Choosing the right web page editor

When choosing a web page creation package, be sure to compare features and consider your needs. Look for web sites that compare available features, then read the information on the developer's web site. For online information about publishing web pages at UD, visit the Ideacenter. If you need on-campus support for learning to create and manage your site, you'll want to consider products fully supported by Information Technologies:

• Mozilla Composer for simple pages
• Macromedia Dreamweaver for larger sites

When choosing a web page editor, be sure to consider the scope of the project, who will be maintaining the project, and how complicated the project may become. Look for familiar features--formatting tools, drag-and-drop text editing, spell checkers, image tools--as well as advanced options such as tools for creating image maps and forms, site management tools and ready-to-use JavaScript Actions. Most editors provide a way to modify HTML code. As you increase your skills or begin to work on complicated web sites, you will need to understand and use HTML. To learn more about using HTML, review online resources or attend IT's Web Publishing Series.

In addition to considering the features of a package, you should also understand the process for publishing. You must also know the directory in which you will publish your site and the host (server). For most pages, this host is copland.udel.edu; the publishing location for official UD web pages is /www/htdocs/your_directory/filename.html.

Mozilla Composer

Mozilla (available from the UD Software Distribution page) offers an integrated web page creation tool, Composer, which allows you to edit or create simple web pages in an environment similar to many word processing programs. If you are a first-time publisher or are publishing a simple, one-page document, try Composer first. If you find that your page requires more control than what Composer offers, you'll want to consider a more sophisticated editor and learn HTML code.

Instructions for using Composer are available at http://www.udel.edu/topics/learning/tutorial/index.html

Macromedia Dreamweaver

Advanced users, faculty teaching web design, graphic design students, and departments creating and maintaining large department web sites may want to consider a more powerful tool such as Macromedia Dreamweaver. Since many UD departments use Dreamweaver, IT offers free User Education workshops for using Dreamweaver and provides instructions for working with the program.