These instructions are designed to give guidance about the process of making a web page. A web page is very similar to any other document in the printed world, the key difference being that a web page is electronically accessible from anywhere in the world.
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Decide the purpose of the page
The purpose of a web page is its guiding message or the reason the page was built. The purpose can be anything that someone wishes it to be. It can be to experiment in HTML, to write a novel, to publish research or to just have a homepage on the web. Remember to wisely choose your purpose, as the content of a page will be judged by the implied purpose. If you choose well and stick to the purpose, your page will be a good page.
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Decide the content of the page
When deciding the content of the page, keep in mind the prospective audience. The content should support the purpose of the web page. If the content does not go along with the purpose, then the content should not added. This applies to graphics and other media effects. Remember not to make the page too long. If your purpose is to write a novel then you should break up the chapters onto different pages. Other factors to keep in mind when deciding what content should appear on the web page: the size of the files; the more information that appears on a web page the longer it takes a browser to download the page for viewing; and not all browsers have the capabilities to view multimedia effects and graphics. Some technologies to implement multimedia effects in web pages include Adobe Flash and JavaScript.
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Design the page
The processes of designing a web page are establishing a layout, and determining interactivity of the selected content. The design is the plan for the web page. When laying out the content, make sure it is clear, aesthetically pleasing, and the placement serves the purpose. Plan how the intractability will function and change the page. You can plan by drawing out how the page will look and writing down how the dynamic elements will function. Keep in mind that your set up must be "loose". What this means is that different browsers will display pages differently. Design by generality and groups not by absolute positions. There is no such thing as an absolute position on the web. The elements of a page will stay as groups but how those groups will be displayed is determined by the individual browsers. Monitor size also influences how a web page will look.
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Build the page
After designing the web page, the plan must be built. There are two different ways to construct your html page.
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HTML Editors
The first method that can be used to construct a web page is to use an HTML editor. There are many HTML editors on the market. Some examples are Macromedia Dreamweaver, Microsoft Front Page, Microsoft Word's HTML saving extension and many more. These editors are called WYSIWYG editors. WYSIWYG stands for What-You-See-Is-What-You-Get. These editors create the pages based on how the objects are laid out on the editor screen. These editors are good for people who do not know HTML coding. They provide an expedient non-technical means to create web pages. The drawback is that they do not write proper coding. The HTML code generated by the editors causes the page to look good on the proprietors' software browser and may not look as good on other Internet browsers. Also it is very difficult to alter the code without the editor in the future. Thus adding dynamic page elements to the page becomes very difficult.
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HTML Coding
The other option is to develop web pages using a standard text editor, like Notepad, and code the page your self. This method allows a knowledgeable person the ability to create dynamic and correctly coded web pages that work on all platforms. The drawback to this approach is that the person must be knowledgeable about HTML and have the time to code the web page. The following links provide more information on how to code in HTML:
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Test your page.
After coding or generating the page, it should be tested in many different browsers. Make sure that the web page will appear as expected. Make sure all aspects of the page function properly in the different browsers.
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Upload the page upon the server
If the page passes these tests it is ready to be uploaded to the server. This means transferring the html and associated graphic files to the server computer. Uploading to the server puts the page out onto the World Wide Web. The directions to upload personal pages onto the web are located in the How-to Guides section of this web site.
Written By Kenneth Fly, HSC IS Webmaster April 1998, Updated March 2007