Simplicity is the single most important factor for any newcomer attempting to create their first Web site. Users want to be able to create pages with graphics, text and special effects without having to write any HTML and without having to read volumes of complex instructions.

Thankfully, those demands can be pretty much met by a fistful of products on the market. The major difference between them is the finished product they can produce and in some cases how stable they are. Usually the easier they are to use, the less they offer.

The WEB! site creation tools are designed for first time site developers but offer more than the standard Web editor, which will write the HTML for you and allow you to place a few graphics on a page. The two editions are very similar in operation the main difference between the Pro and Personal editions being the ability to add frames and transitions in the Pro version. However, the cheaper version still has plenty of features including mouse-over effects, facilities to add animations and precise positioning using drag and drop.

Internet Explorer 5.0 is included with both editions and that should be a warning to anybody who doesnt read the instruction book, because many of the special effects such as drop shadows, glows and transparencies are not compatible with Netscape. An FTP client is included in both editions to allow uploading of the completed pages to the Web server. Neither program gives any problem loading - the editor and some basic clipart are loaded in a matter of seconds and you can get on with the job straight away.

The manuals are short and sweet and are easy enough to follow. The simple toolbar and drop down menus mean anybody with basic PC knowledge should be able to work out the basics. WEB! comes with its own text editor, which has its good and bad points. All text has to be entered through the editor and while you have access to a full range of fonts, you cannot use more than one font in the same block of text, so if you start off with Arial you must use it all the way through. Text can be italicised or made bold but the words or sentences cannot be highlighted with another colour, unless you make them hyperlinks.

There is no provision to import text files, so any text brought in from elsewhere has to be cut and pasted, which slows down the job. On the positive side the text editor neatly defines the text box with the default setting designed for an 800 x 600 page with at least one frame. It can be moved around the page with ease and - like graphics - it stays where it is put rather than snapping to some invisible guide.

Bulleted lists, buttons, images, marquees and hyperlinks are easy to handle and all drag and drop beautifully. The Pro edition offers a large selection of transitions as a refresh option, which allows you to create an opening page that automatically takes you to your first major content page. By using a combination of transitions and the refresh option you can create an entrance to your Web site that would shame some professionally designed sites.

The Pro edition offers frames but does not handle them particularly well. On several occasions after creating framesets, saving each frame individually and then as a frameset, we found something had gone amiss and we were left with a blank page. While WEB! is ideal for creating single pages it does not handle multiple pages particularly well and wont allow more than one page to be open at a time. Nor does it provide a site map, which is desirable if you are attempting to create a multi-page site.

The WEB! Pro edition also enables the user to create forms that allow page visitors to enter data. Rules can be set so that messages are automatically generated if the visitor does not fill in all of the necessary details or does something wrong. Surprisingly, neither edition allows you to edit the source code, although you can add your own HTML, which is not always satisfactory. However, to be fair, both are aimed at the novice market.

Overall, both offer excellent value for money and the Professional edition contains some features you would otherwise only find in the likes of Dreamweaver - a program that is almost ten times the cost.