The great advantage of using ‘WYSIWYG’ editors is that it allows the user to visualize and think in terms of how the content would appear.

Microsoft FrontPage is a website creation and management tool that enables users to author Web pages and build professional, feature-rich websites without the need to code in HTML or write complex programs. The FrontPage editor utilizes a Graphical User Interface (GUI) to create a ‘WYSIWYG’ (what you see is what you get) environment for the designer. So when you create and edit files in FrontPage, your work appears in the display window exactly the same way it would on a Web page. The code that builds the pages are generated automatically by the editor and concealed, although the user can still edit the HTML code directly through a separate window view.

The great advantage of using ‘WYSIWYG’ editors is that it allows the user to visualize and think in terms of how the content would appear. Layout, font, color and content changes can be viewed directly on the screen as you make them – something that coding by hand simply does not allow. It is infinitely easier to work in a ‘WYSIWYG’ environment where you can create complex page layouts in a few easy point and clicks. Not only is it less time consuming, but working with an editor is also more forgiving when it comes to errors. A simple typing error in your code can affect your Web page dramatically, whereas in a ‘WYSIWYG’ environment it is far more difficult to mess up a table, for example, when all you have to do is point and click “insert-table.” Editing is also simpler. Rather than having to mull over the discrepancies in your HTML code, in FrontPage you can see exactly where you went wrong and edit correspondingly.

Microsoft FrontPage does not lack in sophistication. It offers powerful authoring features that Web designers can utilize to develop more interactive Web pages. You can install hit counters, forms, discussion groups, full text searches, form handlers and link bars (to name a few things) without having to do any server-side programming. Simply use the drop-down menus or icons to insert the application on your Web page and FrontPage takes care of the rest. The only thing you have to be sure of is that your FrontPage host has the relevant FrontPage extensions installed on their Web servers. Without them, the applications you have created with FrontPage will not work.

What is FrontPage Hosting and Why Do You Need a FrontPage Host?

Once your FrontPage-built website is complete, you will have to find a FrontPage hosting provider to host it. This way your site will be capable of running features and applications that are unique to FrontPage-built sites. FrontPage hosting can be done on both Unix and Windows platforms. The key being that the Web servers – whatever platform they run on – must be FrontPage-enabled. Enabling FrontPage simply means that FrontPage extensions must be installed on the hosting provider’s Web servers - it is the basis of FrontPage hosting.

FrontPage Hosting: What are FrontPage Extensions and How Do They Work?