FAQs (HTML, FrontPage, and HotMetal Pro) : The Questions and Answers

If you cannot get a link to work, what is one of the most common reasons for failure of the link?: Navigation paths to remote WWW sites are most likely case sensitive vis-a-vis the file names in your web server (UNIX systems are case sensitive). For example a link containing Index.html or Default.htm will not work if the files are stored in the web server as index.html or default.htm file names. The same problem applies to image links such as mymug.jpg versus Mymug.jpg.
Why does my text disappear to the right of the screen? This phenomenon may arise even when I use a BLOCKQUOTE tag that should indent on the right as well as the left margin.: This will happen when you have a string of characters not broken by an space. For example, a long URL address may string beyond the edge of the screen. To avoid this, use a line break <BR> tag in front of the long string of characters. Otherwise, you must add a space between the characters where you want a new line to form.
Why does my text disappear to the right of the screen? This phenomenon may arise even when I use a BLOCKQUOTE tag that should indent on the right as well as the left margin.: This will happen when you have a string of characters not broken by an space. For example, a long URL address may string beyond the edge of the screen. To avoid this, use a line break <BR> tag in front of the long string of characters. Otherwise, you must add a space between the characters where you want a new line to form.
How can lines be spaced more like single spacing than double spacing?: Lines will be closer together if you use the <BR> line break tag instead of the <P> paragraph tag.
Why do my links to names take me to the document ending or beginning rather than to the target names?: There can be several reasons. Most likely, you are not using the same name for the link and the target. For example, if the link is to the name JavaScript and the target is named JavaScript1, then the link will not work. Another problem might be the failure to use the # sign in the link. The # sign is not used in the target name, but in the link a # symbol must preceed the name. For example, suppose the target is named JavaScript1. Then the link should have the # symbol as shown below:
readhttp://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/245glosf.htm#JavaScript1
What is the difference between a "frame" in a word processor and a "frame" in a HTML document?: The differences are becoming less since word processors like Microsoft Word are doing away with word processing "frames" in their latest versions. In Word 97 there are no longer authoring options for frames like there were in earlier viersions of word (you now must use a combination of Picture inserts and text boxes instead of one easy to use frame insert). This is largely due to making word processors more like web authoring tools and the inability of HTML editors to covert word processing frames into HTML frames.

In the past, a frame in a word processor file such as a Version 6 Microsoft Word DOC file is an embedded object in a document. That "frame" could hold text and graphics images such as pictures. Frames in this context were very useful for positioning frame contents on a printed page and resizing of pictures by simply clicking and dragging on the handle at the lower right corner of the frame. In a DOC file, frames can hold both text and images.

A framing page (doucment) in HTML is a file that cannot contain any text or images (although it will appear that its frames hold text and images because of the links to other pages that appear within the frames). Instead, a framing page is a web pate for the FRAMESET tags that specify the size and arrangement of frames that will hold other pages (documents) in each frame.

A HTML frame is quite different from a DOC frame. A HTML "frame" creates a separate window in a browser screen that can contain a HTML document. Two or more HTML frames may be created to simultaneously view multiple HTML documents on one screen (complete with a scroll bar on each frame). Screens may be split into horizontal or vertical frames containing separate documents. For example, an upper frame may contain a document with many technical terms embedded in text. A lower frame may contain a glossary such that when a reader sees a term in the upper window it is possible to look up the definition of the term in the lower frame. A HTML frame is like a separate browser in that readers can link to other documents in one frame while holding the document fixed in another frame.
How can I add paragraphs, pictures, and headers inside a frame?: This is a trick question! Frames act like a sub-browser rather than a document. You can only add documents to frames. To add a document to a frame, select that frame. If you are using HotMetal Pro, go to the HotMetal Pro menu choices (Tool, Frame Editor) and click on (Source, Browse). If you are using FrontPage Editor, designate the default frame for a document as follows:

A target frame specifies a frame in which pages referenced by hyperlinks are displayed. When you set the default target frame, any hyperlinks on the page that do not have target frames directly associated with them will be associated with the default target frame.

