Skriv hjemmesider med Composer
Oprettelse af en ny side
Composer er en HTML (Hypertext Markup Language)-editor der giver dig
mulighed for at oprette og redigere websider. Composer er en WYSIWYG
(What You See Is What You Get) editor, så du kan se hvordan din
side vil tage sig ud på nettet, mens du skriver den. Det er ikke
nødvendigt at du kender til HTML, da de fleste
grundlæggende HTML-funktioner er tilgengelige fra
værktøjslinjerne og menuerne. Men, Composer lader dig
også redigere direkte i HTML koden hvis det er nødvendigt.
For at oprette en webside, kan du bruge en af de
fremgangsmåder der er beskrevet herunder. Når du har staeret
en side kan du tilføje og redigere teksten i den ligesom du kan i
et normalt tekstbehandlingsprogram.
Hvis du vil oprette en ny side fra Navigator browseren:
- Åbn menuen Filer, vælg Ny(t), og vælg
Composer-side. Så åbnes et nyt Composer vindue med en
blank side.
Hvis du vil redigere den side du ser i Navigator:
- I Navigator-vinduet skal du vælge Filer-menuen og
Redigér siden. Så kommer der et Composer-vindue med den
side du kigger på.
Hvis du vil lave en ny side i Composer:
- Tryk på knappen Ny(t) på Composers
værktøjslinje.
Hvis du vil arbejde videre på en HTML-side der ligger
på din lokale harddisk:
- Åbn menuen Vindue og vælg Composer. Så
åbnes et Composer-vindue.
- Åbn menuen Filer og vælg Åbn fil... Så
kommer du ind i dialogboksen Åbn HTML-fil.
- Find frem til den fil du ønsker at redigere. Og marker den.
- Klik Åbn for at få vist filen i dit Composer-vindue.
Tip: Du kan også åbne JavaScript-filer, og
redigere dem i Composer.
Redigér en web-side:
- Åbn menuen Vindue og vælg Navigator.
- Gå til den side du vil redigere. Fx ved at skrive adressen
i adressefeltet, ( www.mozilla.org) og trykke Enter.
- Når du har den side du vil redigere åben, åbner
du menuen Filer og vælger Redigér siden.
Note: Vær opmærksom på at når du
gemmer siden er det kun HTML-delen af siden der gemmes lokalt på
harddisken. Andre filer såsom billeder og lydfiler gemmes
ikke. Hvis et billede er indsat med et statisk link (starter med
"http://") og du er forbundet til internettet, vil du stadig
kunne se det billede i dokumentet i Navigator og Composer.
Tip: I Composer-vinduet kan du hurtigt åbne de seneste
filer du har arbejdet med ved at åbne menuen Filer, vælge
Seneste filer og vælge den fil du vil arbejde med fra listen.
[ Tilbage til starten af sektionen. ]
Gem og se din nye side
Du kan gemme de sider du laver i Composer i enten HTML- eller rent
tekst-format. Gemmer du et dokument i HTML-format bevares dokumentets
formatering og opsætning fx tekststil (fed, kursiv, skrifttype
osv.), tabeller, links og billeder. Gemmer du i rent tekstformat
fjernes alle HTML-mærker fra teksten, men selve teksten bevares.
For at gemme som HTML-fil:
For at ændre filnavnet eller placeringen af en eksisterende
HTML-fil:
- Vælg Gem som og skriv et andet filnavn eller angiv en anden
placering.
For at gemme som ren tekstfil:
- Åbn menuen Filer og vælg Eksportér som tekst.
- Skriv et filnavn og hvor filen skal gemmes.
Tip: Du kan vælge Vend tilbage til sidst gemte i menuen
Filer, hvis du vil vende tilbage til den sidst gente udgave af den fil
du arbejder med. Vær opmærksom på at alle
ændringer siden sidst du gemte mistes.
Note: Billeder vises ikke i dokumenter der er gemt som ren
tekstformat.
For at se din side i et browservindue for at kunne teste dine links:
- Åbn menuen Filer og vælg Gennemse side (ellert klik
på Webvisning på Kompositionsværktøjslinjen).
Hvis du endnu ikke har gemt siden bliver du spurgt om en titel, et
filnavn og en placering til siden. Composer-vinduet forbliver
åbent bag det nye Navigator-vindue.
[ Tilbage til starten af denne sektion ]
Formatering af websider
Formatér afsnit, overskrifter og lister
Vil du angive formatet for et afsnit begynder du i Composer-vinduet:
- Klik i i det afsnit du vil formatere (så markøren
står der), eller marker den tekst du vil formatere.
- Vælg indstillinger for afsnitttet fra menuerne på
værktøjslinjen Formatér:
- Alm. tekst: Indsætter programmets
standardskrifttype og -stil for almindelig tekst. Mellemrum
før og efter teksten ændres ikke.
- Overskrift 1 - Overskrift 6: Formaterer
afsnittet som overskrift. Overskrift 1 er det højeste
overskriftsniveau (hovedoverskrift), mens Overskrift 6 er den mest
underordnede.
