There are numerous software packages available to developers today. HTML editors are handy software that can assist web-developers in the development of HTML. The innumerable sorts of HTML editors obtainable at present make selection a difficult task.
However, be aware that simple HTML pages presenting good content are still the most sought after type of webpages by ALL search engines, more so than any other. Even if you have a large company but can present your info on simple and professional HTML, you can be sure the search engines will treat your site favorably.
In this article we will point out a few top HTML editors and highlight their distinguished features.
Selecting a HTML Editor
There are 2 Major types of HTML editors. They are;
- HTML text Editor: Generally, text editors are faster than WYSIWYG editors. Text editors may require knowledge of HTML code. However text editors do not add unexpected tags like in WYSIWYG. Text editors can also easily support new formats.
- HTML WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) Editors: This type of editor is particularly helpful for people who are inefficient or indifferent to coding. These kinds of editors do not require you to be a HTML coder. These kinds of editors provide an environment with which you can directly edit the appearance of your webpage and automatically put in code. The WYSIWYG view is enabled with the help of layout engine. This view gives an outlook of your website as it will appear after being published on a web browser.
A third type of HTML editor is HTML object editor.
Before selecting a HTML editor it is important to first decide the type of editor you are intending to use. Today we have HTML editors that are available in both flavors. Another important factor while making a selection is that there must be a large-user base for that editor. With large-user base, there exists a community to extend assistance should problems arise. A good HTML editor must also support PHP, XML and JSP other than XHTML/HTML. Usually editors are also extensible. Obviously while opting for any editor we must be inclined towards an editor that can be extended with plug-ins and add-ons.
Overview of a few HTML editors
Here is a list of good HTML editors.
Microsoft Expression Web/ Front Page: Expression Web is a HTML WYSIWYG & Text editor for Windows platform. Expression Web mainly targets professional web-developers and web-designers. Expression Web comes with many templates and has a rapidly growing help community. Beginner web designers working with this editor have an edge with this supportive community. Expression Web supports CSS, AJAX, and ASP.NET. Expression Web is usually used by the developers who develop websites in ASP.NET. Another incentive for Expression Web users is that they can upgrade to Expression Web 4.0 from Expression Web 3.0 free of cost.
Dreamweaver: Dreamweaver by Adobe is by far the most popular tool for web development. It supports XHTML, XML, JSP and PHP. Another noteworthy feature of DW are Server-side scripting and multi-user editing. Dreamweaver works both for Windows and Mac. With FTP upload you can publish your website on internet. There are other Creative Suits from Adobe that enable graphic editing, making the designing job easier.
Amaya: Amaya is HTML editor by World Wide Web Consortium W3C. It is an open source software that is available for Windows, Mac and Linux platforms. A very useful feature of Amaya is that it presents the project documents in the shape of a tree that helps to organize the pages in a better way. It is a WYSIWYG HTML editor; however it lacks browser preview.
CoffeeCup: CoffeeCup is one of the easy-to-handle and affordable HTML editors on the web that includes validators. It is a WYSIWYG visual editor that can assist a new web developer to develop and maintain an organized site embellished with fancy templates. Code is on-your-tips with an intelligent tag reference that make coding fast and pleasurable. One of the best features of CoffeeCup is that it enables you to preview your website after being published on different browsers. This feature can help you set the resolution correctly. CoffeeCup comes with professionally designed themes and code snippets. It also has a spell-check dictionary for auto-correction if needed. CoffeeCup also assists is customers with a speedy support community. CoffeeCup is compatible with Windows 7 and prior version Windows Vista & XP.
All the above types of editors have made the construction and maintenance of a website much easier by providing a graphical user interface for web development and minimizing the amount of HTML coding required by the web designers and developers.
Other notable HTML editors are BBEdit, KomodoEdit, AptanaStudio, NetBeans, Homesite ect. There are online HTML editors like FCKEditor and TinyMCE. HTML editors leverage the tedious task of HTML coding with simplicity and ease. Beginner web designers can make their website and publish it with just few snaps. This can be a most encouraging experience for beginners.
