HTML vs Frontpage

May 05, 2007 · by Sandy Craig

Hello all. I'm finally done with my HTML class. We turned in our last homework and our final on Thursday. Yippeeeeee!

Our final in this class was to create a simple web page with a few features. It's just a basic class so it was actually pretty breezy. None of the HTML is hard, at this stage of the game anyway, but it can be a little time consuming getting through the four homework assignments each week.... when you have to fit it into an already action packed schedule.

So, how was the final and what did I do? In about an hour an a half, I created a new Simply fibers web page and class page complete with links to each other and a few outside links sprinkled about. I shudder to think how long it took me to create my first web page from scratch as a bright fresh newbie. I'm certainly no expert now but I can see the light.

In my short web career, I've often wonder why people are so hung up on using pure HTML when there is a wonderful WYSIWYG like Frontpage hanging around. When I sat down to do my final, I got the answer to this question. I "viewed source" on my "real" web site.... WOW. What the heck is all that junk in there??? I didn't put that there... did I? Ewwwwww!

Besides the fact that you can do pure HTML for free (if you have access to a computer), you have much more control and it seems cleaner to me.

So, what's the overall result of this class? Sitting at my regular J-O-B desk Friday, I was reading a document. We receive an unbelievable amount of documents via email dictating... I mean requesting.... that we do something a certain way from now on. As I sat reading this document, my brain took a detour... not an uncommon event. I started looking at the document and formatting it in my mind with HTML! I began to think about the possibilities of having all of these documents on our intranet web site, complete with links to each other and pictures... so you wouldn't have to read the entire document to find the subject you are looking for. AND... here's the exciting part... if you filed all of the documents out there with a site map of sorts, we could jump right to the procedure de jour.

Eventually, I had to snap back to reality and continue on with the task at hand. One day it will happen though. I'll be between projects and have a few free minutes to "play". The weirdest part is that I actually think this will be FUN!!! What has happened to me?

So, where from here? On to the advanced class in the fall. I would like to work through the book first. It's such a great book, we did the entire class without any questions for the teacher. She was the perfect teacher... just let us do our thing but hang around to bail us out if necessary.

Why take the class if the book is so darn good? I have a fantasy of moving forward with my web developement skills and I'm afraid I may need this class as a ticket to get into the next class. We'll see.

In the meantime, my web site is nagging me to be cleaned up. It's a very weird feeling but I want to work in HTML now and I shudder to think about going back to my Frontpage. I will probably have to do so for some things but anything I can handle via HTML will be done so.

Till next time,

Sandy

This post is filed under By Merchants, For Merchants and has the following keyword tags: development, html.

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