Getting Started with HTML


The purpose of this page is to provide links to resources that will help you create a web page on the Hanover History Department server. It is intended to point you in the right direction rather than provide step-by-step instruction.


FTP

You will first need FTP client software. FTP (File Transfer Protocal) enables you to transfer files back and forth from you own computer to the history server (or any other ftp site to which you have access). You can download a freeware version of FTP (Ipswitch's WSFTP32) for Windows 95 by clicking here. (For Windows 3.1 and Mac computers, please see the Free Software sites listed below.) Simply download the file into a folder on your computer, "unzip" it, and follow the instructions for installation. (If you need software to "zip" and "unzip" files, click here to download the freeware WINZIP for Windows 95. See the Free Software sites listed below for Windows 3.1 and Mac.) Once you have installed your FTP software, you will need to connect to the history department server. Here are the settings you will need.

If everything has gone well, you should see a split screen. On the left is the "Local Computer"--your computer--in folder you designated under "Local PC." On the right is the "Remote System"--the history server--opened to your own folder. Sending files back and forth is as easy as clicking on a file on one side and then the appropriate arrow. For further information, Ipswitch provides a tutorial for ftp at http://www.ipswitch.com/Support/tutorial/Index.html.



HTML

HTML (Hypertext Mark-Up Language) is the language of the web. It consists of a series of tags integrated into the text. The tags are in small angle brackets < > and, with some exceptions, come in pairs, one beginning and the other ending a particular function.

There are a handful of tags that give structure to every html page. These are < html > < /html >, which signal the beginning and end of the html page, < title > < /title >, < head > < /head >, and < body > < /body >, which signal the title, head, and body of the html page. Thus all html pages will have the following design.

< html >

< title > < /title >

< head >
< /head >

< body >
< /body >

< /html >

The information placed in between the title tags is used for identification purposes and will appear at the top of the web browser screen (though not on the web page itself). The information inside the head tags will be seen at the very beginning of the page. The bulk of the material on the page will appear inside the body tags.

Most tags, in effect, "signal" web browsers to "see" a text in a particular way. Thus the tag < i > signals the beginning of text in italics and < /i > signals the end of italicized text. Most tags are pretty common-sensical. The tags for bold, for example are < b > < /b >, the tags for centering a text are < center > < center >, and the tags for line break are < br > < /br >.

There is software specifically designed to assist you in creating and editing HTML files. Such software is not necessary. A simple text editor (such as Notepad)is sufficient. But the software will dramatically reduce the time you spend editing html files.



Links to HTML Guides

Basic Guides

More Specialized Guides



Links to Free HTML and Related Software



Links to Software for the Internet


Free Software Sites


Other Links




Last Updated: May 21, 1999
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