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HTML Editors

If you want to create a professional looking Web page, you'll probably want to use an HTML editor. These applications offer features which can help you through the coding process. The software programs we discuss here use a WYSIWYG (pronounced wizzy-wig — What-You-See-Is-What-You-Get) interface.

Creating a Web page with a WSIWYG editor can be as easy as using a word processor. HTML functionality is added by clicking toolbar buttons or selecting menu commands. Some WYSIWYG editors allow you to create HTML without having to know the tagging structure at all. Some of these programs include templates and graphic themes to help you get started creating a professional looking Web page.

Popular HTML editors include:

Although WYSIWYG editors make it possible to create web pages without writing a single tag, it is a good idea to understand the basic structure of HTML code. If you don't understand the tags and coding structure created by the WSIWIG editor, it will be very difficult to make adjustments to the look of your page or to fix problems that arise.
Other applications like Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint allow you to save files in HTML format — which means they can be viewed with a browser. However, simple using the "Save As" command to save in HTML format does not mean you will have an HTML document that you can edit easily. The HTML created by non-HTML editors can be very difficult to understand. However, if you want to create a simple page without buying or learning a new application or learning HTML, this may be a good option for you.
You can use a simple text editor, like Notepad, to write HTML. Just save the file as a plain text file with the extension .htm or .html, and then open the file in your Web browser. Experienced HTML coders often prefer using a plain text editor for simple edits because changes can be made much more quickly than with a WYSIWYG editor.