- Afsnit: Indsætter et P-mærke (brug dette
til at begynde et nyt afsnit). Afsnitstypografien har også
indflydelse på afstanden til foregående og
efterfølgende afsnit.
- Adresse: Kan bruget til sidens "underskrift" med
oplysninger om den person der har skrevet siden og som man kan få
flere oplysninger hos fx
nørd@domæne.dk
Du kan også indsætte oplysninger om fx dato og ophavsret.
Denne formatering bruges mest i bunden af sider under en vandret linje.
Navigator viser afsnit formateret som adresse med kursivskrift.
- Præformateret: Dette er nyttigt til
kodeeksempler, kolonnedata, postmeddelelser og andet du ønsker
vist med en skrifttype med fast bredde. I normal tekst, fjerner
de fleste browsere ekstra mellemrum, tabuleringer og linjeskift.
Hvorimod tekst det er markeret som Præformateret bevarer layoutet
af den originale tekst med ekstra mellemrum og det hele.
- Blokcitat: Vælg denne formatering for at
indrykke den markerede tekst i både højre og venstre side.
For at formatere tekst som overskrift:
- Klik for at placere markøren i den tekst der skal
være overskrift.
- Brug menuerne i Formateringslinjen. Vælg det
overskriftsniveau du vil formatere teksten som mellem 1 (størst)
og 6 (mindst). Vælg fx "Overskrift 1" til hele sidens
overskrift, "Overskrift 2" til afsnitsoverskrifter, "Overskrift 3" til
underafsniteoverskrifter osv.
For at oprette et listepunkt:
- Placer markøren i den tekstlinje du vil lave til et punkt
i en liste.
- Åbn menuen Formatér og vælg liste.
- Vælg hvilket listeformat den skal have:
- Med punkttegn: Hvert punkt markeres af et punkttegn
(prik) før teksten (som i denne liste).
- Nummereret: Hvert listepunkt er nummereret.
- Term og Definition: Disse to formateringer
bruges sammen og laver en ordbogsagtig opstilling af ord og
ordforklaringer. Brug Term-mærket til det ord der skal
defineres og Definition-mærket til forklaringen/definitionen.
Teksten i Term vises helt til venstre og definitionen bliver rykket
ind.
Tip: Du kan hurtigt lave en tekstblok om til en liste ved at
markere den og trykke på enten Nummereret liste
eller Med punkttegn
på Formateringslinjen.
For at ændre stil på punkttegn eller numre:
- Placer markøren i teksten på det menupunkt du vil
ændre stil på, eller marker et eller flere punkter i
listen, hvis du vil ændre stil på hele listen.
- Åbn Format-menuen og vælg Listeegenskaber...
- Vælg en nummereret eller unummereret stil fra listen. For
nummererede lister kan du også vælge et startnummer. For
unummererede lister kan du endvidere ændre punkttegnenes
udseende.
For at justere et afsnit eller en tekst på siden, fx centrere,
venstre- eller højrejustere den:
- Placer markøren i det afsnit eller den tekst du vil angive
justeringen for.
- Tryk på menupunktet Formatér og vælg
Justering. Vælg derfra en passende justering.
Note: Du kan også angive tekstjustering
på formateringslinjen.
[ Tilbage til starten af sektionen ]
Arbejd med lister
For at afslutte en liste og fortsætte med almindelig tekst:
- Placer markøren ved enden af det sidste punkt i listen og
tryk Enter.
- Tryk Enter igen. Hver gang du trykker på Enter afslutter
Composer et listeniveau.
For at lave mere end et listepunkt til almindelig tekst:
- Placer markøren i er listepunkt eller marker et
listepunkt.
- Klik på knappen Nummereret liste (eller unummereret hvis
det er en unummereret liste) på formateringslinjen. Knappen
slår listen fra og til.
For at placere indrykket tekst under et listepunkt:
- Placer markøren i et listepunkt.
- Tryk Shift-Enter for at lave en hængende indrykning.
- Skriv den tekst der skal stå indrykket.
- Tryk Shift-Enter for at oprette et nyt indrykket afsnit eller
tryk Enter for at gå videre med at oprette det næste
listepunkt.
For at slå to adskilte lister sammen:
- Marker de to lister du vil slå sammen. Vær sikker
på at du har markeret alle punkter i begge lister. Vær
opmærksom på at al tekst mellem de to lister også
kommer med som punkter i den nye liste.
- Doubeltklik på nummereret eller unummereret liste på
formateringslinjen.
Tip: Du kan forøge eller formindske indrykningen af
listepunkterne ved at trykke på knapperne indryk og afindryk
på formateringslinjen.
[ Tilbage til begyndelsen af denne
sektion ]
Ændring af tekstens farve, stil og skrifttype
For at ændre stil, farve og skrifttype på en markeret
tekst:
- Marker den tekst du vil formatere.
- Åbn Format-menuen og vælg en af følgende:
- Skrifttype: Brug dette til at vælge en skrifttype.
Hvis du foretrækker at bruge de skrifttyper der angivet i
brugerens browser kan du nøjes med at vælge Variabel
bredde eller Fast bredde.
