What is HTML? HTML stands for Hypertext Markup Language. It's a an embedded language of directions that browsers read to display text, images and hyperlinks on the Internet (www). It was designed in 1992 specifically as a semantic markup language, with few layout capabilities. The underlying philosophy was that you could mark your content with descriptions. Then any machine in the world could interpret those tags in an appropriate way, letting the Web distribute the content.
Can you avoid having to learn it? This is like learning English without learning the alphabet.
What are tags? Tags tell the browser how to display the HTML document. Most tags define and affect a certain region of your HTML document. The beginning of a document starts with an <HTML> tag and ends with </HTML> to let the browser know that this the entire document is composed in HTML. <HTML>, <head>, <title> and <body> are the required structural tags. If it isn't a tag or a comment it's text and will appear on the screen.
What are Hyperlinks? Hyperlinks are the heart of an HTML document. Hyperlinks give the user the ability to retrieve and display a different document on your own or on someone else's web site. Hyperlinks enable the Internet to be interactive and help readers navigate and find the information that they need. Hyperlinks can bring a wealth of knowledge to the tip of your mouse cursor. Effective links flow seamlessly into a document. Inserting anchor links into your document is an art, requiring good writing skills and HTML prowess. Poorly designed links can annoy the reader. The biggest mistake that novice HTML users make is to overload their documents with links and treat them as if they were panic buttons.
Kinds of Hyperlinks: List links, Inline Reference, Content-free links, Informative links, Embedded Links, Target Attributes and Jump Links.
Linking to other documents is a two step process.
HyperLink Do's and Dont's and How To's
- Create the target page
- Create the link to the page
- Keep link content concise.
- Never place two links adjacent to one another. Most browsers make it difficult to separate them.
- Be consistent. Use the same types of links
- Read your document with all of the non anchor links removed. If it doesn't make sense, rewrite it so that the link text can stand on their own.
Key design elements to consider. Good Web design is a balance between form and funtion. The Web requires a bond between content, design, and interactivity. A good web designer will understand, the web's capabilities and how it can be used to solve design problems. Speed. simplicity and clarity are fundamental aesthetics in good Web design.
Do you need to spend a lot of money? Not if you learn HTML and do it yourself. Or have a friend teach you or take a class. Start by asking your friends, aquaintances and programmers questions. Surf the web and find sites that interest you. View the source. Select All and Copy the HTML source code into a text editor and separate out the tags. Once you get familiar with the code you will be able to read HTML like sentences.
What is a web host? A web host is a place that allows you to store your HTML files and images. It hosts your web site. Kind of like a regrigerator.
What is a server? A server is a computer running software that provides information to other computers that enables them to request information. A server is where the Web Site lives or exists. It doesn't have to be in the same place as where the company resides, it can be anywhere a phone line, DSL or cable modem can connect to it.
What is an ISP? ISP stands for Internet Service Provider. An ISP provides service to the Internet.
How do I transfer my files from my computer to my web site? This process is called FTP or file transfer protocol. The user 'uploads' their files to the server where the web site lives. Using Fetch on the Mac and WS_FTP on the PC.
Should you just hire someone to create a Web Site for you? The cost varies on the size of the web site to be built. Some get paid by the hour, some by the job. Always add in time in the amount of dollars for lots of revisions and quality assurance.
Are there any books that I might want to read? HTML: The Definitive Guide by O'Reilly (has a koala bear on the cover).
What software should you use? Any text editor: Bbedit, MS Word, Simple Text or HomeSite.
What is the difference between DreamWeaver and GoLive?Macromedia and Adobe, respectively.
What are Hexadecimal colors? The Internet is only capable of displaying 256 colors. HEX colors are 6 digit hexadecimal numbers that represent the (R) red, (G) green and (B) blue, components of color. The first two digits correspond to the red component, the next two to the green and the last two to the blue. A value of 00 equal's black or the component being completely off and a value of FF is the color being completely turned on or white. Bright red FF0000, bright green is 00FF00 and bright blue is 0000FF. Other primary colors are mixtures of two components, yellow FFFF00, magenta FF00FF and cyan 00FFFF and of course White FFFFFF and Black 000000.
What is the difference between a JPEG and a GIF?
GIF: Graphics Interchange Format. Is 256 colors or 16 bits. The GIF is cross platform and can be viewed by all browsers. A GIF uses special compression technology that can significantly reduce the size of the image file for produce faster transfer over a network. None of the image's original data is altered or deleted. GIF images can be easily animated. GIF files support transparent backgrounds, interlaced storage and animation. GIF files make excellent icons, reduced color images and drawings.
JPEG: Joint Photographic Experts Group is used primarily for photorealistic pictures. They are 24 bits and comprised of thousands of colors. They are also platform independent and specially compressed and optimized for high-speed transfer. JPEG supports thousands of colors and much higher data compression ratios. Because JPEG can loose some image data, its not recommended for illustrations.What are frames? Frames divide the document window into individual windows separated by rule lines and scrolling bars. Each frame may display an independent document, including multimedia. Replacing the <body> tag with a <frameset> tag that tells the browser how to divide its main window specifies frames.
What are tables? Tables refer to data tables. Five tags enable tables, including <table> itself. A <caption> tag to include a description. You create a table row by row by putting a <tr> tag </tr> at the beginning and end of that row and a <td> and a </td> at the beginning and end of the table's data. Tables may include any regular HTML content, including text, images, forms and even another table. Advanced tables may also be used for backgrounds and lining up images.
What are keywords and how can I use them? Meta Tags are very important in searching the Internet. Header tags define a document and its relationship with other documents and go unused by most HTML authors. They give information that is used by other documents and other browsers. The meta tag allows you to go beyond. It lives in the document header and has no content. It is defined by its attributes associated with the document. Keyword is a common name used to define a set of keywords used by the document for popular search engines. They are used to categorize the document. <meta name="keywords" content="teacher">