1. While the page is open in the FrontPage Editor, select File: Page Properties.

2. In the Default Target Frame field in the General tab, type the name of the default target frame.

3. Click OK.

It is usually best to type in the entire URL such as http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen . Then the frame will open up with the document requested in the URL. The one exception where you may add paragraphs, pictures, and headers inside a frame is when you put them after a NOFRAMES tag. However, these items will only show up if the reader's browser does not support frames. Most popular browsers support frames at this point in time so that the items placed after a NOFRAMES tag probably will not be visible to most readers.
What is the difference between the FRAMESET and NOFRAMES tags in HTML?: The FRAMESET tag reserves an entire browser screen into reserved space for frames. If there is any text in the document prior to inserting the FRAMESET tag, the (Tools, Convert to Frames) option will automatically insert the text after a NOFRAMES tag. Your problem may be that on your home computer, the browser will not read the FRAMESET tag. This happens with older versions of Netscape and many browsers other than Netscape. Netscape introduced the FRAMESET tags and not all browser vendors have upgraded for this innovation. If that happens, only the text following the NOFRAMES tag will read in those browsers. Use of some text after a NOFRAMES tag is one way to test whether the problem is in having a browser that will not read frames.
What is the difference between a HTML table and a HTML frame?: A table is embedded in a given HTML document. A HTML frame contains a HTML document. The differences are fundamental. The <TABLE> tag enables a user to format individual cells with text and/or graphics. For example, a table allows the author to neatly place a text cell next to a picture in an adjoining cell. The <FRAME> tag creates a separate window that can be sized and positioned on part of a browser screen. Multiple frames contain separate HTML documents.
How can I navigate within one frame from navigation controls in another frame? What are the major limitations of Netscape Navigator Gold and Microsoft FrontPage relative to HotMetal Pro software for creating and editing framing pages (documents)?: The HTML coding entails both a HREF anchor to the file inside the target frame and a TARGET naming the target frame. The present FAQ document is divided into three frames names "Questions," "Answers," and "Bottom." The frame named Bottom has no scroll bars. However, scroll bars are provided for the other two frames containing these FAQ questions and answers. When you click on a question in the Questions frame, the question and answer appear in the Answers frame. The navigation controls for this are contained on the questions in the Questions frame. To view the code on these controls, click on the Netscape Navigator menu choices (View, Frame Source).

As a second example, note my framed Technology Glossary at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/245gloss.htm. The top frame contains a file that has a default hyperlink written HREF="http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/245glosf.htm" TARGET="Top">. This code names the file that is in the frame named "Top". In FrontPage use the Frame Wizard to set the default hyperlinks for each frame (you must click on each frame to set a hyperlink). If you have the target document open in the FrontPage Editor, you can set the Target Frame in the dialog box of the Create Hyperlink dialog box. In HotMetal Pro use the (Tools, Frames Editor), click on a frame, and set the default hyperlink. If you have the target document open, you can use Element Attributes and set TARGET equal to the name of the frame.

You cannot create a frameset web page in Netscape Navgator Gold. Using FrontPage 97 it is only possible to do this if you first create a pain-in-the-butt FrontPage Web. In FrontPage 98 and all versions of HotMetal Pro it is very easy to create a frameset page. However, FrontPage 98 is not yet installed on any Trinity University computer lab machine, and HotMetal Pro will only be installed on a few selected machines that TUCC is selecting at the moment.
What is the difference between converting a word processor frame versus a word processor table? For example, suppose a DOC file contains both DOC tables and DOC frames. How will these look after conversion to HTML in HotMetal Pro?: First of all note that a DOC frame is not the same as a HTML frame as noted in the FAQs above. The bottom line is that DOC tables will convert into HTML tables, but DOC frames do not covert into anything but lines of text contained in those frames. Those lines of text will appear on the left margin of the converted document and will not be in the same position as the position of the text in the DOC frame. Nor will any picture in a DOC frame appear in the converted HTML file.

