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*Shira* · 07-27-2007, 09:53 AM

I don't use a Macintosh, so I can't advise you on software products. But I can offer you some tips on where to begin with learning html.

Forget about updating Pagemill. Adobe killed the product about 6 years ago.
Find out whether the University's IT organization has a standard web authoring product that they recommend. If they do, you may be able to get a discounted price through the university as well as technical assistance.
Do try to learn a LITTLE html. I know it looks pretty icky, but it's useful to know some basics. In particular, css is worth learning, and it helps a lot to know certain html basics before you tackle css.
Don't bother trying to learn flash, cgi, or java at this time. But css is worth learning.

These are the html tags that I would recommend taking some time to learn:

For formatting text, should be learned before tackling css:

<P> and </P>
<H1> and </H1>, <H2> and </H2>, <H3 and </H3>, <H4> and </H4>
<FONT> and </FONT> (mostly to help you learn css). Experiment with learning how to specify which font to use, and also with learning how to change the font color.
<BR> and </BR> learn the difference between this and <P>
<B> and </B> (bolding), <I> and </I> (italic)

To learn the above, I suggest using a plain text editor to type in a sample test page. Experiment with using all of the above. Then use a browser to display your test page and see how you did. Practice at this until you have completely mastered it. Once you have mastered the above, you should be okay with starting to learn about css.

Other html tags worth knowing how to hand-code:

<A HREF> and </A HREF> Sometimes the WYSIWYG "what you see is what you get" editors put stuff into the link that you didn't want included as part of the highlighted text. Knowing how the <A HREF> tag works allows you to correct it by hand rather than struggling with fixing in the WYSIWYG.
<IMG SRC> . I rarely hand-code insertion of graphics into a page, but it's useful to be able to READ this tag and understand what I'm seeing in case I need to tweak it.

07-27-2007, 09:53 AM	#5
Shira Master BHUZzer Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 3,674	I don't use a Macintosh, so I can't advise you on software products. But I can offer you some tips on where to begin with learning html. Forget about updating Pagemill. Adobe killed the product about 6 years ago. Find out whether the University's IT organization has a standard web authoring product that they recommend. If they do, you may be able to get a discounted price through the university as well as technical assistance. Do try to learn a LITTLE html. I know it looks pretty icky, but it's useful to know some basics. In particular, css is worth learning, and it helps a lot to know certain html basics before you tackle css. Don't bother trying to learn flash, cgi, or java at this time. But css is worth learning. These are the html tags that I would recommend taking some time to learn: For formatting text, should be learned before tackling css: <P> and </P> <H1> and </H1>, <H2> and </H2>, <H3 and </H3>, <H4> and </H4> <FONT> and </FONT> (mostly to help you learn css). Experiment with learning how to specify which font to use, and also with learning how to change the font color. <BR> and </BR> learn the difference between this and <P> <B> and </B> (bolding), <I> and </I> (italic) To learn the above, I suggest using a plain text editor to type in a sample test page. Experiment with using all of the above. Then use a browser to display your test page and see how you did. Practice at this until you have completely mastered it. Once you have mastered the above, you should be okay with starting to learn about css. Other html tags worth knowing how to hand-code: <A HREF> and </A HREF> Sometimes the WYSIWYG "what you see is what you get" editors put stuff into the link that you didn't want included as part of the highlighted text. Knowing how the <A HREF> tag works allows you to correct it by hand rather than struggling with fixing in the WYSIWYG. <IMG SRC> . I rarely hand-code insertion of graphics into a page, but it's useful to be able to READ this tag and understand what I'm seeing in case I need to tweak it.