Note
If you cannot locate the preferences folder, use your operating system’s Find command and search for Adobe Muse CC.
3. Delete the preferences folder.
4. Start Muse.
To restore saved preferences
After completing the lessons you can restore your personalized preferences you saved in the “To save current Muse preferences” section, in two steps.
1. Exit Adobe Muse.
2. Find the original AdobeMuse preferences folder that you saved and replace the AdobeMuse folder found here:
• (Windows) The AdobeMuse folder is located in the folder [startup drive]Users[username]AppDataRoamingAdobeAdobe Muse CC.
• (Mac OS X) The AdobeMuse folder is located in the folder [startup drive]/Users/[username]/Library/Preferences/Adobe/Adobe Muse CC.
Again, the folder name may be different depending on the language version you have installed.
Recommended lesson order
Adobe Muse CC Classroom in a Book is designed to take you from A to Z in basic to intermediate website design and creation. Each new lesson builds on previous exercises, using the files and assets you create to develop an entire website. To achieve a successful result and the most complete understanding of all aspects of web design, the ideal training scenario is to start in Lesson 1 and perform each lesson in sequential order through the entire book to Lesson 11. Because each lesson builds essential files and content for the next, you shouldn’t skip any lessons or even individual exercises. Although ideal, this method may not be a practicable scenario for everyone. In that case, refer to the “Jumpstart” section next.
Jumpstart
If you don’t have the time or inclination to perform each lesson in the book in order, or if you’re having difficulty with a particular lesson, you can work through individual lessons using the jumpstart method with the files supplied on your Account page at www.peachpit.com. Each lesson folder includes finished files and staged files (files that are completed to that point in the lessons).
To jumpstart a lesson, follow these steps.
1. Install the fonts used in the lessons. See the section “Fonts used in this book” in this Getting Started.
2. Restore the program preferences as explained in the “Restoring default program preferences” section in this Getting Started.
3. Ensure that the Lessons folder is on your hard drive by referring to the earlier section “Accessing the Classroom in a Book files.”
4. Open Muse.
5. Choose File > Open Site. Navigate to the Lessons folder on your hard drive and then to the specific lesson folder you are starting from. For instance, if you are jumpstarting Lesson 7, navigate to the Lesson07 folder in the Lessons folder and open the file named L7_start.muse. All of the jumpstart lesson files include_start.muse in their names.
Note
When you open a jumpstart lesson file, if you see a dialog box indicating missing, modified, or upsampled files, click OK.
These simple steps will need to be repeated for each lesson you want to jumpstart. However, if you choose the jumpstart method once, you do not have to continue using it for all subsequent lessons. For example, if you want to jumpstart Lesson 6, you can simply continue on to Lesson 7, and so on.
Mac OS vs. Windows
When instructions differ by platform, Mac OS commands appear first and then the Windows commands. For example, you might see “press Option (Alt) and click away from the artwork.”
Additional resources
Adobe Muse CC Classroom in a Book (2014 Release) is not meant to replace documentation that comes with the program or to be a comprehensive reference for every feature. Only the commands and options used in the lessons are explained in this book. For comprehensive information about program features and tutorials refer to these resources:
Adobe Muse CC Help and Support: You can search and browse Muse Help and Support content from Adobe at helpx.adobe.com/muse.html.
Adobe Forums: forums.adobe.com lets you tap into peer-to-peer discussions, questions, and answers on Adobe products.
Adobe Creative Cloud Learn: helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/learn/tutorials.html provides inspiration, key techniques, cross-product workflows, and updates on new features.
Adobe TV: tv.adobe.com is an online video resource for Adobe products, providing expert instruction and inspiration, including a How To channel to get you started with your product.
Resources for educators: www.adobe.com/education and edex.adobe.com offer a treasure trove of information for instructors who teach classes on Adobe software. Find solutions for education at all levels, including free curricula that use an integrated approach to teaching Adobe software and can be used to prepare for the Adobe Certified Associate exams.
Also check out this useful link:
Adobe Muse CC product home page: www.adobe.com/products/muse.html
Adobe Authorized Training Centers
Adobe Authorized Training Centers (AATCs) offer instructor-led courses and training on Adobe products. A directory of AATCs is available at partners.adobe.com.