TOOLS MENU




Validate code


Use this utility to check and validate the HTML code within a document. The code is checked for a number of problems including broken tags and incorrect usage of quotation marks within tags. Such errors often go unnoticed by the creator of the page, and may result in the page not functioning properly. This utility performs the required checks and provides feedback on the outcome. If errors are found, a descriptive message is displayed and the cursor is placed as close as possible to the source of the problem.

Note: pages developed with other editors can be imported into Web In-site and validated without any difficulties or problems.

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Colour Tags


Use this utility to colour all tags within the HTML document. This is particularly useful when viewing the actual text within the document, as distinct from the HTML code. It is also greatly beneficial for debugging purposes as the colouring scheme affords a useful means of identifying incorrectly used chevrons and faulty structure within the document.

Note: due to performance issues, it is not efficient to use this utility when more than three documents are open at any one time, and the utility is therefore not available in such cases. Please close down any extra documents over and above three in order to proceed with the utility.



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Site Management


This is a powerful utility which enables users to view the structure of an entire site in tree format. The utility is extremely flexible as it enables users to spider through the site at will. For example, it is possible for users to trace their way along a specific path through the site by expanding the nodes within just that path. The utility is also extremely useful for detecting broken links and non-existent files. By clicking on links the user is provided with feedback or error messages about any problems that may arise. It is important to understand that this utility caters for both normal links and links which target frames. Where possible, it converts the address of the link into the path of a local file with the format of the computer's local file system. In this way, it can open up all other files and view their links, as well as detecting when files are not present, thereby signalling any possible problems when broken links are present.

Note: due to performance issues, it is not efficient to use this utility when more than three documents are open at any one time, and the utility is therefore not available in such cases. Please close down any extra documents over and above three in order to proceed with the utility.

Instructions for using the site management utility:

  1. Open the document which will form the starting point for the investigation (this is often, but not necessarily, the index page of the site!).
  2. Click on the site management icon or select the Site Management item from the "Tools" menu.
  3. In order to check for and simultaneously view the links contained within a document, double click on the relevant node within the tree structure. To check for links only, click once. If no links exist an error message will be displayed in the status area. Alternatively, if links are present, and expansion is allowed on this node, then the node’s icon will change to a folder. Double clicking on the node will allow one to view them. One may continue this process as far as one wishes and target any areas of the site that one desires. If there are problems, the status field will attempt to explain what the problem is.

    One of the following 6 status messages may be encountered:

    1. No expansion provided - same as parent node: This means that the node one is attempting to expand is in fact the same as its parent node, i.e. it is a link back to the document containing it. This often occurs in situations where the author of the site is providing users with the option of viewing the current page without frames. In order to prevent unnecessary looping, the expansion is not allowed.
    2. No expansion provided - same as root node: This means that the node one is attempting to expand is in fact the same as the root node, i.e. it is the same as the current document being managed. In order to prevent continuous looping, the expansion is not allowed.
    3. Expand this node at the top level: This means that the node one is attempting to expand is in fact the same as one of the top level child nodes in the tree. In other words this represents the same file as one of the main links contained within the document currently being managed. In order to overcome this, one must look at the child nodes situated on the same branch as the root node and locate this file there, then click on this link on that level. Once again, this has been prevented at the current level in order to prevent continuous looping within the tree.
    4. There are no links in this document: This means that the current document does not contain any links, therefore there are no child nodes to display.
    5. This link doesn't represent a local file: This means that the node one is attempting to expand doesn't represent the format of a local file contained on the system, i.e. it is probably an URL to another http:// address or a link to an anchor within a page. It is not possible for the site management utility to validate this sort of link, however, it is easy to manually check all of these links and to quickly verify them before uploading the page.
    6. Warning: check link, file doesn't exist: This represents the most severe warning as it indicates a link to a file which is not contained on the system. It is important to check whether the file has not yet been created or whether it has been accidentally deleted or corrupted.



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    JavaScript utility


    This utility enables the addition of powerful JavaScripts to a page with the click of a button. Simply select the desired script from the following list Note: a * character * next to the script title below indicates that the cursor must be in the correct position within the body of the document in order to effectively generate the script.