Note: Det er ikke alle skrifttyper der er installeret
på din computer der er med på listen. Istedet for at
vælge en skrifttype der måske ikke er installeret på
brugernes maskine, er det som regel mere fornuftigt at vælge en
af dem der er med på listen, da disse skrifttyper findes på
de fleste computere. Som eksempler kan nævnes skrifttyperne
Helvetica, Arial, Times, og Courier generelt ser ens ud på de
fleste computere. Hvis du vælger en mere speciel skrifttype ser
den meget sansynligt anderledes ud på andres computere.
- Størrelse: Brug dette til at vælge en relativ
skriftstørrelse, eller vælg en mulighed for at
forstørre eller formindske tekststørrelsen (i forhold til
den omgivende tekst).
- Tekststil: Brug dette til at vælge om teksten skal
skrives med kursiv, fed eller skal understreges, eller til at
vælge en struktureret stil fx Kode.
- Tekstfarve: Brug dette til at vælge en farve med
en farvevælger. Hvis du er fortrolig med HTML-farvekoder kan
du også skrive en præcis farvekode, eller bare det engelske
navn på den farve du vil have fx "blue" for blå.
Tip: Hvis du hurtigt vel ændre farven på en tekst
til den sidst brugte farve, skal du bare markere den og holde Shift
nede mens du klikker på farvevælgeren. DEt er nyttigt hvis
man vil benytt en bestemt farve til en række adskilte linjer i
teksten.
Du kan også vælge en baggrundsfarve eller bruge et
billede som baggrund se Angiv
sidens farver og baggrunde.
[ Tilbage til begyndelsen af sektionen ]
Fjern eller afbryd en tekststil
For at fjerne alle stilangivelser (fed, kursiv osv.) fra en udvalgt
tekst:
- Marker teksten.
- Åbn Formatér-menuen og vælg Nulstil tekststil.
- Fortsæt med at skrive.
For at fortsætte skrivningen uden tekststil:
- Placer markøren hvor alle tekststilangivelser skal
afsluttes.
- Åbn Format-menuen og vælg Nulstil tekststil.
- Fortsæt med at skrive.
[ Tilbage til starten af sektionen ]
Søg og erstat tekst
For at finde tekst på den side du arbejder på i
øjeblikket:
- Anbring markøren der hvor du vil søge fra.
- Åbn menuen Redigér og vælg Søg og
erstat. Så kommer du til dialogboksen Søg og erstat.
- Skriv den tekst du vil søge efter i feltet "Find". For at
rafinere din søgning kan du afkrydse en eller flere af disse
muligheder:
- Forskel på store/små bogstaver: Brug denne
mulighed hvis til at angive om det du søger skal passe
præcist med store og små bogstaver i teksten. Skal
den passe præcist skal dette felt ikke være markeret.
- Søg i løkke: Brug denne søgning
til at søge til enden af dokumentet og så starte
forfra fra starten af dokumentet når enden nåes, eller
omvendt hvis der søges bagud i dokumentet.
- Søg bagud: Brug denne søgning til at
søge bagud mod begyndelsen af dokumentet.
- Tryk på Find næste for at begynde søgningen.
Når Composer finder den første forekomst af teksten kan du
trykke på Find næste til at finde den næste
forekomst osv.
- Tryk på Luk når du er færdig.
[ Tilbage
til starten af sektionen ]
Inserting Horizontal Lines
Horizontal lines are typically used to visually separate different
sections of a document. To insert a horizontal line (also called a rule)
in your page, begin from the Composer window:
- Click to place the insertion point where you want the line to
appear.
- Click the H. Line button
on the toolbar, or open the Insert menu
and choose Horizontal Line.
Setting Horizontal Line Properties
You can customize a line's height, length, width, alignment, and
shading.
- Double-click the line to display the Horizontal Line Properties
dialog box.
- Edit any of these properties:
- Width: Choose a measurement unit (pixels or
percentage) and type a number for the width.
- Height: Type a number for the line's height (in
pixels).
- 3-D Shading: Select this to add depth to the line by
adding a bevel shading.
- Alignment: Specify where you want to place the line
(left, center, or right).
- Click Use as Default to use these settings as the default the
next time you insert a horizontal line.
- To manually edit the properties of a horizontal line, click
Advanced Edit. See the section, Advanced
Property Editor, for details.
Tip: You can select "Show All Tags" from the View menu to
show all the HTML elements in yellow boxes. You can double-click any
yellow box to display the Advanced Property
Editor dialog box.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Inserting Special Characters
To insert special characters such as accent marks, copyrights, or
currency symbols:
- Click to place the insertion point where you want the special
character to appear.
- Open the Insert menu and choose Characters and Symbols. You see
the Insert Character dialog box.
- Select a category of characters.
- If you choose Accent Uppercase or Accent Lowercase, then open
the Letter drop-down list and select the letter you wish to apply an
accent to. (Note: not all letters have accented forms.) Select
Common Symbols to insert special characters such as copyright
symbols or fractions.
- From the Character drop-down list, select the character you want
to insert.
- Click Insert.
You can continue typing in your document (or in a mail compose
window) while you keep this dialog box open, in case you want to use it
again.
