The FrontPage Interface
Article ID: KB101580
FP 2002 | FP 2003
FrontPage 2003
The FrontPage Interface isn't hard to figure out -- a lot of it
is similar to other Microsoft programs like Word or PowerPoint.
However, there are some components specific to FrontPage that may
require some explanation, especially if you're new. This tutorial is
designed to give a quick overview of the features of FrontPage that
we frequently use. There are lots of other great features in
FrontPage that you can explore, as well.
When you first open a web site in FrontPage, the interface will
most likely look like this:
This is the interface when FrontPage is in Design View.
You will probably spend most of your time here.
File Location
At the very top of the page, in the blue bar, is the complete
file location of the page that you're working on. This is especially
helpful if you have pages in subfolders with the same name (for
example, default.htm and subfolder/default.htm) -- you can tell
which page you're working on.
Menu bar and Tool bars
Next comes your typical menu bar, with File, Edit, View, etc.
Beneath the menu bar are your toolbars. The toolbars allow you to quickly access
common tasks. You may customize the toolbars to hold the commands
that you most frequently use. (See our
toolbars tutorial for
more information.)
Web Site Tab
The Web Site Tab appears at the top of the content window (see E).
Clicking on this tab displays a page that allows you to view
information about your Web Site such as Folders, Navigation, and
Tasks. To access these different pages, click on the colored boxes
at the bottom of the Web Site Page. If you are familiar with
FrontPage 2000 or 2002, this Tab is equivalent to the Views bar. (See the
Views bar tutorial for more information.)
Folder List
The folder list shows the folder and file structure of your web
site. You can click on a folder to expand or collapse it. If you
want to show or hide the Folder List, go to View > Folder List.
Page in Design View
This is your page in design view (see "G" for discussion of
other types of page views). The white highlighted tab at the top displays the file
name of the page. If you have more than one page open, there will be
a tab for each page so that you can quickly switch back and forth
between different pages. Design View is a "what you see is what you
get" (WYSIWIG) editor, which means that as you type and add content,
the layout will be very similar to what the page will look like in
an actual browser.
Folder List/Navigation View
The Folder List/Navigation View buttons allow you to switch
between your folder list and the navigation structure of your web
site. Alternatively, you may use the Views bar Navigation button to
see a larger version of the navigation of your web site.
Page Mode tabs - Design, Split, Code, and Preview
The page view tabs allow you to see your page in different
modes. Most of the time you will spend your time in Design Mode
(diagram above). If your web site uses frames, you'll see two more
tabs - No Frames, and Frame Page HTML.
 |
Split mode
A new feature of FrontPage 2003, Split mode allows you
to view both the HTML code as well as the Design screen.
This mode is particularly useful for editing frames pages.
By clicking on a frame in the Design section, you can view
and edit the HTML for that frame's page.
|
 |
Code mode
If you're familiar with HTML, you can switch to HTML
mode to see the HTML code. If you're not familiar with HTML,
you probably will not want to edit in this mode. However, it
may be useful to glance at the HTML as you code and begin to
learn some of the HTML tags.
|
 |
Preview Mode
Finally, Preview gives you a
pretty good rendering of what your page will look like in
Internet Explorer, although some things may not be exactly
as they will be displayed. (Use File > Preview in Browser
for an accurate representation.)
|
Load Time
The load time area is an approximation of how long it will take
for your page to load. You can switch the load time to different
speeds (28.8K, 56K, T1, etc.). Please note that these are
approximate times and are most likely faster than the actual
time it will take to download the page.
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FP 2002 | FP 2003
FrontPage 2002
The FrontPage Interface isn't hard to figure out -- a lot of it
is similar to other Microsoft programs like Word or PowerPoint.
However, there are some components specific to FrontPage that may
require some explanation, especially if you're new. This tutorial is
designed to give a quick overview of the features of FrontPage that
we frequently use. There are lots of other great features in
FrontPage that you can explore, as well.
When you first open a web site in FrontPage, the interface will
most likely look like this:
This is the interface when FrontPage is in Normal View.
You will probably spend most of your time here.
File Location
At the very top of the page, in the blue bar, is the complete
file location of the page that you're working on. This is especially
helpful if you have pages in subfolders with the same name (for
example, default.htm and subfolder/default.htm) -- you can tell
which page you're working on.
Menu bar and Tool bars
Next comes your typical menu bar, with File, Edit, View, etc.
Beneath the menu bar are your toolbars. The toolbars allow you to quickly access
common tasks. You may customize the toolbars to hold the commands
that you most frequently use. (See our toolbars tutorial for
more information.)
Views bar
The Views bar runs along the left side of the window. The Views
bar allows you to quickly switch between different views. If you want to show
or hide it, go up to View > Views Bar. (See the
Views bar
tutorial for more information.)
Folder List
The folder list shows the folder and file structure of your web
site. You can click on a folder to expand or collapse it. If you
want to show or hide the Folder List, go to View > Folder List.
Page in Normal View
This is your page in normal view (see "G" for discussion of
other types of page views). The tab at the top displays the file
name of the page. If you have more than one page open, there will be
a tab for each page so that you can quickly go back and forth
between different pages. Normal View is a "what you see is what you
get" (WYSIWIG) editor, which means that as you type and add content,
the layout will be very similar to what the page will look like in
an actual browser.
Folder List/Navigation View
The Folder List/Navigation View buttons allow you to switch
between your folder list and the navigation structure of your web
site. Alternatively, you may use the Views bar Navigation button to
see a larger version of the navigation of your web site.
Page Mode tabs - Normal, HTML, and Preview
The page view tabs allow you to see your page in different
modes. Most of the time you will spend your time in Normal Mode
(diagram above). If your web site uses frames, you'll see two more
tabs - No Frames, and Frame Page HTML.
 |
HTML mode
If you're familiar with HTML, you can switch to HTML
mode to see the HTML code. If you're not familiar with HTML,
you probably will not want to edit in this mode. However, it
may be useful to glance at the HTML as you code and begin to
learn some of the HTML tags.
|
 |
Preview Mode
Finally, Preview gives you a
pretty good rendering of what your page will look like in
Internet Explorer, although some things may not be exactly
as they will be displayed. (Use File > Preview in Browser
for an accurate representation.)
|
Load Time
The load time area is an approximation of how long it will take
for your page to load. You can switch the load time to different
speeds (28.8K, 56K, T1, etc.). Please note that these are
approximate times and are most likely faster than the actual
time it will take to download the page.
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