HTML and CSS Reference
In-Depth Information
Text Elements
Normal text
is the default text format used for the main content of a Web page.
Normal text can be used in a standard paragraph or formatted to appear as: bold, italic,
or underlined; in different colors; and so on. You can also use inline styles to alter the
format of the text, an approach used throughout this topic. Normal text can also be used
in a series of text items called a
list
. Typically, lists are bulleted or numbered. Various
attributes of lists can be altered. For example, you might want to have square bullets
rather than the default round bullets, or to have your list text in italic or bold.
Headings
are used to set off paragraphs of text or different sections of a page.
Headings are a larger font size than normal text and are often bold or italic or a different
color than normal text. Heading sizes run from 1 (the largest) to 6 (the smallest). You
generally go from one heading size to the next smallest when setting up a Web page.
HTML Resources
The Web has many
wonderful sources of
information on HTML and
Web page development.
One of the better sources
is the HTML Goodies Web
site, which has primers
and tutorials on a variety
of topics as well as free
downloads and discussion
areas. To learn more about
this Web site, search for
the term “HTML Goodies”
in a search engine.
Image Elements
Web pages typically use several different types of graphics, or images, such as an
icon, bullet, line, photo, illustration, or other picture. An image used in a Web page is
also called an
inline image
, which means that the image or graphic file is not part of the
HTML file. Instead, the Web browser merges the separate graphic file into the Web page
as it is displayed in the browser window. The HTML file contains <img> tags that tell the
browser which graphic file to request from the server, where to insert it on the page, and
how to display it.
Web pages typically use several different types of inline images. An
image map
is a
special type of inline image in which you define one or more areas as hotspots. A
hotspot
is an area of an image that activates a function when selected. For example, each hotspot
in an image map can link to a different Web page. Some inline images are
animated
,
meaning they include motion and can change in appearance.
Horizontal rules
are lines that are displayed across a Web page to separate
different sections of the page. Although the appearance of a horizontal rule can vary,
many Web pages use an inline image as a horizontal rule. Alternatively, you can use the
horizontal rule tag (<hr />) to add a simple horizontal rule, such as the one used in this
chapter project.
Hyperlink Elements
One of the more important elements of a Web page is a hyperlink, or link. A
link
is
text, an image, or another Web page element that you click to instruct the browser to go
to a location in a file or to request a file from a server. On the Web, links are the primary
way to navigate between Web pages and among Web sites. Links point not only to Web
pages, but also to graphics, sound, video, program files, e-mail addresses, and parts of
the same Web page. Text links, also called hypertext links, are the most commonly used
hyperlinks. For example, the text “Volunteers” in Figure 2-2 on the previous page links
to opportunities for volunteer service. When text identifies a hyperlink, it usually appears
as underlined text, in a color different from the rest of the Web page text. Image links
are also very common. For example, there are two image links identified in Figure 2-2.
Clicking either of those image links sends (or links) the user to another Web page that
contains further information about those items. A corporate or organizational logo, such
as the Smithsonian logo, often serves as an image link to the home page or corporate
information.
