HTML-Kit

A free HTML editor suitable for experts and beginners alike.

Introduction.
The right tool for the job.
HTML-Kit; early impressions
1. My favourite features.
2. Possible improvements.
Conclusion.
Relevant links.

Introduction

The best method of introducing HTML-Kit that I can think of is to quote directly from the program's home page:

"HTML-Kit is a free and easy to use Windows program designed to help HTML, XML and script authors to edit, format, lookup help, validate, preview and publish web pages.

Beginners can benefit from letting it point out errors and suggest improvements to the code. Experts can save time spent on common tasks using the customizable and extendible editor while maintaining full control over the code."

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In my view a good HTML editor, like other good tools, allows the most precise control over the end result. It should not do your thinking for you, nor should it remove the need to know how to do the job by hand.

My old text-editor with its simple macros and templates, was very useful, and a wonderful tool to get started with. Sadly, maintaining a Web site involves many documents that are frequently edited. Such work is time-consuming and prone to errors which a simple editor cannot help with, so I decided it was time to find a better tool for the job.

If I was going to change to a dedicated HTML editor then it would have to offer significant advantages over my old editor, but without taking control away from me. Clearly a wizard based HTML creator wouldn't be suitable. I needed a powerful tool, but one which allowed complete control over the mark-up process.

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HTML-Kit; early impressions

I've only been using HTML-Kit for a few days now, so I can't claim to be an expert on this software. I have, however, tried most of the other freeware HTML editors currently available. There are some very capable products around, but I'm afraid that either they were too simplistic to be of long-term use, or too complex for the kind of HTML that I write.

One thing that I did not want was a WYSIWYG editor like the ones that come bundled with Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Communicator. The reason for this is that as far as HTML goes there is no such thing as WYSIWYG; it's more a case of What You See Is Nearly What You Get! If you are using Microsoft FrontPage Express, or Netscape Composer for any serious HTML authoring then I would advise you to make the effort to learn how to write HTML properly, and then get an editor that doesn't make a mess of the job.

With HTML-Kit you work directly with the HTML code itself, as you would with a normal text editor. In this way you are constantly aware of both the code that you write, and the layout style that you use. This is of benefit because, firstly, it encourages the use of a consistent and readable style, which is very important when you have to go back and edit an older document; and believe me, you will have to do that. Secondly it allows new users to get straight to work without needing to know about all of the extra features. If you can write HTML by hand, and you know how to save a file, then you can begin writing immediately and get to know the tools as you go along.

My favourite features

The editing window features syntax-highlighting and has a host of useful features. My own favourites being:

Customisable auto-complete with cursor positioning; this is not only a great time saver but also enhances the consistency of coding style.
Built-in live spell-checker which is fully customisable and extendable.
Navigate within a document by jumping from one tag to another, between easily managed bookmarks, or to specific line numbers.
Full integration of Dave Ragget's HTML Tidy to check your code for errors and validity.

There are many other excellent features available, and most of them can be customised to suit the individual users. Menus and toolbars, for example, are easily configured and I have set shortcuts in the help menu to point to local copies of the HTML and CSS specifications. It really makes life easier to be able to get a piece of software to work the way that you want, rather than being stuck with a fixed set of features.

I have deliberately avoided talking about the most powerful feature of HTML-Kit, the plug-in API, simply because it is so powerful. As yet I haven't delved too deeply into this area, but it appears that users can create plug-ins to accomplish almost any task in HTML-Kit. Plug-ins will normally be available from the 'Action Bar'; a tabbed toolbar containing, by default, a large selection of HTML tools and functions. These range from simple tag-insertion to complex processes to format a whole document.

Possible improvements

There is only one feature that I would like to see that hasn't been implemented yet, and that is a help file. Having said that, I can't really say that I've missed having one. HTML-Kit actually has a very intuitive interface, and a help file is not strictly needed. There is also an on-line users guide which can be called from within the program, and this covers all of the questions that you are likely to need answered.

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Conclusion

I could go on for some time explaining why I think that HTML-Kit is the best HTML editor that there is, but you really should decide for yourself. Why not read through the material on the HTML-Kit home page to see whether it might fit your needs.

If you need further convincing then I would recommend you also visit the HTML-Kit newsgroups. Just read through a few of the messages and you will quickly discover that the author of HTML-Kit is very serious about supporting and developing his software. With commitment like that it should be no surprise that HTML-Kit is a popular and fast developing project.

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Relevant links

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