Introduction
So you wanna learn html huh? Easy. All you need is a brain (easy guide assumes you have one), a little
creativity and any word processer or text editor such as Notepad
for Windows or TeachText for Mac users. First you load Notepad.exe , then you enter your html code , (just type a few words for now) then you choose File, then Save As, then enter a file name such as myfile.htm or myfile.html where it says File name, then press ok. Use either .html or .htm (mac users) as your file names extension. Easy. With the advent of new scripting languages, other extensions can also be used. Once saved, open it by double clicking on it or by loading your favorite browser and using File Open.
A browser, ie. Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator reads
tags and their attributes that you have entered in your .html file and interprets
them almost instantly for display in its window. A tag looks like this :
<TITLE>
Scripts and tutorials
</TITLE>
Easy. A tag always starts with the less than sign
< and ends with
the greater than sign
> .
It almost always has a closing tag that is identical except that you place a
/ (forward slash) immediately after the < .See above? You type the text you want displayed between the opening and closing tags. The tags themselves are not displayed.
Tags are not case sensitive.
A tags attributes reside within the tag like this :
<Font color="blue">
This text is blue!
</FonT>
Attributes are also case insensitive. Unlike tags, attributes do not have a closing attribute. You do however , need to surround an attributes value with quotes " ". See above? The
tag is
font, the
attribute is
color and its
value is
blue. One word values do not need quotes " " but its safer to always use them.
Html Editors
HTML editors are programs that make creating pages easier. That's all. For example You can click on a toolbar to create a
tag, rather than typing it out by hand. You'll work faster but learn slower. It's your choice. I use one and strongly recommend you do as well as they remind you of tags and attributes you may have long forgotten. The one I use is called Homesite 4.5 By far the best editor to use if you want to learn HTML ( as opposed to learning how to use a program that generates HTML ). There are hundreds available on the internet , some are free , some are not.
Now your ready to write your own script.
Chapter one gets you going by walking you through the creation of your first html page. By the time you have reached the end of Easy guide you'll be walking with the pro's.
