Web pages are written in Hypertext Markup Language, or HTML. HTML allows you to add tags to your Web page to indicate special characteristics. Some tags affect the look of a Web page, others affect how it functions. HTML includes tags for:

Claris Home Page makes it possible for you to add these to a Web page quickly and easily, without a prior understanding of HTML. When you add an element or change its attributes, Claris Home Page inserts the appropriate tags for you. If you are an experienced HTML user, you can also add tags directly to the HTML code.

The following feature is only available in the complete version of Claris Home Page 2.0. When you're ready to upgrade, choose How To Upgrade from the Help menu.

Using Edit HTML Source mode

When you switch to Edit HTML Source mode, Claris Home Page displays the exact HTML code of your Web page. You can edit, delete, add, or customize HTML code while in this mode. Claris Home Page saves and incorporates the changes you make.

Important Be careful when editing your Web page in Edit HTML Source mode. Unless you are familiar with HTML code and its syntax, you can destroy your work. As a precaution, make a copy of your Web page before you change it in Edit HTML Source mode.

In Edit HTML Source mode, you can use all of the usual text editing operations such as typing, undoing, cutting, copying, pasting, dragging, and finding and replacing text. Other options, such as those found in the Insert, Format, and Style menus, are not available when editing the HTML source code.

Note The Link Editor and Object Editors include an Extra HTML field. You can use this field to add any of the HTML tags that are not supported by Claris Home Page.

To switch to Edit HTML Source mode, click the Edit HTML Source button on the basic toolbar or choose Edit HTML Source from the Window menu.

You can change the display font of the code in Edit HTML Source mode. Choose Preferences from the Edit menu, choose HTML Editing from the pop-up menu or click the HTML Editing tab, and then choose a font or size that you want to see.

New features available in Claris Home Page 2.0 are HTML syntax coloring and word wrap. Syntax coloring distinguishes tags from text by using colors. In Edit HTML Source mode, choose Syntax Coloring from the HTML menu. Word wrap temporarily breaks lines of text within the document window so you can read without scrolling horizontally. In Edit HTML Source mode, choose Word Wrap from the HTML menu.

To set Syntax Coloring or Word Wrap as a default, choose Preferences from the Edit menu, choose HTML Editing from the pop-up menu or click the HTML Editing tab, and then click the Syntax Coloring or Word Wrap box.

Setting extra HTML preferences

You can use several Claris Home Page options to change the HTML code of your Web page.

To make changes to the code that specifies HTML output, choose Preferences from the Edit menu, choose HTML Output from the pop-up menu or click the HTML Output tab, and then change the appropriate option.

Choose this HTML output option

To do this

Header Comment

Add information about your Web page to the beginning of the HTML file. (These comments are only visible when viewing the HTML source code.) Choose None if you don't want any information added. Choose Identify as Home Page file if you want a comment added identifying your Web page as a Claris Home Page file. Choose Identify and time-stamp if you want a comment added identifying your Web page as a Claris Home Page file and a time- stamp identifying the last time the file was saved.

Line Break Format

Specify the line break format your file will follow. Use this option only if you want to edit the HTML code of your Web page in a text editor since Claris Home Page can handle all line break conventions. Choose Macintosh (CR), Windows (CRLF), or Unix (LF) to specify the kind of line breaks you want to use.

Paragraph Alignment Uses

Specify how centered text is coded. Choose <CENTER> tag to have Claris Home Page use the <CENTER> tag. Choose ALIGN parameter to have Claris Home Page use the ALIGN=CENTER parameter within other tags (such as <P>).

Generate </P> tags

Add a closing </P> tag to every opening <P> tag in your file. This should normally be enabled, but it may cause problems with some browsers.

Generate X-SAS tags

Claris Home Page uses several custom tags (beginning with "X- SAS") to save information such as where the Claris Home Page application window appears on the screen and what size the window is. Enable this option to add these additional tags to the HTML file.

Use Absolute Pathnames

Use absolute or relative pathnames when you create links to local files. When the option is deselected, Claris Home Page uses relative pathnames. For more information about relative and absolute pathnames, see Using relative or absolute paths.

To add extra code or tag parameters for prefix comments, HTML, HEAD and BODY tags, choose Document Options from the Edit menu, choose HTML Extras from the pop-up menu or click the HTML Extras tab, and then change the appropriate option:

Choose this option

To add

Prefix Comments

Commented text to the beginning of your HTML file, such as the name of the author, messages, and so on.

<HTML> Tag Parameters

Parameters to the <HTML> tag.

<HEAD> Tag Parameters

Parameters to the <HEAD> tag.

Text in Head Section

Text that will appear in the HEAD section of the file. This option allows you to add tags other than <TITLE>.

<Body> Tag Parameters

Parameters to the <BODY> tag.

Adding Java applets to your Web page

Java applets are small programs written in the Java programming language, which are downloaded from a Web server.

Note You cannot run a Java applet in Claris Home Page. You must preview your Web page in a browser to run an applet.

To add a Java applet to a Web page:

  1. Choose Applet from the Insert menu.

    A rectangular box representing the applet appears on your Web page and the Applet Object Editor opens.

    To see all of the settings in the Applet Object Editor, click the triangle or clickor the Both tab.

  2. Fill in the appropriate settings in the Applet Object Editor.

    Use this applet attribute setting

    To do this

    Code

    Specify the filename of the applet.

    Note Java applet filenames have the extension ".class" or ".cls".

    Code Base

    Specify the path to the folder where the applet is located. If you leave the field blank, the path is automatically set to the same path as the Web page itself.

    Alt Label

    Set the text that appears in place of the applet if your viewer's browser doesn't support applets. You should always provide an alternative label for applets.

    Alignment

    Change how the applet is aligned with text. Choose Top to align the top of the applet with the top of the text next to it. Choose Middle to align the middle of the applet with the text next to it. Choose Bottom to align the bottom of the applet with the bottom of the text next to it. Choose Left or Right to place the applet on the left side or right side of the page and have text flow around it.

    Note View your page in a browser to see the actual left and right alignment of the applet within text.

    Width

    Change the width of the applet. Choose Pixels to make the applet a specific width in pixels or Percent to make the applet a specific percentage of the browser window's width.

    Height

    Change the height of the applet. Choose Pixels to make the applet a specific height in pixels or Percent to make the applet a specific percentage of the browser window's height

    HSpace

    Change the amount of horizontal space, in pixels, to the right and the left of the applet.

    VSpace

    Change the amount of vertical space, in pixels, above and below the applet.

    Name

    Assign a name to the applet that other applets can use to communicate with the applet you are adding.

    Content

    Assign parameter names and values. Enter parameter names and values you want assigned to the applet in this field as follows: <PARAM NAME=FirstName VALUE="FirstValue"> <PARAM NAME=SecondValue VALUE="SecondValue") The HTML code for the names and values are placed within the applet tag.

    Extra HTML

    Add other HTML attributes to your table. (This is an advanced feature that requires knowledge of HTML; it specifies additional parameters for the <APPLET> tag.)