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Topic: Using MS Publisher as a preliminary (Read 2496 times)
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Gadget
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My Mum made me pretty frocks
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Hi Bob (and/or any other experts)
I have just had my second e-mail confirming my RC website. Now I have to populated it  At present I am still designing it on various bits of paper and evaluating the various software tools available.
However, I would like to put up a holding page so that it looks more lived-in. I have noticed that my version of MS Publisher does have a website design facility and thought I might use this as a preliminary. I haven't seen anything on RC about using this and wondered what your views/tips on it were?
Thanks
Gadget
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Berlin-Bob
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Hi Gadget,
one thing to remember, is that you can change your site as often as you like.
Use any tools you have, to try it out and see how it looks, and if you don't like it, you can always change it later.
Having said that, I would be interested to see how it comes out.
As a general rule Microsoft HTML, whether from Word, Excel, Frontpage, etc, is usually so bloated that it's hard to recognise anything if you need to change the HTML code later.
But to get something up-and-running quickly, they are ideal.
So give it a go !!
Bob
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Searching for Coleman, Moore, Kallnung in London; Margulies, Remenyi in E. Europe; Ancestors of Hessie Stevenson-Coleman-Baxter (Ireland, 1861) and, of course, any other ancestors for my web-site http://boco.rootschat.net All Census Data included in this post is Crown Copyright (see: www.nationalarchives.gov.uk) |
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Comosus
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I think it's best to try out a variety of software as you never know which one may suit you best. I don't have much knowledge of other software though. I have used Frontpage a couple of times and never got to grips with it. Personally I use notepad because then I can do whatever I like, but you need to know HTML for that. It's not as hard as it sounds, or looks. My dad started teaching me it when I was about 9 (well he started teaching my brother and then I'd stick my nose in) but didn't make a proper website until I was about 14.
The option is always there to learn HTML - I know you may not have the time but as I say, it's not as hard as it looks or sounds and once you get used to it, it becomes a second language. I had The Complete Idiot's Guide to HTML, which was very handy when I was learning as if I got stuck on something I could quickly pick it up and look it up. Now though, I just need a quick search on google if I get stuck on something. For example, I couldn't remember the code for a drop down box so I did a quick search and found the code and pasted it in.
Usually when I make a website, I sketch a simple idea on a scrap bit of paper. Although I don't remember doing that for my RC website.
I'd also just like to say that however you make your site: Less is more.
I have made several websites and the ones which look best are the ones with less clutter. Maybe it's just me, but when I started out I'd try and add everything under the sun to my site to try and make it look better, but it just made it worse.
Anyway, here's me rabbiting on... Even just looking at the code made by programs will help you learn because you can see where the text is in the code and then see the tags which place it there.
I think I've typed too much so I'll stop now  Everyone says I waffle too much.
Andrew
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Leeds - HOLMES (also at Boston Spa, Thorp Arch), SCHOLEY/SCOREY/SCHORAH (also at Stanley, Wakefield), TURVEY (also at Birmingham), WARD, WHITE, WOODHEAD (also at Halton, Whitkirk, Templenewsam). Dewbury - CRAWSHAW, GLEDHILL, SPEIGHT Great Horton - RAMSDEN, SHACKLETON, WOOLER Woolsthorpe by Belvoir - SMITH Barrowby and South Stoke, Lincolnshire - PARKER Derby and Newhall - STREET Census information Crown Copyright from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk |
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Gadget
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My Mum made me pretty frocks
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Hi Andrew
I wasn't intending to use Publisher as a permanent solution. It was to get away quickly from the default page that is now up. I am presently looking at various WYSIWYG packages, HTML editors, etc. to see which I prefer as the long term solution.
Thanks for your thoughts.
Gadget - who worked in Computing for many years 
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dennford
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I'm no expert, but surely there must be a graphics prog' out there that will do a decent job. I did use a trial one called actual drawing, it was a breeze to use if you had graphics experience (exactly what should be expected from a WYSIWIG), but apparrently didn't write the html that good.
How about adobe image ready - has anyone got any comment on that?
Denn
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Ford, Baines, Dixon, Platts, Peat, Proctor, Rotherforth, Dakin/Daykin, Sales, Beech, Hall, Parkin, Nightingale. ----- Harthill, Waleswood, Woodhouse-mill, Whitwell
South Yorkshire/Derbyshire/Nottinghamshire
Torremocha, Candog, Ramos, Reyes, Rodrigueus
-------Philippines --- Bohol
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t.hawksley
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Census information Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
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Hey andi
Your Very educated for 19
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Burrow Digger
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I use Dreamweaver version 4 coz thats what I've used these last 6 years. I did try version 6 for a while, but I found it too complicated, so I went back to version 4.
I have learnt enough coding over the years that I now write all my pages in HTML practically, instead of using the WYSIWYG editor which I used to do.
I've never managed to figure out how one converts Notepad to a webpage. I understand the writing HTML coding and saving it in Notepad - but thats just a text file. How does it become a webpage?
BD
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Berlin-Bob
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Hi BD,
if you write in HTML, with all the usual conventions, then all you have to do afterwards is load it onto a website, and it's a webpage !
Or am I missing something ??
Generally:
I started out by translating our firms website into english. zhe original site used Frontpage, so I "learnt" Frontpage. The code was so bloated, and the layout wasn't doing what it should have done, etc,etc, so after I had learnt my way around, I simply loaded the pages into an editor and carried on from there.