- Click Close when you are done inserting special characters.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Inserting HTML Elements and Attributes
If you understand how to work with HTML source code, you can insert
additional tags, style attributes, and JavaScript into your page. If you
are not sure how to work with HTML source code, it's best not to
change it. To work with HTML code, use one of these methods:
- Place the insertion point where you want to insert the HTML code,
then open the Insert menu and choose HTML. In the Insert HTML dialog
box, enter HTML tags and text, and then click Insert.
- Select an element such as a table, named anchor, image, link, or
horizontal line. Double-click the element to open the associated
properties dialog for that item. Click Advanced Edit to open the
Advanced Property Editor. You can use the Advanced Property Editor
to add HTML attributes and JavaScript to objects.
- Open the View menu, and choose HTML Source, or click the
<HTML> Source tab in the Edit Mode toolbar at the bottom of
the Composer window. (If you don't see the Edit Mode toolbar, open
the View menu and choose Toolbars; then make sure the Edit Mode
Toolbar is checked.)
Using the Advanced Property Editor
To add HTML attributes and JavaScript to objects such as tables,
images, and horizontal lines, you can use the Advanced Property
Editor.
Note: Unless you clearly understand how to add, delete, or
modify HTML attributes and their associated values, it's best not to
do so.
If you are not currently viewing the Advanced Property Editor dialog
box, follow these steps:
- From the View menu (or the Edit Mode toolbar), choose Show All
Tags.
- Double-click the object that you want to modify to open its
Advanced Property Editor. The Advanced Property Editor has three
tabs, each of which lists the current properties for the selected
object:
- HTML Attributes: Click this tab to view or enter
additional HTML attributes.
- Inline Style: Click this tab to view or enter
additional CSS (cascading style sheet) properties through the
<style> attribute.
- JavaScript Events: Click this tab to view or enter
JavaScript events.
- To edit a property or attribute any of the three lists, select
the attribute you want to edit. You can then edit the attribute's
name or value using the editable Attribute and Value fields at the
bottom of the dialog box. To add new attribute, type it in the
Attribute field at the bottom of the dialog box. The new attribute
is automatically added when you click in the Value field. To remove
an attribute, select it in the list, and click Remove Attribute.
Note: Required attributes are highlighted in the
Attribute list.
- Click OK to apply your changes to the Advanced Property Editor
dialog box.
- Click OK again to exit the Properties dialog box.
Composer automatically places quotation marks around any attribute
text.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Checking the Spelling
Unlike Netscape, Mozilla does not come with a spell checker. Since
the spell checker that is bundled with Netscape is from another company,
and is a closed source project, it cannot be included with Mozilla.
You can, however, add a spell checker to Mozilla easily, by
installing an open-source spell
checker at Mozdev.org. This project provides an "XPI" (cross
platform installable) file. Several versions of the XPI are
available, depending on which Mozilla version they work with. First
determine which Mozilla version you are using (by going to Help| About
Mozilla), and then click on the appropriate XPI link. You will be asked
to confirm that you want to install a piece of software. Click OK to
proceed. Once it has been successfully downloaded and installed, restart
Mozilla. Open Composer, and you should see the Spell button added to the
toolbar:
When you click on the "Spell" button, you should see the following
box pop up:
Make sure you select your language before you begin. Then click
Recheck Page.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Validating the HTML
Before you put your document on a web server so that others can see
it, you should first check the document's HTML formatting to make sure
it conforms to web standards. Documents containing validated HTML are
less likely to cause problems when viewed by different browsers. Just
visually checking your web pages in Navigator doesn't ensure that your
document will appear correctly when viewed in other web browsers.
Composer provides a convenient way for you to check that your
document conforms to W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) HTML standards.
Composer uses the W3C HTML Validation Service, which checks your
document's HTML syntax for correctness and provides information on how
to correct errors.
Note: You must be connected to the Internet to use this
feature.
To validate your document's HTML syntax:
- Open the Edit menu, and choose Validate HTML. If you have unsaved
changes, Composer asks you to save them before proceeding.
- When the W3C HTML Validation Service page appears, click
"Validate this document".
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Choosing the Right Editing Mode
Typically, you won't need to change the editing mode from the
default (Normal). However, if you want to work with the document's
HTML source code, you may want to change editing modes. Composer
allows you to quickly switch between four "editing modes" or views.
Each editing mode allows you to continue working on your document, but
displays varying levels of HTML tags (and tag icons).
Before you choose an editing mode:
- Open the View menu, choose Show/Hide, and then make sure there is
a checkmark next to Edit Mode Toolbar.
The Edit Mode toolbar has four tabs:
- Normal: This is the WYSIWYG editing mode, so you can
display how the document will look as you are creating it. Choose
this mode to show table borders and named anchor icons. All other
HTML tag icons are hidden.
- Show All Tags: Choose this mode to show table borders and
all HTML tag icons.
- <HTML> Source: Choose this mode to view and edit the
document as unformatted HTML source code. When you save the document,
the Normal mode reappears.
- Preview: Choose this mode to display and edit the document
exactly as it would appear in a browser window, except that links and
JavaScript functions will not be active.
