Hi, I bought Boostrap Studio last night... I'm currently using Dreamweaver and Pinegrow to create/edit HTML sites (almost all my sites are in WordPress, but I do have a couple in HTML), but I thought that Boostrap Studio could be sufficient for most of my needs, and have less options that can get in the way...
BUT, I was really surprised after testing it to see that it can only open .bsdesign files... For new sites, it is not necessarily a problem, but when you want to edit existing site, that becomes impossible to do (like my last project: it was simply make some modifications to an existing HTML page... impossible to do in BS)... I did try the "trial" online, but there was nothing that I can see that was mentioning it doesn't edit HTML files (just saw a note saying that you save in .bsdesign, that I didn't see last night... but even then, Dreamweaver does have a .dwt for templates, but it doesn't mean that it doesn't allow .html file edition, so I wouldn't have think of it even if I had seen that note)...
Could it be something that you consider adding (possibility to open and edit .html files)? If not, I'm thinking of asking for a refund... It's really cheap, but I will most likely not use it if it can't edit html pages... I won't keep it for the 1% possibility I do another HTML site from scratch (I'll simply use my existing tools)...
If you already own Pinegrow, which can handle importing HTML files, why would you need BSS to do the same?
BSS is designed to quickly build Bootstrap-based websites using its visual tools. To be able to import ordinary HTML files would basically defeat the purpose around which the program was designed.
1- Because Pinegrow is a big beast, so if I just need to quickly edit one page, I could go faster with a tool like Boostrap Studio;
2- Because Pinegrow is a yearly subscription, so if I find out after a year or two that I don't really use it anymore (because Boostrap Studio is enough), then I can cancel Pinegrow...
Of course, that'll never happen if it can't edit HTML pages...
And why would the fact that it would allow to edit HTML page "defeat the purpose around which the program was designed"? Pinegrow, for example, can edit HTML pages (among other things), but also build Boostrap sites, Flexgrid sites, WordPress sites, etc... Are those "defeating the purpose of Pinegrow" of being an HTML editor? It can still perfectly be "a tool to visually create Boostrap-based sites", while allowing editing of HTML pages... In fact, it outputs HTML pages, so there's no reason why it couldn't also edit them...
It's true, this and other hidden gems like there are only two premium BS4 themes (that probably would have been included [as a bonus] even if you didn't act right away).
So, the choice is yours really; and the question being, is BSS really worth $60 to you (one-time) for all that it can do (and lifetime [free] updates) vs. its shortcomings?
What I can tell you is this: the longer you wait, the less likelier it is that you will ask for a refund. But, the longer you wait, the more time you will have get to know the value of what you have.
To answer your question... No! 1000 times over, BSS will never be able to edit html (directly [without losing drag-n'-drop functionality]).
You will need to pay for a yearly subscription and use Pinegrow for a full year and then not renew in order to have a decent html editor.
Or, you can use Visual Studio Code with (seeing you already have it [or without]) Pinegrow to edit html. And then there is WordPress; very popular and free.
Everything else (unless I am not up-to-date) is subscription based. But, Pinegrow will continue to work (after a year) as long as you don't upgrade.
Before you know it, BS5 will be out and BSS will most likely keep chugging along while everyone else chokes and hiccups a little.
It would be great to see BSS and Pinegrow come together as one company and combine forces. But, it's also good the way it is.
Because Pinegrow is a big beast, so if I just need to quickly edit one page, I could go faster with a tool like Boostrap Studio;
Well, that's a subjective impression. Personally, I don't find Pinegrow to be overly complicated compared to BSS. Yes, it has many more features and capabilities, but loading up a page and editing its HTML in Pinegrow is a pretty quick and simple process.
And why would the fact that it would allow to edit HTML page “defeat the purpose around which the program was designed”?
Pinegrow was designed from its inception to be a very comprehensive and flexible way to visually edit HTML while accommodating a variety of frameworks. It was actually not a very polished program in its early incarnations, but it did do one thing extremely well - it produce clean, semantic code. That put it head and shoulders above most other website software at the time. Fortunately, it survived and sold well enough that the developers were able to keep improving it to the point that it became a genuine industry leader. But it has always been a complex program that required one to have a working knowledge of HTML and CSS to get the most out of it.
Bootstrap Studio was designed to be an easy way for people to visually build (drag-n-drop) websites based specifically on the Bootstrap Framework WITHOUT having to write HTML. It was never designed as an HTML editor. Even the HTML "custom code" component wasn't present in the beginning. If BSS allowed editing of the page HTML, it would defeat the purpose of creating a drag-n-drop builder. It would also allow non-coders to "break" their pages, which is something the developers wanted to avoid from day-one.
Power users have been asking for the ability to edit HTML within the program going back to version 2.x but the developers have stated a number of times this is not the focus of BSS. Fortunately, for those who find BSS too restrictive, there is Pinegrow.
I personally accept the fact that a competent user could edit html. You know something as simple as changing a heading to a paragrah, Wow, I have to drop the heading and add the paragrach loosing everything about the heading. Take for instance Visual Studio where you just change the H1 for a p and it even changes for you the end tag. Voila !
Yeah, the ability to edit HTML would possibly break the rule here but for those who know what they do it would be very handy. It can be an option turned off by default in the settings and if you want to enable it then you would be able to edit the html.
We can't add HTML editing in Bootstrap Studio if we want to have powerful context-aware drag and drop. But converting between tags is possible and I think is a great idea. I will add this to our todo. Thanks for the suggestion @mroussel!
That would be an awesome addition Martin! I too would love to be able to just change the tag without having to edit the CSS of the component as well. Thanks!