    1. Perform image rollovers with buttons and images * - this script enables the creation of images representing links which change to another specified image when the visitor's mouse is passed over them. The script also loads the images into the visitor's cache in order to display the animation more efficiently.
    2. Redirect old browsers, i.e. non DHTML compliant ones - this script enables one to ensure that only the latest generation of browsers are capable of viewing the page. The script also performs a redirection of any older browsers to another specified page. This is very useful for any pages that contain Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) which can also be created using the "Style Sheet utility" and/or Dynamic HTML (DHTML) and advanced JavaScripts which require versions 4 or higher of Netscape and Internet Explorer.
    3. Display the date the document was last modified on - this script inserts a footer into the page which informs the visitor when the file was last modified.
    4. Forward visitors from this page to another URL - this script is particularly useful for situations in which the site, or any page from the site, is being moved to a new location. Simply use this script to redirect a visitor from the old address to the new one. The time delay time before redirection can be configured, and messages can be provided for the visitor detailing the new location, etc.
    5. Display the date of the current visit * - dynamically display the date of their visit.
    6. Display a pop-up window with another document - pop-up a new window which in turn displays another page. This can be used as a navigational tool or to link to pages without disposing of the original page. The parameters can be altered to configure the size, location and characteristics of the new browser window.
    7. Pop-up an alert message for the visitor - display messages for the visitor with a little Java pop-up alert box.
    8. Display the name of the type of browser being used by the visitor * - inform the visitor as to which browser they are currently using to visit site.



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    Style Sheet utility


    Use this utility to create a style sheet for the page. Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) are part of the latest generation of Web programming techniques and provide a means of defining styles and attributes for all occurrences of any element within a page. For example, by setting the attributes for the <P> tag in one's style sheet, the browser will automatically display all paragraphs with the specified attributes. In other words, it is not necessary to repeatedly redefine the characteristics of each element within a page as this can be catered for by a single style sheet definition. The style sheet utility generates cross-browser attributes which are supported in versions 4 and higher of Netscape and Internet Explorer. Although the method the utility uses to create style sheets ensures that errors are not produced on older browsers, it may, in certain cases, be preferable to forward visitors to an alternate page which caters specifically for these older browsers. This is achieved by using the JavaScript utility provided. It is not essential to forward visitors to an alternate page, and whether one does or not depends purely on one's requirements. Note: it is not necessary to define the style attributes for all tags simultaneously. If styles have already been defined in a page and the addition of more style definitions is required at a later stage, the utility will simply insert these styles in the relevant position as required.

    The following attributes may be defined:

    1. Font name
    2. Font size
    3. Font style
    4. Font weight
    5. Font colour
    6. Line spacing
    7. Text alignment
    8. Text indentation
    9. Text decoration
    10. Bg color
    Note: not all attributes apply to every tag. In cases where an attribute is inappropriate for a particular tag, the utility will disable the choices affected, thereby disallowing their selection.



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    Meta Tags utility


    Use this utility to create basic and advanced meta tags in order to allow search engines on the web to effectively record the site on which the document is situated. It is crucial to define effective meta tags in order to achieve a successful ranking with any of the major search engines.

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    RGB-Hex convertor


    This utility enables the conversion of HTML colours from RGB values, i.e. combinations of Red, Green and Blue, into the HTML format of Hexadecimal (Hex). The utility works in both directions, i.e. converting Hex to RGB and RGB to Hex and provides a preview facility to view the resulting colour. Hex values can also be copied to the system clipboard for pasting into HTML documents.

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    Fix broken line breaks


    This is a useful utility which fixes broken line breaks within existing documents. Under certain platforms, when the source code of a document is viewed, the line breaks are quirky and it makes reading the source code problematic. For this reason, it is often necessary to fix the line breaks on pre-existing documents created using tools/editors that have not produced platform independent line breaks.

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    Convert tags to uppercase


    This utility converts all tags within an existing document to uppercase. This is normally the convention for HTML documents and distinguishes tags from the rest of the text. Many editors automatically create tags in lower case, and the resulting pages can then be converted using this utility.



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