About HTML

HTML, which stands for HyperText Markup Language, is a markup language used to create web pages. The web developer uses "HTML tags" to format different parts of the document. For example, you use HTML tags to specify headings, paragraphs, lists, tables, images and much more.
HTML is a subset of Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) and is specified by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

What do I need to create HTML?

You don't need any special equipment or software to create HTML. In fact, you probably already have everything you need. Here is what you need:

• Computer
• Text or HTML editor. Most computers already have a text editor and you can easily create HTML files using a text editor. Having said that, there are definite benefits to be gained in downloading an HTML editor. Although text editors are an option, I don't know any serious web developer who actually uses one to code their websites! CoffeeCup is one of the most popular HTML editors on the web.
  If you don't have the cash to purchase an editor, you can always download a free one. Examples include SeaMonkey, CoffeeCup free version (Windows) and TextPad (Windows).
  If you don't have an HTML editor, and you don't want to download one just now, a text editor is fine. Most computers already have a text editor. Examples of text editors include Notepad (for Windows), Pico (for Linux), or Simpletext/Text Edit/Text Wrangler (Mac).
• Web Browser. For example, Internet Explorer, Firefox, or Google Chrome.

Do I need to be online?

No, you do not need to be online to create web pages. You can create web pages on your local machine. You only need to go online when you want to publish your web page to the web - this bit comes later.
The next lesson will show you how to create a web page in less than 5 minutes.