Hi: I am really a beginner and can only put small bits of time into my first Web Page. I have two questions that will help me as I learn.

I don't know HTML and certainly plan to learn. That said I would like to build my first site using the Visual Editor method. I read that one should not use HTML with this...one or the other. If I tried to use bits of HTML as I learned in the Code Editor page what would happen to my page created with the Visual Editor.? Would I be messing up my page made with the Visual Editor or are small amounts OK to use ( I am very visual and want to ease myself into using HTML)?

My second question may seem like a leap but my site will feature antiques and there will be lots of images of course. Some sites use a product like Zoomify (http://www.zoomify.com/) to present them. Using the Visual Editor, can I somehow add this program to my site and if so how would it be done. I guess this procedure applies to any program that one would like to use so learning how to install it into my site would help me greatly going forward.

If anyone can answer either of these two questions for me it would be most appreciated.
Thank you so very much, Ed

First question, you can certainly add bits of html using the html tool that comes integrated into the program. I don't know why someone would say not to use it. I think it would be hard to create a good page without using some.

Second question, most apps like this one render a code for you that you simply plug into your page. If you are using VSD, then you would likely use the html or flash tool that is provided.

Hi:

Thank you for answering my questions. I actually plan on working with the Visual Editor in The HTML editor as opposed to the VSD. Would I use the same approach to adding the new Application in the Visual Editor.? I don' t know how really. Is there a tutorial on how to do this sort of thing that you can recommend? Thanks again, Ed

You'll see many posts here cautioning against switching back and forth between the Visual and HTML modes of the HTML Editor. This is because changes must be made to the code when you change from one mode to the other, and the more times you do it, the more likely it is that something will get screwed up.

I have personally not tried to do it, as I saw the cautionary note within the editor the very first time I was tempted to change from HTML to Visual mode, and decided against it.

I think you learn more about web page design by 'doing it the hard way' in HTML. The editor takes a lot of pain out of it for you, though, as it will facilitate adding links and images, and formatting text, all with a click or two of the mouse. And you see the tags appear in the editor window -- which is how you learn what HTML code looks like. WYSWYG editors lay out pages in a very different way, which is more difficult to interpret, mainly because you're not used to looking at code.

My opinion is that it is also easier to integrate 3rd party scripts -- and applications such as the one you've mentioned -- into a page that's been built with an HTML editor rather than a visual one.

But I've been wrong before...

Thank you: The heart is willing but the mind ... Going to be a challenge I guess. ;)Ed

I just checked the HTML Editor. I never use the Visual Editor bit so had to check...but it looks like you can't add any html code with that editor, so if you need to add code its better to go with the HTML Code Editor side and stick with it...don't switch between the two or use the Visual Site Designer which will let you add some HTML code if you use the special box.

If you are wanting to learn HTML though I'd go with the HTML Editor and use the Preview Tab to check what each change does. Some people use the editor and preview in split screens but I find that distracting so just toggle between the two.

I agree through personal experience, that to switch between the visual and html editors can have "disastrous" results, but what I think it can do is help a non-coder a lot by demonstrating what happens behind the scenes.

So if you do a series of things in the visual editor, and between each new addition to your page (a table, an image, a background colour etc.etc) you switch over to the html editor and see what has happened. Make sure you check every time you add something new to keep track of the new code you add each time.

Hopefully, given a little time, you will then become more confident with your hand coding and will no longer need to go back and forth between editors.

A warning though - the changes you make in the visual editor will not incorporate css into your code, so my suggestion would be, if you really want to learn and keep your coding as near to acceptable W3C standards as possible, try to learn some css in parallel to the html code.

Personally I try to preview in a full browser rather than the preview. It takes a little longer, but it gives a truer picture of how your page is developing. For that reason I have installed 5 browsers on my computer (IE, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Opera) to see how my page behaves in each of them. I hope you have plenty of hair because you will be pulling a lot out when you see what happens in the different browsers! Luckily we can now depend a bit more on standardized viewing, but not always!