Re: Learing HTML (was: Branden Hall. FLASH: A solution to zipped files on Mac's!)

[Pam Andrews]

New to the list, tossing in my $0.02 as a way of saying HOWDY (I have a ton of

questions, savin' 'em for later :)


I manage four "Internet Developers" who were tossed at me when our IS

department re-structured.  All of them had done some pretty nifty 'skunkworks'

projects using a variety of WYSIWYG tools.  When we formalized

internet/intranet development, it became PAINFULLY obvious that they didn't

know JACK about raw HTML, and I spent a great many hours coaching them through

the very basics.


Three of them have since bailed (I'm a horrid boss, I suppose!  <eg>) and I'm

in the process of replacing them and adding more staff.  You can bet your

bottom dollar I'll make sure they know how to code in those mainstays of the

programming world - Notepad and VI!!!


Know the code!  Tools aren't a substitute, they're an accelerator -- the big

bucks go to those who know how to apply the tools to the basics!


Thanks for the forum :)


Pam


Tirah wrote:


> Definitely learn the code from scratch first. Then you can fix all

> the extra junks the WYSIWYGs put in. :)

>

> I've had people tell me that once the HTML is learned, using a WYSIWYG

> is an acceptable time saver because they then know what it is they

> need to fix in the code, and save time that way rather than code the

> whole page from scratch.

>

> Though personally, I would rather stick pins in my eyes before using a

> WYSIWYG. :)

>

> HomeSite (or Net Objects Fusion a.k.a. HomeSite on Steroids) for

> PC and BBEdit for Mac are great editors. I love them to death.

>

> In any event, yes knuckle down to do the HTML. IMO the best way to

> really get what you need out of HTML-from-scratch knowledge is to

> put up a page with some complexity to it and get it to look exactly alike

> in all the major browsers, and on both PC and Mac.

>

> I also second the recommendation of the HTML Visual Quick Start Guide.

> Great book. Has everything about HTML in concentrated doses of concise

> english.

>

> HTML is not hard to learn. But it does require a certain degree of

> anal-ness and a willingness to tweak at it for cross-platform

> compatibility. Plus, your coders will thank you for not taking their

> pages and adding lots of stuff to them that they then have to backtrack

> and take out all over again. :) (and again...and again...and...) This will

> happen with stuff coded from scratch that later got opened in a WYSIWYG.

> Phenomenal waste of time to deal with.

>

> Tirah

>

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--

Pam Andrews, Senior Internet Developer

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia

3350 Peachtree Road, NE

Atlanta, Georgia 30302-4445

pandrewsbcbs-ga [dot] com

Office: 404.848.2495 Fax: 404.848.2316

Pager: 1.888.374.3868

Email to pager:

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pandrewsmindspring [dot] com

ICQ 13903360

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