Note: JavaScript functions, frames, links, and animated GIF
files are not active in any of the editing modes. To display these
items in their active state, click the Browse button on the
Composition toolbar to load the page into a browser window.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Adding Tables to Your Web Page
Inserting a Table
Tables are useful for organizing text, pictures, and data into
formatted rows and columns. To insert a table:
- Click to place the insertion point where you want the table to
appear.
- Click the Table button
on the Composition toolbar. The Insert
Table dialog box appears.
- Type the number of rows and columns you want.
- (Optional) Enter a size for the table width, and select
either pixel or percentage of the window.
- Enter a number for the border thickness (in pixels); enter zero
for no border.
Note: Composer uses a red dotted line to indicate tables
with a zero border; the dotted line disappears when the page is
viewed in a browser.
- To apply additional table attributes or JavaScript, click
Advanced Edit to display the Advanced
Property Editor.
- Click OK to confirm your settings and view your new table.
To change additional properties for your new table, see Changing a Table's Properties.
Tip: To insert a table within a table, open the
Insert menu and choose Table.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Changing a Table's Properties
This section describes how to modify properties that apply to an
entire table as well as the rows, columns, or individual cells within
a table. If you are not currently viewing the Table Properties dialog
box, follow these steps:
- Select the table, or click anywhere inside it.
- Click the Table button
on the toolbar, or open the Table menu
and choose Table Properties. The Table Properties dialog box
contains two tabs: Table and Cells.
- Click the Table tab to edit these properties:
- To apply additional attributes or JavaScript events, click
Advanced Edit to display the Advanced
Property Editor.
- Click Apply to preview your changes without closing the dialog
box, or click OK to confirm them.
To view, change, or add properties for one or more cells:
- Select the row, column, or cell, then open the Table menu and
choose Table Properties. The Table Properties dialog box appears.
- Click the Cells tab to edit the following properties:
- Selection: Choose Cell, Row, or Column from the
drop-down list. Click Previous or Next to move through rows,
columns, or cells.
- Size: Type a number for Height and Width, and then
choose "% of table" or "pixels."
- Content Alignment: Select a vertical and horizontal
alignment type for the text or data inside each cell.
- Cell Style: Select Header from the drop-down list for
column or row headers (which centers and bolds the text in the cell);
otherwise choose Normal.
- Text Wrap: Select "Don't wrap" from the drop-down list
to keep text from wrapping to the next line unless you insert a
paragraph break. Otherwise, choose Wrap.
- Background Color: Select a color for the cell
background or leave it as transparent.
Note: To apply additional attributes or JavaScript
events, click Advanced Edit to display the Advanced Property Editor
- Click Apply to preview your changes without closing the dialog
box, or click OK to confirm them.
Tip: To change the text color or background color of one or
more selected cells or the entire table, select the cells or click
anywhere in the table and then click the text color or background color
icon in the Format toolbar.
Tip: To change the color of cells to the color last used,
select the cell, then press Shift + Click on the background color
picker. This is useful when you want to use one color for individual
cells.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Adding and Deleting Rows, Columns, and Cells
Composer allows you to quickly add or delete one or more cells in
your table. In addition, you can set options that allow you to
maintain the original rectangular structure or layout of the table
while you perform editing tasks.
To add a cell, row, or column to your table:
- Click inside the table where you want to add a cell (or cells).
- Open the Table menu and then choose Insert.
- Choose one of the cell groupings. (You can also insert a new
table within a table cell.)
To delete a cell, row, or column:
- Click a row, column, or cell to place the insertion point. Or,
select neighboring cells to delete more than one row at a time. To
select neighboring cells, hold down the Ctrl key (Windows and Linux)
or the Command key (Macintosh OS) while dragging over the cells you
want to select. To select individual cells in a table, hold down the
Ctrl key and click on the cells you want to select.
- Open the Table menu and choose Delete.
- Choose the item you want to delete.
To join (or merge) a cell with the cell on its right:
- Click inside the cell on the left, open the Table menu, and
choose Join with Cell to the Right.
To join (or merge) adjacent cells:
- Select adjacent cells by holding down the Ctrl key (Windows and
Linux) or the Command key (Macintosh OS), and then dragging over the
adjacent cells that you want to join.
- Open the Table menu, and choose Join Selected Cells.
To split a joined cell back into two or more cells:
- Click inside the cell, open the Table menu, and then choose Split
Cell. The contents of the cell will be in one cell.
Refer to Selecting Table Elements for
information on how to select non-adjacent cells, rows, and columns.
Changing the Default Table Editing Behavior
By default, when you delete one or more cells, Composer preserves
the table's structure by adding cells at the end of a row, wherever
needed. This allows you to delete one or more cells but still maintain
the table's original rectangular layout, or structure. Otherwise,
deleting cells can result in a table with empty spaces, or whose
outline appears irregular due to an uneven number of cells.
To change the default table editing behavior, begin from the
Composer window:
- Open the Edit menu, choose Preferences, and then choose Composer.
- Under Table Editing, set the following preferences:
- Make sure that "Maintain table layout when inserting or
deleting cells" is checked to ensure that you don't get an
irregularly-shaped table.