DOC tables that are converted will be in HTML tables, but some attributes may need touching up. For example, cells with borders in the DOC file will have no borders after conversion. However, this is not a serious problem since HotMetal Pro or any other good HTML editor will allow authors to add borders to cells or entire tables after the conversion to HTML. The contents of DOC frames, however, may have to be placed in newly formed HTML tables after the conversion.
How can I insert a HTML table between two paragraphs without having a paragraph squeeze in beside the table rather than being all above or below the table?: Paragraphs will sometimes wrap against a HTML table, especially a table aligned on the right. The solution is to put line breaks at the end of the first paragraph and the beginning of the second paragraph surrounding the inserted table. In FrontPage hold the shift key down before hitting the Enter key (this will create a line break that is not a new paragraph). You can also use menu choices (Insert, Line Break). In HotMetal Pro, click on the line break icon.
How can I change the font size from the default font sizes for heading and paragraph tags?: The heading (H) and paragraph (P) tags have default font sizes. In FrontPage you can change font size using the font increase and font decrease icons in the Format Toolbar. You can also change font style using the small arrow icon near the left side of the Format Toolbar. Font size can be changed in HotMetal Pro by clicking the the arrow beside the "Size" icon in the Common HTML Toolbar (usually the second toolbar). If you want to repeatedly change the font by the same magnitude, you can choose the magnitude with the arrow botton and, thereafter, click on the size icon without having to choose the size change with the arrow button.

The HTML code for a small reduction in font size is FONT SIZE = "-1" whereas a larger reduction would be FONT SIZE = "-2".

How should I cite quotations in web pages?

Rules are generally the same for web pages and printed pages. In addition, web pages should include the URL if you are citing a web page. Note that since it is common for users to print web pages, you should type the entire URL rather than just provide the hyperlink. . One good link to begin with is http://www.trinity.edu/departments/maddux_library/citations.html. For my students, I require that they they note every quotation's complete source and link to a document that gives its complete source. If you have quoted from a document on the WWW, type (or copy) its complete URL and then hyperlink this URL phrase to the site itself. It is important that the entire URL show up on printed copy. This means that you should note merely link to the cite. You must also type in the complete URL for printed documents that do not have links. An example quotation for HEB is given below (with the citation in bold and linked):

H-E-B currently employs 42,000 Partners in Store Operations, Manufacturing, Distribution, Transportation, and Administration. We refer to our employees as Partners because we are all members of the same team working toward a common goal: To be the best retailing Partners in the world!
The above quotation is from a document linked to the HEB Home Page, October 1996. Click here for link to the source at the URL http://www.austinheb.com:80/jobs.htm

How can I avoid FTP using TUCC8 from my dorm room?

David Thornton wrote the following helpful hints regarding how to avoid FTP transfers on TUCC8

If you find the FTP program too cumbersome and you are connected to trinity's network in your dorm room, you can copy files to your directory on TUCC8. win workgroups 3.11 instructions (modify where needed for 95, etc)

1. go to file manager
2. disk/connect network drive
3. tucc\TUCC8\users
(4. you may need to log in at this point. just enter your name and password for TUCC8.)
5. choose under TUCC8\users and scroll down until you see your name. copy any files to your directory HTML. you may already see the images directory.

How can I add a caption to a HTML table without using the paragraph or heading tags? What is the advantage of a caption vis-a-vis using header tags or paragraph tags?: Immediately following the TABLE tag, insert the CAPTION tag. In the FrontPage Editor, move the insertion point inside the table. Note You can also select the table, or a cell, row, or column. Choose Table: Insert Caption. FrontPage inserts a caption above the first row of the table.

In HotMetal Pro you can do this by inserting the cursor after the TABLE tag and then choosing the menu choices (Markup, Insert Element). Alternately, you can click on the Insert Element icon in the Standard Toolbar. Between the CAPTION and /CAPTION tags you can type a caption that will be centered on the top of the table. The main advantage the CAPTION tag is that the width of the caption adjusts (with word wrapping) to the width of the table such that the caption is never wider than the table itself.
What is the ALT tag in HTML?: Chis Nolan writes: This is from the online help file that accompanies WebEdit 2.0, the editor I use, under its description of IMAGE options: ALT (Alternate text) - Optional alternative text as an alternative to the graphics for display in text-only environments. The alt text can contain entities e.g. for accented characters or special symbols, but it can't contain markup. The latter is possible, however, with the FIG element. One of the online HTML documentation guides lists it, too: http://www.utoronto.ca/webdocs/HTMLdocs/NewHTML/image.html
How can I set the left, center, or right alignment of a HTML table?: In FrontPage you can simply set the table alignment using the Table Dialog Box.; In HotMetal Pro you cannot set a table's alignment in the Table Properties Dialog Box.; If you have not yet declared your table, the first thing to do is to use the HotMetal Pro Insert Element option and insert a CENTER tag under the Center Text option for inserting elements. Then place the TABLE tags inside the <CENTER> and </CENTER> tags. If you have already have a table declared that you want to center, insert the CENTER tags as described above. Then cut your table (which will store it on the clipboard) and paste it inside the <CENTER> and </CENTER> tags.

