Trouble Shooting Techniques
HTML is not the easiest thing to do correctly. It is easy to make
a minor mistake which can screw up your entire displayed page.
The techniques listed below will help you find and fix common
everyday coding errors.
Check Your Tags
This is the most common reason that a page does not look right.
As we covered in the Basic
Coding Tips section, you must 'nest' your tags correctly
or chaos can ensue!
Consider this example:
<B>This
is an example of <I>badly
nested</B>
HTML tags.</I>
Your tags should be nested properly as shown here:
<TAG1><TAG2><TAG3>
[text or object here] </TAG3></TAG2></TAG1>
Wacky things will also occur if you have an Opening Tag and
no corresponding Closing Tag to go with it. Double check that
all of your Opening Tags have the correct Closing Tag.
Validate Your Code
When you put a document on a Web server, be sure to check the
formatting and each link. Have someone else proofread your work
before you consider a page finished.
You can run your coded files through one of several on-line
HTML validation services that will tell you if your code conforms
to accepted HTML. If you are not sure your coding conforms to
HTML specifications, this can be a useful teaching tool.
Dummy Images
When an image tag points to an image that does not exist or cannot
find, a 'dummy image' is substituted by your browser. When this
happens during your final review of your pages, make sure that
the image does in fact exist, that the coding points to the right
folder, and that the filename is typed in correctly. (Image names
are generally case-sensitive)
Cross Browser Compatibility
Different web browsers display HTML elements differently. Remember
that not all codes used in HTML files are interpreted the same
way by all browsers. Any code a browser does not understand is
usually ignored though.
You could spend a lot of time making your file "look perfect"
using your usual browser. If you check that file using another
browser, it will probably display differently. Hence these words
of advice: code your files using correct HTML. Leave the interpreting
to the browsers and hope for the best.