- Choose the way the Delete key will behave (remove an entire
cell or just remove the cell's contents).
- Click OK.
See also Setting General
Composer Preferences.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Selecting Table Elements
You can use one of two ways to quickly select a table, cell, or
group of cells:
- Click in the table, open the Table menu, choose Select, and then
choose an item from the submenu. For example, to select a table,
click anywhere inside the table, open the Table menu, and then
choose Select Table.
- Or, you can use the mouse as a selection tool:
- To select the content inside one or more cells, click inside
the cell and drag to select the number of cells you want. You
can apply a text format (for example, text style or color) to
the selected content.
- To select a group of adjacent cells: click in a cell, then
press Ctrl (Windows or Linux) or Command (Macintosh OS) and drag
to select the number of cells you want. Drag the mouse left or
right to select a row; up or down to select a column.
- To select non-adjacent cells: press Ctrl (Windows or Linux)
or Command (Macintosh OS) and then click inside a cell. Keep
pressing Ctrl (Windows or Linux) or Command (Macintosh OS) as
you click to select additional cells.
- To extend a selection to include adjacent cells: press Ctrl
(Windows or Linux) or Command (Macintosh OS) and then click inside a
cell. Then press Shift as you click additional cells to extend
the selection. Repeat this procedure to select multiple,
non-adjacent blocks of cells.
- To select one or more adjacent columns or rows: press
Ctrl-Shift (Windows or Linux) or Command-Shift (Macintosh OS)
and drag up or down to select the first column or row. Drag left
or right to select additional adjacent columns or rows.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Moving, Copying, and Deleting Tables
To move table:
- Click inside the table.
- Open the Table menu, choose Select, and then choose Table.
- To copy or move the table: Use the Edit menu's cut, copy, and
paste options.
- To delete the table: Open the Table menu again, choose Delete,
and then choose Table.
Moving the Contents of a Cell, Row, or Column
To move the contents of a cell, row, or column within a table:
- Select the text that you want to move. For more information, see Selecting Table Elements.
- Open the Edit menu, and choose Cut.
- Click to place the insertion point in the new location.
- Open the Edit menu, and choose Paste.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Converting Text into a Table
To convert text into a table:
- Select the text that you want to convert into a table. Keep in
mind that Composer creates a new table row for each paragraph in the
selection.
- Open the Table menu and choose Create Table from Selection. You
see the Convert to Table dialog box.
- Choose the character Composer uses to separate the selection into
columns, or specify a different character to use. If you choose Space as
the separator for columns, choose whether or not you want Composer to
ignore multiple space and treat them as one space.
- Leave "Delete separator character" checked to have Composer
remove the separator character when it converts the text into a
table. If you don't want Composer to delete the separator character,
uncheck this option.
- Click OK.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Adding Pictures (Images) to Your Web Page
Inserting an Image into Your Page
You can insert GIF, JPEG, and PNG images into your web page. You can
also use them to create links. When you
insert an image, Composer saves a reference to the image in your page.
To insert an image:
- Click to place the insertion point where you want the image to
appear.
- Click the Image button
on the toolbar, or open the Insert menu
and choose Image. You see the Image Properties dialog box.
- Type the location and filename of the image file, or click Choose
File to search for an image file on your hard drive or network.
- Type alternate text that will appear in text-only browsers, and
that will appear in other browsers when an image is loading or when
image loading is disabled.
- If needed, click More Properties so you can adjust the settings
in the Image Properties dialog box.
Tip: To quickly insert an image: Drag and drop it onto your
page.
Tip: While typing in a paragraph that contains one or more
images, if you want to insert a line break after all images in the
paragraph, choose Break Below Images from the Insert menu.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Editing Image Properties
Once you've inserted an image into your page, you can edit its
properties and customize the layout in your page, such as the height,
width, spacing, and text alignment. If you are not currently viewing
the Image Properties dialog box, follow these steps:
To edit the properties for a selected image:
- Double-click the image, or select it and click the Image button
on the
toolbar to display the Image Properties dialog box. Click More
Properties to expand the list of settings. To collapse the list of
settings, click Fewer Properties.
- Image URL: Type the filename and location of the image
file. Click Choose File to search for an image file on your hard drive
or network.
- URL is relative to page location: If checked, Composer
converts the URL to be relative to the page's location. This is
especially useful if you plan to copy your pages to a web server so that
others can view them. Using relative URLs allows you to keep all your
linked files in the same place relative to each other, regardless of
their location on your hard disk or a web server. Unchecking this box
causes Composer to convert the URL to a full (absolute) URL. You
typically use absolute URLs when linking to images on other web servers
(not stored locally on your hard disk). If you have unsaved changes, you
must first save the page in order to enable this checkbox.
- Alternate Text: Enter text that will display in place
of the original image; for example, a caption or a brief
description of the image. It's a good practice to specify
alternate text for readers who use text-only web browsers or who
have image loading turned off.
- Don't use alternate text: Choose this option
if the image does not require alternate text.