What is the LOW attribute following a SRC image tag? Why is it useful to have such a tag on large JPEG compressed images?

Small, low resolution images load into browser screens quickly. This is not the case with large, high-resolution pictures, especially JPEG images. It is frustrating to have to sit and wait while a large image slowly chunks small sections of a onto the screen. JPEG graphics cannot be interlaced, but there is a switching trick for the Netscape Navigator browser that that allows users to load the a small, low resolution image version of the larger image. Netscape Navigator will load the small image and then stretch it up to the full 350 x 480 size. It will then load the large, high resolution image into the same area. Authors must have two images and use code such as the code illustrated below:

<IMG SRC= "BigPicture.jpg" LOW SRC="LittlePicture.gif" HEIGHT="350" WIDTH="480">

Suppose you want a hyperlink to open a page (document) in a new window. What is the difference for opening a new window in FrontPage versus HotMetal Pro?

Opening a new window is done with a TARGET HTML tag. However, setting a new window target is confusing since the commands for a new window differ in FrontPage versus HotMetal Pro. In FrontPage a new window is opened by typing Parent in the Target Frame line of a Create Hyperlink dialog box. In HotMetal Pro, you type New Window in the Attribute Properties dialog box of a hyperlink.

What is the best way to start a FrontPage Web using an existing file called 0index.htm?

In the FrontPage Explorer do not open a new web. Instead, click on (File, Import) and import 0index.htm as the only file. Later you can import other files if they are to be used in this FrontPage Web.

What is the difference between the sizing of frames in FrontPage versus HotMetal Pro?

In FrontPage, you create a frame in the Frames Wizard. When you see the frames images, you can click on the lines between frames and drag the two-headed arrow in one direction or another to physically make frames shrink or grow. There is no way in FrontPage to request that a give frame fill up a specified percentage of the screen. In HotMetal Pro you cannot click an drag frame sizes, but you can specify what percentage of the screen is taken up by each frame. You can do this with the menu choices (Tools, Frame Editor).

FrontPage will only allow me to use the Frames Wizard (in the FrontPage Editor) on frames that I created new or were created previously by the Frames Wizard. How can I edit the frames of a framing page (document) that was not created by the Frames Wizard (e.g., a framing document created by HotMetal Pro or Netscape Navigator Gold)?

You cannot use FrontPage in any way to edit a framing page (document) that was not originally created in the Frames Wizard. You can open that page in the FrontPage Editor, but you cannot perform any edits. In other words, you must either recreate the framing page (document) in the Frames Wizard or edit the old page in another editor such as HotMetal Pro or Netscape Navigator Gold.

Actually, you may encounter problems launching the Frames Wizard on a framing page that was initilly launched using the Frames Wizard. Microsoft has not done a good job in making the Frames Wizard launch on a pre-existing framing page of any type. It is probably best to have Netscape's Navigator Gold or SoftQuad's HotMetal Pro or or Adobe Page Mill or some other HTML editor available for changing framing pages (documents).

Note that users can change frame sizes on their own in a web browser. They should drag the mouse over the border of a frame until they see a two-headed arrow. Then they can drag a frame to a smaller or larger size.

How can I get framing pages (documents) to preview in a broswer when I am in the FrontPage Editor?

It all depends upon whether the framing page was created in the Frames Wizard of the FrontPage Editor. If it was not created by the Frames Wizard, you can open the htm file and click on (File, Preview in a Browser). If it was created in the Frames Wizard, open a browser and click on (File, Open File in Browser).

In web pages of other people I can often click on a files with extensions mdb (Microsoft Access), xls (Microsoft Excel), doc (Microsoft Word), tbk (Asymetrix Toolbook), and similar files and have them automatically download into my computer. When I look at the source code in my browser, these downloads simply have a relative link to those files. But when I try to do the same thing with my files so that web users can download my files, the same relative links will not work. Why is this?

The problem is probably not with your HTML code. Automatic download capabilities require special configurations of your web server. Contact the web master for your server and see if it is possible to configure that server to solve this problem.

In web pages of other people I can often click on a files with extensions tbk (Asymetrix ToolBook), xls (Microsoft Excel), doc (Microsoft Word), and similar files and have them automatically read as a browser plugin or APP in my computer. For example, ToolBooks will read in the Neuron plugin and Macromedia Director files will read in a Shockwave plugin. When I look at the source code in my browser, these downloads simply have a relative link to those files. But when I try to do the same thing with my files so that web users can read these files in browser plugins or APPs, the same relative links will not work. Why is this?

The problem is probably not with your HTML code. Plugin and APP capabilities sometimes (not always as in the case of Adobe Acrobat) require special configurations of your web server. Contact the web master for your server and see if it is possible to configure that server to solve this problem.

When using Microsoft FrontPage Editor, I cannot import large HTML files that are easily read in other browsers such as HotMetal Pro or Netscape Navigator Gold. Or I can be creating a new web page my text disappears or I discover that the scroll bar does not function as expected in the Web browser. What is wrong with Microsoft FrontPage in this regard?

The answer at the time of this writing is contained at http://www.microsoft.com/kb/articles/q170/6/24.htm

An email message is reproduced below:

Hi Again Jim,

Thanks for the web link that I did not know about. A quote from that link reads:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CAUSE

FrontPage 97 Editor does not have internal data structures large enough to accurately handle very large documents.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have tried to break large files into small files and them add them up in series on a single FrontPage document. That type of "break up and re-assemby" will not work. I guess what Microsoft is saying by "break up" is that you cannot have large FrontPage documents of any kind that are perfectly feasible in other editors such and HotMetal and Gold. The Microsoft solution (splitting large documents into a series of linked small documents) would be terriby inconvenient for large files such as those liste below:

Glossary: http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/245glosf.htm

Survey: http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/survey1.htm

If long files such as those above have to be broken into smaller files (pages), it will be cumbersome for users to conduct local document (page) searches with the browser's "Find" button. Instead of doing one search, users would have to conduct a series of searches on smaller files --- added and pain and delays that are not necessary. Making searches simple for multiple documents entails authoring a search Bot. This is a pain in the ___ since browsers all have Find button or its equivalent for single longer documents.

I think Microsoft has a big file problem relative to its competition. But given the fact that there is still some (maybe short term) lingering competition means that Microsoft will probably move faster on solving this problem in FrontPage.

The best solution at the moment is to either not use FrontPage or to use FrontPage for small documnents and invest in a better HTML web authoring system for larger documents.

Thanks,

Bob Jensen

************************************************************************************
>Bob,
>
>I'm not sure if you have already checked Microsoft's web site for
>product support, but the following link may be of interest to you in
>regards to the problems you are having. It seems as if Microsoft is
>aware of the problem, but hasn't yet come up with a solution except to
>recommend that you break the file up into smaller files.
>
>http://www.microsoft.com/kb/articles/q170/6/24.htm
>
>Good luck!
>
>Jim Borden
>Villanova University
>
>*******************************************************************************

Dear Dr. J-
What is the deal with the space bar and the Tab key in an HTML editor? How
come I can't seem to use them?

Welcome to HTML editors. No HTML tags are created by the tab key and no blank spaces are created with the spacebar. To tab you must use the increase/decrease indent icons in FrontPage or use (Insert, Element, Blockquote) in HotMetal. This is easier in Microsoft FrontPage.

I've never figured out how to creat multiple blank spaces between any two characters on a single line. You can, of course, be innovative with tables that have text in two cells with padding in a blank cell that separates the two text cells. If you have no border on the table, users wonder how you created that nice blank space.

Other good FAQ sites

Use the search term FAQs in my bookmarks document at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/bookbob.htm#WWW2 for a listing of other sites for FAQs. (This will open in a new browser window.)