Getting Started

A web page is a single HTML document where as a site is a collection of linked web pages.
HTML stands for Hyper Text Markup Language. It's not near as bad as it sounds, and if you are using an editor you may never even have to look at the page source. Most browsers will let you examine the code or page source of any web page you visit. To do this first go to a web page, then click on view and scroll down to either HTML Source or Page Source. They both mean the same thing. If you'll notice it's written in English with commands contained inside of <>'s. There are not many commands to learn and their format is very simple.

If you are a customer here at 2 Fords Network then we will supply you with free web space for your personal homepage. You will need to call the tech line, and have one of the techs on duty set you up with a folder, a user name, and a password for your FTP. If you aren't a customer with us then you can obtain free web space from a number of different sources.

A server is a computer, just like yours, connected on the internet that allows other computers on the internet to download files. Most internet providers have servers and allow their users to place personal homepages on them, plus they also sell web space to commercial sites.

A personal homepage is a page or collection of pages that are not commercially based. In other words as long as you aren't selling something it is a personal homepage. It doesn't have to be about you or your family, just a subject that you are interested in.

There are only two ways: write it by hand using a text editor, or you can use a WYSIWYG editor. I will go through a step by step procedure on using Netscape Composer to write your web pages with.

An editor is a program that writes the HTML code for your web page.
What is a WYSIWYG editor ? That stands for What You See Is What You Get. The best type of editor you can use. It will allow you to see just how the page will look on the internet, as opposed to text editors that only let you see what the code looks like.
If you are using Windows then Notepad makes a good text editor. For Macintosh users Simple Text or BB Edit are both good.

Text editors come with both Windows and Mac OS operating systems. For the other kind of editors, Netscape has editors built into a couple of their browsers, Netscape Navigator 3.04 Gold and Netscape Communicator.
Not to be left off the bandwagon Microsoft has supplied Font Page Express with their newest browsers. In the following pages I will be discussing the editor that comes with Netscape Communicator, but most of the editors are very similar in the way they work. You might also take a look at Adobe's Pagemill. If none of these tickle your fancy try the editors at TUCOWS , ZDNET, or CNET. All of these editors have their little quirks and failings, so it doesn't hurt to have at least some knowledge of how HTML works.
 
 

You can get most of the graphics you need right here or at one of my sites where I supply free homemade graphics. If you can't find just what you are looking for you can email a request to me for a custom made banner, etc., and I'll try to whip something up for you. This is free for personal web sites only.

Sound is nice on web pages, but only if there is a way to turn them off. You can have sounds in a variety of file types. I use AU's, midi's, and Waves. I'll get into the implementing of them on the step by step guide. Midis are by far the best. They are sort of like Musak for the internet. The file sizes are very small, even for the longer songs making them load and play faster. They are instrumental only though. AUs and Waves are actual sound recordings but tend to be very long. You can obtain midis by going to any search engine and searching for midis. If you are into Star Trek then I have some midis for you at my Star Trek site.
 
 

Those neat effects are probably either java or javascript language commands. Writing them is only for advanced programmers, but you can often Cut and Paste them into your page using your text editors. Java is a compiled program that loads separately from your web page. You can adjust them using parameters but they can't usually be rewritten. Although writing a javascript program is complicated making alterations is usually not that hard.
Remember the big difference between Java and Javascript is that Java loads as a separate program whereas javascript is written right on the web page. If you are looking for some good javascript try:

Although most editors come with the ability to publish to the net I advise against using them. The best way to upload is to use an FTP program. What is an FTP program you ask? FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol, which is the standard used to upload and download programs from one computer to another. Contact your service provider about opening up an FTP password and login for your webpage and ask for directions on how to set it up. If you are at 2 Fords the personal web page server address is 208.21.142.240. You'll also need to provide the FTP program with a user name and password, but DO NOT supply a folder name. All that is taken care of by our FTP program. That's right we have one on our end too. If it asks for an account name use your user ID.

If you need help, you can check out my FTP Downloads and Instruction pages

Promotion , Promotion, Promotion. That's right, this is probably the hardest part about writing a web page. You'll need to submit your site to the major search engines so that people can find you. Another good way is to apply for or give out web awards. Apply for awards first. It always looks better if the person giving out web awards has some of their own to show off. You can check mine out at 2 Fords.

You won't win any awards if you don't apply for them. People that have web sites are usually too busy grading the sites that are submitted to them to go out looking for good sites. Where do you apply for them ?
A good place to start is The Award Aemporium.  They will automatically submit your site to all of their members, including us.  I am sorry to say there are a lot of sites that only give out awards to get surfers to visit their site, by having your award graphic link to their page. There are also others that have very high standards. The best way to see if their award is worth anything is to visit the sites they have awarded.

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