# Chapter 21

# Advice for practical webpage creation

### Here is advice to try and help you succeed, if you follow them you are likely to create better web pages. First you need to know, what is HTML? Once you have a sound understanding of html, it is worth considering the use of WYSIWYGs and the potential problems of using these packages. Make sure that you use the right terms to describe what you have done, are doing or could be asked to do. Learn how to create and attach stylesheets to your web pages. Make sure that you can work with tables. These provide a fundamental structure to webpages and seem to be replacing frames in many areas. Look for other resources to help you prepare for the practical examinations.

## 21a Understand what HTML is

Many students sit the practical examinations without really understanding what makes webpages work. In some schools website authoring is taught using WYSIWYG packages. WYSIWYG stands for What You See Is What You Get. There is nothing wrong with using these packages, but in our experience, those candidates who understand the structure of the markup language perform better on the practical examinations. A good compromise is to learn the basics of html first using chapter 15, then create webpages using a WYSIWYG package. You can look at the code created by these packages using the View Source option in Microsoft Internet Explorer and edit it in a text editor.

## 21b Problems with WYSIWYGs

There are many well designed WYSIWYG packages on the market, some are freeware, others can cost a significant amount. Depending upon your choice of package will depend upon the types of problem that you can experience. Some packages are not web authoring packages, but can generate markup language from other applications packages like word processed or desktop published documents. When you use a WYSIWYG package you have little control over how the package will generate the markup. In most cases the markup generated will include many elements too advanced to be assessed at IGCSE level. If you use these packages and then change the markup, for example: if you are required to do so in a practical examination, then you risk changing the wrong markup so the page will not function as expected. It is also much more difficult to identify which section of markup does what and therefore to check that your markup works.

## 21c Use the correct terms

Over the past few years, as the practical examinations have developed there has been a trend to test your knowledge and understanding of each topic as well as just your practical skills. In some examination questions you are asked to use the correct terms to describe what you have done/would do in certain circumstances. Make sure that you call the language html a markup language and not code or a programming language and use the term tags correctly. It is possible that examiners may ask you to describe either the structure/content layer or the presentation layer of a webpage. The presentation layer may include how mixed colours are created using hex codes, or how cell spacing and padding work in a table. As you read the book and work through each section try to make sure that you understand the key words. In the book many of these are highlighted in red as they also appear in the glossary, along with an explanation of what they mean.

## 21d Create and use stylesheets

The most recent versions of html and xhtml have deprecated many of the commands that have previously appeared in the practical examinations. Like everything in ICT website authoring techniques move fast. Make sure that as much of the formatting as possible for the website is in the stylesheet or stylesheets. Check that you have attached the stylesheet correctly to the website. A large number of candidates for the practical examinations do not store the website and stylesheet in the same folder or directory (depending on your operating system). If you do not do this and use a WYSIWYG package, the package is likely to generate an absolute reference to this file on your local hard drive. This would not allow this webpage to function correctly if it was uploaded to the internet so you are likely to loose marks for this section.

## 21e Start with the tables

If you are asked to create a webpage, rather than editing an existing webpage, start by designing and building the table structure. Once the structure has been developed identify the formatting needed for the table, then place into the table any required objects. These objects could include text, still images, video etc. Finally if formatting is required that is not part of the stylesheet, do this last.

## 21f Other useful links

There are other places that can be used to gain valuable information that may help. These include the W3schools website and the W3C website.

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