Frontpage editor or...

[barnettgs]

I have been using Frontpage 2000 for a couple of year only for my personal website www.barnett45.fsnet.co.uk and also new site for my friend: www.deafkartni.co.uk

I only use tables, form, CSS sheet and images, basically, thats it . Not advanced webdesigner! :D

I have tried Dreamweaver MX trial, it was too much to learn on my own. I can't see it as any benefit for me to replace frontpage.

Also tried HTML kit, pretty neat but I was expecting that if I click 'table', it doesn't put table in automatically, so instead, it put in code and I didn't know what to put in other code to make a complete table. It would take me lot of learning time plus lots of coding? Correct me if I am wrong.

I found it hard to believe that professional webbuilder uses only notepad since some site comes with so many tablets!? :confused: I suppose some of you 'copy' code from other site and paste on your site and change it a bit?

I will appreciated your reply to my curious!:o

By the way, look at www.sloughpirates.co.uk and look at the background of red/black strip on left and right margin side. How does white page is placed in middle with small black border on each left and right side. Anyone know how to make it like that? At first, I thought it was tablet but not. I have seen view source and it goes over my head! :D

Thanks

[Nightfire]

HTML doesn't take that long to learn. It's just a matter of taking source apart and seeing what tags do, and looking up how to do things here or google. Coding in notepad is easy, after a while you start seeing how the code should be in your head while looking at a design in an image or imagination.

For the border, they've used css

border-left: 2px solid #000; border-right: 2px solid #000;

[ronaldb66]

Frontpage is fine if you want to build a basic web site fast and don't want to bother with (X)HTML, however it does pose a lot of limitations.
By learning (X)HTML, CSS and maybe Javascript you have total control over your design; Notepad or a similar basic text editor suffices, but a more elaborate tool like HTMLkit, 1st page 2000, or even Homesite makes editing easier and reduces maintenance effort.

By the way: the page you mentioned is basically layed out using a bunch of nested tables and, as Nightfire mentioned, CSS for borders and such.

If you do choose to learn (X)HTML, etc. there are several online tutorials that take you through it step by step, give examples, etc.
I personally like W3Schools (http://www.w3schools.com/) and reference their info a lot when something slipped my mind... :D

[tommysphone]

Hi there, Firstly what a great site you have.

I've wanted a radio controlled car since I was about 6. All the rich kids at school had one :mad: and would never let me have a go. Now I'm a rich adult (nearing 30 and looking for my second childhood) I am looking to buy a petrol engined RC machine. The only thing I am stuck with is where to buy one from. Any suggestions would be great - anywhere in the UK :) is fine.

As for which software to use, well, its up to you. What do you like using? I'd say stick with frontpage and as things progress tinker using notepad aswell. Its a great way to put your learning into practice. As a fulltime web developer myself I have many tools to call on and use but in all honesty two are my favourites. They are Notepad and Frontpage. Some developers might smart at that statement but hey, each to their own. I use notepad when producing asp as frontpage messes around with code and to be honest it is a real pain. Notepad does not mess with code and what you type is what you get. Fronpage has two elements, wysiwyg and html view (you know that already). A good way to learn html is to use frontpage and flick between the two views as you go and that along with a good book will see you right. You'll see the code and see why and where it all fits in.

For the future? Well, if you win the lottery this weekend my friend I'd invest some of it in a top notch pc instead of new software! If it works fine then stick with it. If its broken fix it.

[murphyz]

I agree with learning html as it's so empowering to be able to go onto any PC that may not have any web-building software and be able to produce a website. Tables are easy to create when you know html and a site that seems daunting to look at is probably basic in structure.
I learnt html using this download:
http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/tut/

I have used Frontpage but prefer Dreamweaver, I find their support of different codes is very good and I use it to easily implement Flash into a site. I recommend that you try a few Dreamweaver tutorials to see the potential it has and then make a decision.

Likewise, I recommend taking the time once you have built a site to try and duplicate it in notepad as that's a good way to brush up on your html knowledge and you can clean up any un-needed tags.

Mxx

[barnettgs]

tommysphone,

For radio controlled, 'petrol' engined RC is referred to 'Nitro' kits of 1/10 to 1/8th scale. Most people calls them 'petrol' powered as they didn't know they are nitro powered. I guess I would say the 'petrol' to friend instead of 'nitro' because I can't be bothered to explain what nitro is. :D

Nitro kit uses nitro fuel (not unleaded) but I have a larger scale (1/6th scale) buggy thats actually uses unleaded fuel.

Go for www.hpi-europe.com they make good quality kit and they have forums for all kind of off road, touring car, monster trucks.

You can ask question there about what kind of kit you like such as off-road, on-road (ideal for racing) and where to get near your home etc. There are so many choices of kit really but if you are mainly for fun, you should go for HPI 1/8th Savage monster truck or HPI 1/10 NMT.


BTW, Thanks I understand. I know already that Frontpage does make a mess of code but it is probably the easiest and laziest web editor for me personally. Sometimes I do copy and paste on HTML tag in frontpage with a couple of other scripts as well as other html code.

I guess whichever editor you are using, is a personal preference. I liked the CSS feature in Dreamweaver and it's not far off from frontpage but will take a bit of get used to. I will stick with frontpage for a while for my sites.

Thanks again

[ronaldb66]

A good way to learn html is to use frontpage and flick between the two views as you go
Ehhh... hardly. What i've seen from it, Frontpage produces horrible code; if one wants to learn (X)HTML, better learn it right first time 'round.

[starglow]

Originally posted by ronaldb66

Ehhh... hardly. What i've seen from it, Frontpage produces horrible code; if one wants to learn (X)HTML, better learn it right first time 'round.

it's not so bad anymore. it used to be horrible but recently I opened up one of my pages I did in notepad in Front page and it not only displayed it perfectly but when I edited something in Frontpage it kept the code right and didn't put stupid unnecessary tags in there and whatnot, it did just what I told it. the old one I had that did horrible code was 98 I think, the one that didn't f things up was 2000.

still, you're right though, best way to learn html is just buy a book or read online tutorials and whatnot.

[ronaldb66]

Starglow,

do you have experience working with FP 2000? If so, i'd like to pick your brain a little; maybe on a seperate thread?
I work on a personal site with someone that has no extensive HTML knowledge and therefore prefers using FP; i don't have it myself, so i just have to figure things out when i'm sitting behind his computer, and i get the feeling i'm missing things.

[starglow]

Originally posted by ronaldb66
Starglow,

do you have experience working with FP 2000? If so, i'd like to pick your brain a little; maybe on a seperate thread?
I work on a personal site with someone that has no extensive HTML knowledge and therefore prefers using FP; i don't have it myself, so i just have to figure things out when i'm sitting behind his computer, and i get the feeling i'm missing things.

yeah it's what I used to use before I learned HTML. I'm no pro with it and haven't used it in a while but I know my way around it.

[ionsurge]

The background was done via a table, and a gif/jpg/bmp tiled on the background.

Go to (www.angelfire.com/empire/horizon), and you will see something that I did with something like that. View the source code, and just copy and paste.

Hope this helps.


Good luck!


:thumbsup: