Writing HTML

A poem has form, structure, language, content, setup, resolution. A novel has all that as well as a middle, an beginning and an end. Writing HTML code is very much like all of that. The language is externally defined, but if you're good enough you can make words up. If you're clever enough, you can reference other languages such as Perl or Java. And unlike either of the above writing types, you can self-publish and get world-wide distribution. Fame and fortune is then just a hop, skip and a jump away (not to mention a link onslashdot).

Just as few novel writers can be succesful without training and few poets can get published without practise, writing good HTML needs assistance. Here's a few places I've turned to.

Now, just as a poet can write with a pen-cut goose feather and a novelist can write with an HB pencil, it doesn't mean they have to. From typewriters to vocoders, writers that have mastered their craft have used a wide variety of advanced tools to implement their vision. So too in the world of writing HTML. You can use the little text editor that came with your computer (I've written HTML with my email client on occasion), but once you understand your craft, other tools can make parts of your life much easier. Here are some ot the "advanced" tools I have used, in increasing rank of hand-holding.

I personally like the combination of BBEdit and Dreamweaver.