This FAQ was prepared by Howard Harawitz.
This revision: December 4, 1994.
The most recent version of this FAQ can be obtained via anonymous FTP at: ftp.cs.dal.ca /htmlasst/htmlafaq.txt. You can download the plain text version directly by clicking here.
In addition to its editing facilities, HTML Assistant incorporates features which can help you to organize and keep track of the Internet resources that you use.
It runs under MS Windows so you need to have Windows on your system in order to use it.
The HTML documents created with HTML Assistant can be displayed on any computer for which browser software exists including IBM PC compatibles, Apple Macintosh, UNIX and simple terminal based systems.
The current release is version 1.4.
You can download it directly by clicking here. The file, "htmlasst.zip", is about 206K bytes in length. You can download it as a self-extracting archive, "htmlazip.exe" (222K bytes), by clicking here.
If you don't already have it, you will also need the file "vbrun300.dll". You can download it by clicking here as "vbrun300.zip" -- length is about 230K bytes. If you want a self-extracting archive, you can download "vbrunzip.exe" (about 245K), by clicking here.
If you prefer to use FTP software, the FTP site for HTML Assistant is: ftp.cs.dal.ca
The directory containing the files is /htmlasst/
Always check the short "readme.1st" file to see what files you need.
Click here to view the "HTML Assistant Newsletter" page for learning about the World Wide Web and HTML.
Once the document is displayed, simply point and click to bring up additional information.
To subscribe send Email to harawitz@fox.nstn.ns.ca. In the 'SUBJECT:' field include the word "subscribe" (quotes are not necessary). Optionally, you may include comments or suggestions in the text part of the message (our mailer is human operated!).
If you have questions about or problems with the HTML Assistant software you can send Email to the author, Howard Harawitz, at the same address.
The hypertext documents used by World Wide Web browsers are ordinary text files that include special markings that tell the browser software something about how the text should appear to the user, as well as how to retrieve information when the user requests it.
The language, or code, used for these special markings is Hypertext Markup Language (HTML).
While HTML markings could be added to any text file using a simple editor like "Notepad" which comes with MS Windows, the process is tedious and time consuming. Also, it is difficult to see how the documents you create will actually look when displayed by a browser.
HTML Assistant provides, along with a text editor, special tools and functions that 'assist' in the process of creating HTML text files by letting the computer handle most of the repetitive and time consuming tasks.
HTML Assistant also permits you to use WWW browsers to view your documents, while you are working on them, without leaving the editor.
HTML Assistant incorporates the following features to make the work of creating HTML text documents easier:
For example, the URL "ftp://ftp.cs.dal.ca/htmlasst/htmlasst.zip" could be used in an HTML document to enable a browser to retrieve the 'HTML Assistant' program files from an FTP site.
Continuing with the example, the HTML text that would permit a user to retrieve the HTML Assistant files might look something like this:
<a href = "ftp://ftp.cs.dal.ca/htmlasst/htmlasst.zip">Retrieve HTML Assistant program
files</a>
When the HTML was displayed by a browser, the user would see only the text "Retrieve HTML Assistant program files". The text would be highlighted in some way (i.e., underlined, boxed, or in a different color than normal text) to indicate that it was 'linked' to the URL and that the user could 'click' on it to download the binary file "htmlasst.zip".
URLs can be somewhat laborious to type. It requires even more typing to add the HTML code that makes the information pointed to by the URL accessible to a user.
With HTML Assistant, URLs need to be typed only once and sometimes not at all. URLs created in HTML Assistant can be saved to files and can be quickly retrieved for point and click insertion into any document.
URLs saved by browsers such as Cello (in Bookmark files) or Mosaic (in its menus and its 'hotlist') can be automatically copied and converted to HTML Assistant URL files for point and click insertion into your own documents.
HTML Assistant makes it easy to organize information you collect. Files of collected URLs can be automatically converted to HTML text with a few mouse clicks. This enables you to quickly create your own browser pages of links organized by subject, date or in whatever way suits you. You can build your own information system based on a hierarchy of menus kept on WWW browser pages stored on your hard drive or on an HTML server.
"Netscape" is available at ftp.mcom.com/netscape/. If that site is busy (as it often is), try one of the following:
"HTML Assistant Pro" is a commercially available version of HTML Assistant.
It has additional features including: