As discussed earlier, Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) is the language of the Web. Now we are going to experiment with Hypertext by creating a personal home page written entirely in Hypertext on a simple text editor. As you will see, we don't need to know too much about Hypertext to get started.

Composing a Simple Hypertext Document

Below is an example of an HTML document.

1. Use your mouse to copy the following text in the table below. Next, click the Edit menu and click Copy, or type "APPLE"+"C" on your keyboard.
 

<HTML>

<HEAD>

<TITLE>My Home Page</TITLE>

</HEAD>

<BODY BGCOLOR="#ffff00">

<H1><CENTER><FONT COLOR="#0000ff" SIZE="+4">Home Page for Web E. Learner</FONT></CENTER></H1>

<H3><CENTER><FONT COLOR="#ff0000" SIZE="+2">Welcome to my Homepage!</FONT></CENTER></H3>

<P><FONT COLOR="#ff00ff" SIZE="+3">Some of my favorite Websites:</FONT></P>

<UL>

<LI><A HREF="http://weblearner.freeservers.com/"><FONT SIZE="+1">webLearner</FONT></A>

<LI><A HREF="http://members.spree.com/sip/mckinley/"><FONT SIZE="+1">McKinley School Website</FONT></A>

<LI><A HREF="http://www.sanleandro.k12.ca.us/"><FONT SIZE="+1">San Leandro Unified School District</FONT></A>

</UL>

</BODY>

</HTML>

 
2. Find and open the SimpleText application. Paste the copied text into the new SimpleText window by clicking on the Edit menu and then clicking Paste, or type "APPLE"+"V".
 
3. Save this file as a new file in your Desktop Folder or diskette. Click the File menu, then click Save As.... Name it "index.html" and click Save.
.
4. Now edit this file, replacing the contents with your personalized information.
 
5. Save the changes, and hide the editor window. Since your file already has a name ("index.html"), simply click the File menu, then click Save, or simply type "APPLE"+"S".
 
6. Now view your Web page! In Navigator, open a second browser window by clicking the File menu, then clicking New --> Navigator, or type "APPLE"+"N". Next, click the File menu again and click Open --> Page in Navigator..., or type "APPLE"+"O". Locate your "index.html" file and click Open. If you followed these steps correctly, this should display something like the following table below, but with your information instead of Web's.
 

Home Page for Web E. Learner

Welcome to my Homepage!

Some of my favorite Websites:

Congratulations, Webmaster!

   You have just constructed a very simple homepage using plain HTML! But this is only the beginning! As we continue with the Netscape Composer tutorial, you will learn how to add more to this home page, such as tables, images, and other Web elements. Stay tuned, folks! As they always say, the best has yet to come!


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