- Dimensions: Select Custom Size, then specify the new
height and width, in pixels. This setting doesn't affect the
original image file, just the image inserted in your page. Click
Actual Size to undo any changes you've made to the dimensions.
- Constrain: If you change the image size, it's a good
idea to check this in order to maintain the image's aspect ratio
(so that it doesn't appear distorted). If you choose this
option, then you only need to change the height or width, but
not both.
- Align Text to Image: If you've placed your image next
to any text, select an alignment icon to indicate how you want
text positioned relative to the image.
- Spacing: Specify the amount of space surrounding the
image; between the image and adjoining text. You can also put a
solid black border around the image and specify its width in
pixels. Specify zero for no border.
- Image Map: Click Remove to remove any image map
settings.
- To apply additional attributes or JavaScript events, click
Advanced Edit to display the Advanced
Property Editor.
- Click OK to confirm your changes.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Setting Page Properties
Setting Page Properties and Meta Tags
Use the Page Properties dialog box to enter properties such as the
title, author, and description of the document you're currently
working on. This information is useful if you plan to use the page on
a web site, since search engines use this type of information to index
your page. You can view this information from the browser window by
choosing the View menu and choosing Page Info.
- Open the Format menu and choose Page Title and Properties.
- Edit any of the following properties:
- Title: Type the text you want to appear as the window
title when someone views the page through a browser. This is how
most web search tools locate web pages, so choose a title that
conveys what your page is about.
- Author: Type the name of the person who created the
document. This information is helpful to readers who find your
document by using a web search tool to search for your name.
Tip: If you enter the Author name in Composer's preferences, then you won't
have to enter it each time you create a new page.
- Description: Enter a brief description of the
document's contents. You can also enter search keywords to help
others find your page when it is posted on a network.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Setting Page Colors and Background
You can change the background color or specify a background image
for the page you're currently working on. These choices affect the way
text and links in your page appear to people viewing the page through
a browser.
To set the colors and background for the current page, begin from
the Composer window:
- Open the Format menu and choose Page Colors and Background.
- Edit any of the following properties:
Note: To apply additional attributes or JavaScript events,
click Advanced Edit to display the Advanced
Property Editor.
You can also set the default page
background and colors for every new page you create in Composer.
Tip: To quickly change the background color to the color last
used, select the cell, then press Shift + Click on the background color
picker.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Creating Links
Creating Links Within the Same Page
To create a link within the same page, for example a link that the
reader can use to jump from one section to another, you must create an anchor
(target location), and then create a link that points to the anchor.
Anchors are also called named anchors.
- Click to place the insertion point at the beginning of a line
where you want to create an anchor, or select some text.
- Click the Anchor button
on the toolbar, or open the Insert menu
and choose Named Anchor. You see the Named Anchor Properties dialog box.
- Type a unique name for the anchor in the Anchor Name field (up to
30 characters). If you include spaces, they will be converted to
underscores (_). If you selected some text in step #1, this box
already contains a name.
- Click OK. An anchor icon appears in your document to mark
the anchor's location:

To create the link that the reader can click to jump to the anchor:
- Select the text or image that you want to link to the anchor.
- Click the Link button or open the Insert menu and choose Link.
You see the Link Properties dialog box.
- If you're creating a link to an HTML file on your computer,
click Choose File to locate it.
- If you're creating a link to a named anchor (target),
select it from the list of the anchors currently available in the page.
- If you're creating a link to a level heading (for
example, Heading 1 - Heading 6), select it from the list of headings
currently available in the page.
- Click OK.
Note: To test the link you just created, open the File menu
and choose Browse Page, then click the link.
Tip: If you did not first create named anchors, you can use
the Link dialog box to create links to headings that already occur in
the page.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Creating Links to Other Pages
You can create links from your page to local pages on your own
computer or on your workplace's network, or to remote pages on the
Internet.
You can quickly create a link by dragging and dropping links and
bookmarks from other windows. For example, you can select a link from a
web page, bookmark, or Mail window and drag and drop it onto your
page.
To create a link to another page:
- Click to place the insertion point where you want to create a
link, or select the text or image that you want to link to the
anchor.
- Click the Link button. You see the Link Properties dialog box.
- Define your link:
- Link text: If you've already selected an image file or
text before clicking the link icon, the selected text or file will be
entered here. Otherwise, you must enter the text that you want to use as
the link.
- Link Location: Type the local path and filename or
remote URL of the page you want to link to. If you're not sure
of the path and filename for a local file, click Choose File
to look for it on your hard disk or network. For remote URLs,
you can copy the URL from the browser location field.
Alternatively, you can select a named anchor or a heading in
the current page that you want to link to.
- URL is relative to page location: If checked, Composer
converts the URL to be relative to the page's location. This is
especially useful if you plan to copy your pages to a web server so that
others can view them. Using relative URLs allows you to keep all your
linked files in the same place relative to each other, regardless of
their location on your hard disk or a web server. Deselecting this
option causes Composer to convert the URL to a full (absolute) URL. You
typically use absolute URLs when linking to pages on other web servers
(not stored locally on your hard disk). If you have unsaved changes, you
must first save the page in order to enable this checkbox.
