Well, we thought we had a good system of HTML-coding buttons for new folo’s comment box, but the one we got didn’t work so hot. Webmaster riddenword is, I understand, looking into other possibilities, but for now you still gotta do it by hand if you want to tart-up something in a comment.
So here’s a basic tutorial in how to make the "special effects " you see online — the boldface, italics,
indented blockquotes,
hyperlinks, and anything else that’s beyond the site’s ordinary typeface (we get beyond basic, and I’m in over my head, so that’s all I’m gonna try to show you).
First, look at those left- and right-arrow symbols, the "uppercases " of the comma and period keys on your keyboard. Those are essential elements of HTML coding — it just doesn’t happen without them. The other essential character in every pair of coding signals is the / (without which, whatever coding you’ve started will go on forever, which tends to make other people cross with the careless one).
Right, here we go . . .
To make something bold, just in front of that word or phrase, type <strong>. Where you want the boldface to quit, type </strong>. Thus:
<strong>bold</strong> = bold.
To italicize something, right in front of the word or phrase, type <em> and right behind it, </em>. So
<em>italics</em> = italics
To make an indented blockquote, type right in front of the passage <blockquote> and at its end </blockquote>.
<blockquote>indented blockquote</blockquote> =
indented blockquote
Now here’s the most intricate one, but once you get the hang of it, it’s easy too. To make a fancy-schmancy hyperlink instead of just simply cutting-&-pasting the URL of a source you want us to see,
1. type <a href=”[X]“> (note the space between the a and the h, and the pair of quotemarks after the equal sign; see next step for what [X] will be — I just have to put that here now to trick the site — don’t ask). Between the quotemarks,
2. drop in the URL of your source (copied from the address field at screen top). Then
3. right after the right-facing arrow, type whatever text you want us to see, either your own phrasing or perhaps the source’s headline. Finally,
4. snugged-up after the end of that phrase, type </a>. So:
<a href=”http://www.folo.us“>linked text</a> = linked text
Go ahead, experiment (I’m headed to bed soon, so whatever trouble you get into won’t bovvah me, heh) — have fun, you bigtime computer-programmer, you!
