Building your own web documents is a lot easier than you might think. All you need is a text editor. If you've taken a look at any of the HTML documents included in NautilusCD, you know that they're filled with strange codes. These codes are part of the Hypertext Markup Language which is a way of marking text so that when you read it in a web browser, it looks like formatted text and takes you to multimedia elements.
Most HTML codes surround the text you want to format. Greater than < and less than > symbols signal to the browser that the enclosed letters are formatting instructions. So the code <B> means that the following text should be presented in boldface. The code </B> tells the browser to stop boldfacing the text. If this paragraph were read by a net browser the words "means that the following text should be presented in boldface. The code" would all be boldfaced. Note that in this case you need to use a Begin Code signal and an End Code signal. Many formatting instructions require both. Below you'll find a list of a few of the formatting codes you can use:
To boldface text: Use <B> as the Begin Code and <B/> as the End Code. All text within these two codes will appear in boldface when viewed with a web browser.
To italicize text: Use <I> as the Begin Code and <I/> as the End Code. All text within these two codes will appear in italics when viewed with a web browser.
To underline text: Use <U> as the Begin Code and <U/> as the End Code. All text within these two codes will be underlined when viewed with a web browser.
To indicate a paragraph: Use <P> as the Begin Code. No End Code is needed.
To add a hard return: Use <BR> as the Begin Code. No End Code is needed.
To indicate a header: Use <H1> as the Begin Code and <H1/> as the end code. All text within these two codes will be treated as a header when viewed with a web browser. Note: Lower levels of headers can be indicated by using numbers from 2-9 instead of 1 in the codes.
To title your document on the Web: Use <TITLE> as the Begin Code and <TITLE/> as the End Code. All text within these two codes will be listed as the title on the Web. NOTE: you must use this code before putting your document on the Web.
ADDING LINKS TO MULTIMEDIA ELEMENTS
Your page can link to video, audio, or graphic elements. Here we'll show you how to link to graphics. First make sure that the graphic you want to use is in GIF format and is titled something like PICTURE.GIF. You can name the graphic anything you want as long as you follow the name with .GIF.
Put the picture in the same folder as your HTML document.
In your Home page use the following code wherever you want a graphic to appear: <IMG SRC="PICTURE.GIF"> The IMG SRC= tells the browser to import a graphic. The information within the quotations marks tells the browser exactly which graphic to import.
ADDING LINKS TO OTHER PLACES ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB
If you've looked at NautilusCD's HTML document, you know that we don't just tell you about the rest of the Web, we take you there. This is done by adding links to other places using that place's Internet address. This is slightly more complex than the previous instructions, so let's take it step by step.
First type <A HREF="HTTP://
This tells the web browser that you want it to link to somewhere in the outside world.
Then add the address of where you want to go. Use the backslash character / to indicate the path name within that site. Indicate the end of the path name by using a backslash and quotation marks. The example below tells the computer to go to the Internet Shopping Net:
<A HREF="HTTP://wings.buffalo.edu/world/
You'll need to finish it by adding the text that will appear on the page. When the Web browser displays this text it will appear as underlined and you'll be able to click on the text and go directly to the address you typed in above. In the example below the Web browser would display the underlined words Go To The Internet Shopping Net. You would be able to click on those words and be taken instantly to that site on the Web:
<A HREF="HTTP://wings.buffalo.edu/world/>Go To The Internet Shopping Net</A>
With these instructions you should be able to make a very simple HTML document. For more information, pick up the book Mosaic Quick Tour by Gareth Branwyn published by Ventana Press .