Hint: To copy a link on a web page, you can also
right-click (Control + Click on Macintosh OS) a link on a web page and
choose Copy Link Location.
- To apply additional attributes or JavaScript events, click
Advanced Edit to display the Advanced
Property Editor.
- Click OK.
- To test the link you just created, open the File menu, choose
Browse Page, and then click the link.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Using Images as Links
You can make images, such as JPEG, GIF, or PNG files, behave like
links in your pages. When the reader clicks a linked image, the
browser window displays the page that the image is linked to.
- Select an image on your page.
- Click the Link button
on the toolbar, or open the Insert menu
and choose Link.
- Use the Link Properties dialog box to link the image to a named anchor or heading within the page,
or to a separate local or remote page.
Tip: Drag and drop a linked image from the Navigator window
into a Composer window to copy both the image and the link.
Note: To remove the blue border on images used as links, open
the Link Properties dialog box and enter 0 in the Solid Border field.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Removing or Discontinuing Links
To remove a link:
- Select the linked text (normally blue and underlined) or image.
- Open the Format menu and choose Remove Links.
To discontinue a link, so that text you type after the link is not
included as part of the link:
- Click to place the insertion point where you want the link to end.
- Open the Format menu and choose Discontinue Link.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Publishing Your Pages on the Web
If your pages exists only on your local hard disk, you can browse
your pages, but no one else can. Composer lets you publish your pages to
a remote computer called a web server. When you publish your pages to a
web server, Composer copies (uploads) your pages to a computer that lets
others browse your pages. To find a web server where you can publish
your pages, ask your ISP or system administrator.
Publishing a Document
To publish a document on a web server:
- Open the HTML document that you want to publish, or create a new
Composer document.
- Open the File menu and choose Publish. If you have previously
defined a default publishing location for this document, Composer
uploads the document to the specified location.
- If you have not defined a publishing location for this
document, Composer displays the Settings tab in the Publish Page dialog
box so you can enter this information. See Publish
Page - Settings for more information.
- If you have never saved the document, Composer displays the
Publish tab in the Publish Page dialog box, so you can enter the
document's file name. See Publish Page - Publish
for more information.
- To view your page, enter the page's HTTP address in Navigator's
Location Bar. Test the page's links and make sure there are no missing
images.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Tips for Avoiding Broken Links or Missing Images
- Make sure your Composer file names end with the .HTML file
extension. Make sure your image file names end with the .JPG, .GIF, or
.PNG file extension. Don't use spaces or other special symbols in your
file names. Keep your file names short and use only lowercase letters
and numbers.
- If your images appear as broken links when you browse your pages
on the web server, open the Image Properties dialog box for each image
(by double-clicking each image in the page) and make sure you've removed
the file:/// part of the URL. Once you're done correcting the links,
publish your pages again.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Updating a Published Document
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Changing the File Name or Publishing Location
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Creating a New Publishing Site
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Changing the Default Publishing Site
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Deleting a Publishing Site
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Publishing Settings
Also include link to global Publishing prefs.
Publish Page - Publish
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Publish Page - Settings
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Publish Settings
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Composer Preferences
This section describes the settings in the Composer preferences
panel. If you are not currently viewing the panel, follow these steps:
- Open the Edit menu and choose Preferences.
- Double-click the Composer category to expand the list.
Composer Preferences - Composer
Composer preferences allow you to specify settings for saving files
and for table editing. These settings apply to every document you
create.
If you are not already viewing the Composer preferences, follow
these steps:
- Open the Edit menu and choose Preferences.
- Click the Composer category.
- Recent Pages Menu: Specify the maximum number of pages that
are listed under Recent Pages in the File menu.
- When Saving Files:
- Retain original source formatting: This option preserves
line breaks and the page's original formatting for the HTML source code.
Select this if you want to preserve white space (extra lines, tabs,
etc.) that makes the HTML source code more readable. This preference
does not affect how your pages appear in a browser window.
- Reformat HTML source: This option reformats the HTML
source code to make it more readable, by inserting line breaks and
indentation. This preference does not affect how your pages appear in a
browser window.
- Table Editing:
- Maintain table layout when inserting or deleting cells:
Select this if you want Composer to always preserve the table's layout
(that is, keep it in a rectangular shape) by adding cells where needed.
If you deselect this option, when you delete one or more cells,
Composer removes the cell border as well, which can result in a
table with empty spaces, or an outline that appears irregular
due to an uneven number of cells.
- Delete key: Select the action you want the Delete key to
perform on selected cells in tables.
- Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) Editing:
Use CSS styles instead of HTML elements and attributes:
to be supplied.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Composer Preferences - New Page Settings
New page preferences allow you to specify settings for colors and
background images that apply to every document you create.
If you are not already viewing the New Page Settings, follow these
steps:
- Open the Edit menu and choose Preferences.
- Open the Composer category and click New Page Settings.
To change the author name for an individual page: Open the Format
menu and choose Page Title and Properties.
To change the page colors and background image for an individual
page: Open the Format menu and choose Page Colors and Background.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
Composer Preferences - Publishing
text to come.
[ Return to beginning of section ]
27 February 2002