Some HTML Editors have a WYSIWYG feature (What You See Is What You Get) for exact positioning of objects on the Web page. Such Editors will place items for you on the web page but the HTML coding of the tables leaves something to be desired. Tables are nested within tables making site maintenance more difficult yet many believe this is the way to go for those persons who do not know HTML coding. Of these Editors, Microsoft's FrontPage has been popular. Not all ISP servers support FrontPage. Check with a webmaster before selecting an ISP server for your web page. Ask if all Editors are supported, if you will have FTP access, and if CGI scripting is supported.

Ideally, you will want to select an HTML Editor that also supports JavaScript authoring, for as you advance, you will want scripting and interactivity on your pages. The learning curve is not as steep if you buy one Editor for all of your needs now, and grow with it rather than having to "upgrade" and buy a different Editor later.

I have provided links to HTML primers and tutorials  on a separate page. You may also use a search engine  if you need additonal links or information.     Enjoy!

One final caution to students who will be buying an HTML Editor software program: Check the software box or documentation for the operating systems it will work on. I just saw a box for Microsoft FrontPage 2003 and it was marked only for Windows 2000 and Windows XP Operating Systems, so it will not work on Windows 98 nor Windows ME. If you have a Mac OS X 10.3 GS4 computer: Taco HTML Edit is a full-featured freeware HTML editor. It is designed exclusively for Mac OS X and uses many of the core technologies built into Mac OS X. Visit www.tacosw.com/

Hint: Those of you wishing to go into Graphic Design or related field, start off by using the Adobe software such as the Creative Suite applications, which would call for GoLive as the HTML editor, PhotoShop, Illustrator, InDesign, and Bridge. Some releases of the Creative Suite now include Dreamweaver.

Computer Hardware: If you are using graphics like PhotoShop, designing for the Web and want a Vista-ready computer, you will need a newer Dual Core processor, 64 bit front side bus with FSB speed at least 67 MHz, 2 gigs of RAM and a great graphics card, over 2MB L2Cache. I would prefer such a computer to currently have the XP Pro operating system in order to get Vista Business edition when ready for release.