What do you use?

I use a combination of Dreamweaver (for WYSIWYG) and Homesite (for hand-coding) - I'll ususally set-up the basic layout in DW and clean up in HS.

What you have to keep in mind though, is that any program will generate bad code if you don't know what you're doing. In DW, for example, there's nothing stopping you from nesting tables 6 deep, or applying font styles when you should be using CSS, or using layers when you should be using tables (or, even worse, starting with layers and converting to tables...)

I use edit pad, its a freeware text editor, way better than notepad as you can have over 500 files open in it at one time (and i have), has search and replace, convert to upper, lower, or sentence case, has auto lining ...

To time taken to fully understand a WYGIWYS editor you could have larnt html, so I personaly dont see the point in editors.

If I'm doing a site that has a lot of images, tables, line breaks, layers or whatever, I use a handy program called typeitin, it just sits on your desktop and you add in whatever macros (text,code bits) you want, press the button of the one you want and it displays in your file (email, graphics program or whatever), was great when i was doing an old graphic site I had, different have to keep adding copyright notices, or table or image tags.

try a few ways, find one you feel comfortable with and go for it, but knowing at least the basics of HTML is a must

you can also look at this forum http://www.webmaster-forums.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=16847

This thread is branching on another thread that had some really good advice. I cant find it though!

Anyway, I would stress that the best way to start out and learn is to code in notepad or something similar. The strength of homesite etc is that with wysywig editors you can cut down development time with them. This is done by using shortcuts and auto features etc.

BUT

I firmly believe that I am a better coder simply because I learnt how to sript and write in html Javascript etc before i went into a wysiwig environment. Otherwise I think I would have been a lazy coder, and not fully understood what the editors like Homesite were doing.

I now use Homesite, and it makes my life so much easier.

i started with frontpage as well, but as you said it creates a lot of bugs, and it's not flexible when it comes to design.
now i use dreamweaver for most of the time, though i have always to clean up my html with notepad.
but i am not like the others, i believe hand coding everything is a waste of time.
i learnt what i need to know just by using (WYSIWYG) editors.

I believe that this is the thread that Detox was referring too.

Which HTML editor do you use?

It is rather large and offers some great advise.

Thanks disaster-master

Check that thread out, it has grown over time but it has a lot of good stuff in it.

Yes, it does have some good advice and links!

I started out using Note Pad, hand-coding got to be a pain though...I still use it sometimes.

I currently use, DW Ultra Dev 4. And of course notepad.

I have used DW 3 and 4 and FP 98 and FP 2000 and Adobe PageMill.

For what I do, DW is easy for me. I like the split screen so I can preview it.

I also use Top Style Pro for my .CSS.

Sara

I could never get use to the interface of DW. When all is said and done I am probably missing out on the good things DW has going for it simply because I am a snob with regards to how it looks. That's pretty bad!

I know, I hate how you can't dock those toolbars - they're always in the way.

The way I see it there are three classes of HTML editors. There's your text editor (notepad, textpad etc.), your code editor (Homesite, Arachnophilia, First Page 2000 etc.), and your WYSIWYG. I find that the most efficient way to work is to use a combination of all three.

That is why it will probably always be HS with me as it is a really fluid working environment. Everything (pretty much) is customisable. That brings me to a question, how many of you have created your own toolbars with snippets of your own? My snippets folder is huge, the great thing is I dont have to re-invent the wheel each project. Or do that mind numbing search for that one little bit of code from previous projects...

re snippets

I use them to some degree. Common scripts, clients with regular maintenance updates, etc. Snippets belong in the "miss 'em when they're gone" department. I didn't realize how useful they were until I changed hard drives, reinstalled everyhing, and forgot to save my snippets!

Same goes for the custom toolbars.

Save the snippets! Might make a good bumper sticker

Quote: save the snippets

only problem is, people would come up to you and ask you if they were the cute furry things they saw on a documentary last year.......!

I only use editpad (text editor) but I use "snippets" (not the furry kind ) a very small stand alone program called typeitin, just add what you want, name the button and your away and the good thing is you can use this on any program where youd use text, psp, ps, chat programs, email, here, anywhere, even in editors

I use an unique combination to build my web site. I use HomeSite for coding and editing of files, but an ancient (1997, no longer updated) editor called AOLpress to format my pages. I just used it when I started out and always liked how it formatted my pages nice and neatly. I haven't had a reason to stop using it, so I still do. I had a really tough time obtaining a copy of it as it's pretty hard to find for download. But it's free, of course.

Editpad is great, I'll use MSword fro spellcheck at times, although thats a rarity nowdays.

Good old arachnophilia but not for coding - just to open up and look at the pages before publishing, find/replace, etc., I wish it had a good spell check program built in. The one it has is not all that good and take too long.

Combination of BBEdit, a powerful editor for Mac, and GoLive. Both have spellcheckers, and HTML validators.

Is BBEdit similar to Homesite? Do you know?

I use HTML-Kit

I like using 1st Page 2000 from evrsoft.com. For a free editor it is loaded with all kinds of goodies,Jscripts,perl and CGI scripts,stuff for SSI, Cold Fusion, ASP,just tons of stuff

I used 1st Page 2000 for a while before I got Homesite loaded on. It was such a resource hog though. Even worse than homesite...

1st Page a resource hog? I personally have never run into that problem with 1st Page. Only Sitebuilder from Homestead.com has ever given me any problems with resources

Started with FrontPage, now I love Notepad.

Hi,

I remember starting "web designing" using HOT DOG. It was the hottest tool available those days <- it was pretty long time ago. Then tried BackStage by Macromedia (didn't like it). Then MS introduced Front Page and it was really innovative tool the. I loved it so much back then... Until Macromedia went out with their DreamWeaver 1. Now, I am enjoying all Macromedia tools: especially DW, Fireworks and Flash, since they have changed the face of Net we know it...

Best:-)