After a while, I scrapped using Frontpage and only used an editor. Like Andrew says, copy bits here, look up methods there etc.
I tried a trial version of Dreamweaver, but found it too complicated. So I stick to my editor. I must admit I use a programming editor from the firm with lots of macros designed to make our life easier, but any editor will do it.
One good tip: when you have a layout for a page, then save a copy of this, and use it as a template for all your other pages. This makes it easier to have a recognisable "style" for your website.
I have two page "styles" on my site, the family pages and the biography pages and that makes it much easier to add new information.
Bob
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Searching for Coleman, Moore, Kallnung in London; Margulies, Remenyi in E. Europe; Ancestors of Hessie Stevenson-Coleman-Baxter (Ireland, 1861) and, of course, any other ancestors for my web-site http://boco.rootschat.net All Census Data included in this post is Crown Copyright (see: www.nationalarchives.gov.uk) |
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Gadget
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My Mum made me pretty frocks
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Hi again
I'm begining to get sore eyes from all this evaluating 
From what I have been told and read about, it is best to use a mixture of Notepad, a specialist HTML editor and a WYSIWIG.
At the moment I have got (in addition to notepad, etc): Adobe/Macromedia HomeSite5 as my editor which seems a pretty good package - and was recommended to me by someone who does web design as a living. I also have trial versions of Dreamweaver 8, Frontpage, Coffeecup and Fusion. I have decided against Frontpage because of the features Bob has already described and Coffeecup because I just hated the music and style of the package. This leaves me with Dreamweaver or Fusion and other, not so well known, software.
I regard these various packages and HTML itself (which is not and was never designed to be a full blown computer language) as a means to an end - the end being to present a user-friendly, visually pleasing and informative website about my Family History.
I'm not worried or afraid to learn HTML. I have, after all, done some Hex coding in my past and have coding in various 'old' computer languages before going on to project management. Coding is boring and can sometimes become the end in itself rather than a tool. I just want a quick but temporary solution to a home page while designing, coding and installing the bigger version.
I went into Publisher to do some quick mock ups of possible front pages and found that it had a web design facility. This seemed to me a possible solution pro tem
As Falkyrn has just said:
For the purpose that you intially desccribe ... a simple holding page .... MS Publisher will work as a quick dirty solution.
One of the primary problems with publisher is that it converts the page to a single image and then creates the code to display this image
Thanks
Gadget
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dennford
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just resting for a while
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It is sounding as though you have allready made a decision that you would rather go the WISIWIG way, the problem only being one that you can work with and that is capable of producing html that can be manipulated. Or is it me that is reading it from my own point of view.
Denn
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Ford, Baines, Dixon, Platts, Peat, Proctor, Rotherforth, Dakin/Daykin, Sales, Beech, Hall, Parkin, Nightingale. ----- Harthill, Waleswood, Woodhouse-mill, Whitwell
South Yorkshire/Derbyshire/Nottinghamshire
Torremocha, Candog, Ramos, Reyes, Rodrigueus
-------Philippines --- Bohol
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kerryb
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Hi Gadget
I have not used Publisher at all so can't comment on it. I use Dreamweaver, won't tell you how I got my copy!!!!! I like it despite what a lot of people say because you can us WYSIWIG and it has a lot of facilities that are helpful to websites that are easy to use but it also allows you the facility if you want to, of manipulating the HTML code yourself. I like this because for instance you can turn your paragraph spaces (which annoyingly are the default setting) into line breaks etc.
Paragraph html <p>words goes in here</p>
Break
words goes in here</br>
Kerry
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Census information Crown Copyright, from www.nationalarchives.gov.ukSearching for my family - Baldwin - Sussex, Middlesex, Cork, Pilbeam - Sussex, Harmer - Sussex, Terry - Surrey, Kent, Rhoades - Lincs, Roffey - Surrey, Traies - Devon & Middlesex & many many more to be found on my website .... www.kerrysfamilyhistory.co.uk |
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Berlin-Bob
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by My Daughter. Chatting to find her Roots !
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On a general note: What is a website ??
This picture might help - a website is a house (webspace), which you furnish as you please. You have all your belongings (content) which you need to store in your house. How you store it is your style.
You may start off with MS publisher furniture, and later change it for Dreamweaver furniture, or do-it-yourself HTML furniture.
The contents of the cupboards ("Josephine SOAP married Fred BLOGGS in 1826 and they lived happily ever after in a little cottage by the sea, along with their 19 children ....") usually remains the same but every so often you change the furniture (style). Or you can decorate different rooms (directories / folders) in your house with different styles, just remember to add a door (link) to each room.
My own website design has already changed several times in the last 18 months, which is why I am moving more and more in the direction of HTML with CSS.
This is part of a general trend on the web to seperate the content from the layout.
Bob
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Searching for Coleman, Moore, Kallnung in London; Margulies, Remenyi in E. Europe; Ancestors of Hessie Stevenson-Coleman-Baxter (Ireland, 1861) and, of course, any other ancestors for my web-site http://boco.rootschat.net All Census Data included in this post is Crown Copyright (see: www.nationalarchives.gov.uk) |
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Pages: [1] 2
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As yet I don't feel confident enough with the HTML that I know but I'll give Publisher a go. Probably tomorrow now - tired eyes from reading all that stuff.