Untangling Spaghetti HTML First published in E-Book Compiler Newsletter
When I was first learning to write computer programs, one of the most important points that was drummed into me was that it's never a good idea to write great chunks of computer code that are repetitions of earlier code. The reason is simple: when it comes time to update the code, you'll have a tough time making the same change in each copy, and you'll have an even tougher time making sure that each changed copy has been modified in the same way.
Why this digression into programming lore? If you create web sites (or e-books), there is a good chance that, at least most of the time, you don't think of your HTML files as "computer code". You probably think of them as content, documents, my writing... etc. But the truth is they are. You need only open an HTML file in a plain text editor, and you can see the HTML language.
So the question is, can the same spaghetti problem arise with HTML code? If you've been a webmaster for a while, you probably already know the answer... absolutely. The typical web site (or e-book) contains lot of repeated elements.
For example, you may have the same heading or footer on each page. You might have a search box or banner code on each page. You might have the same menu down the side.
Updating all these multiple copies of the same HTML code in different files quickly gets tiresome. Even if you haven't encountered the update-problem yet, as your projects grow larger and larger, you soon will.
HOW TO AVOID SPAGHETTI?
One answer is the various "include" mechanism that HTML technologies provide: - Server Side Includes (SSI)
This technology is implemented on many web sites, and basically allows you to include a common fragment of HTML code (stored in a separate file) into as many HTML pages as you want. The advantage is that instead of updating each file individually, you only need update the common fragment once.
Here's how:
- On most web servers, you simply rename your HTML files (the ones that are doing the including) with a .shtml extension.
- Where you want to include the common fragment of code use a line like:
<!--#include file="fragment.html" -->
- ASP Includes
For NT web servers, in .asp pages, you can the exact same include syntax as for SSI.
- PHP Includes
If your web site supports PHP (a script language that runs on the server), another way to achieve the same thing is to use the PHP include command.
Here's how:
- Rename your HTML files (the ones that are doing the including) with a .php extension.
- Where you want to include the common fragment of code use a line like:
<?php include 'fragment.php' ; ?>
- Activ E-Book PreProcessor
If you're making e-books Activ E-Book Compiler allows you to include common fragments of HTML code into multiple files. If there's a lot of repetition, this can also help you reduce the size of your e-book download.
You'll find instructions how to use this at:
http://www.ebookfriends.com/cgi-bin/ikonboard/topic.cgi?forum=1&topic=88
NO THROUGH ROAD HITHER?
Right, so this all sounds fantastic, problem solved?
Not so fast... While these are powerful techniques they also have drawbacks and limitations: - Most web design programs don't know anything about these types of includes. This means you have to work in a text editor on the raw HTML code, manually chopping up your files into fragments, and inserting the include commands into the HTML code. Worse yet, once you've done it, it's quite possible your web design program won't allow you to make any further changes.
- For the web server based technologies (SSI, ASP, PHP), firstly not every web site supports these facilities, and secondly, they do put extra processing load on your web server. For most small sites, the extra load is not going to make a difference, but if you have a very busy site, it could be the straw that broke the camel's back.
- Even if you can live with the first two problems, there's still some major issues: Includes can help resolve the spaghetti problem on new projects, but what about projects you've already completed and want to update? What about if you plan on using Includes, but didn't realize at the start that something was a common fragment? What about if the fragment of code you want to replace was something that's too small to bother including every time (like a font name, or a single-word spelling-mistake, or an affiliate link)?
So, at best, Includes can help, but they are far from a panacea.
AN ALTERNATE APPROACH...
If I finished the article at this point, you'd probably think I had merely told you (or reminded you!) about a nagging problem, but left you with no solution.
Fortunately there is one, and it's a good one. At the beginning of this piece, I reminded you that HTML files are really text files containing HTML computer code. This means you can use text-editing tools to manipulate individual files, or better yet, all your files in one go.
A good Find and Replace program will update all your files easily and very quickly. Better yet, you don't need to be a programmer, and you don't need to understand the intricacies of the HTML language - it's easy enough for anyone. Another advantage is that unlike editing files manually, there is no possibility of it making a mistake on page number 342 of 427.
While there are many Find and Replace programs on the market, it's best to get one that is specifically designed for HTML files. For this reason, I'd recommend Alias Find and Replace, which you can get from:
http://www.aliassoftware.com/
This is a nice Windows-based program with a lot of powerful features, but is also easy to use. There's even a free trial download, so you can try out the program at no risk.
Once you've got the program, you can use it to make global changes across all (or a selection of) your HTML files, stick with plain HTML (and never worry about the spaghetti issue again!), or use it as a stepping stone towards the Include method.
A FINAL THOUGHT
What many people don't realize when they first create a web site (or e-book), is that as much or more work can go into updating it, as in writing in the first place.
Updating can be particularly painful (and time consuming) if you don't plan ahead, and you do everything manually. So plan ahead, use the techniques and tools I've shown you in this article, and you'll be surprised how much easier the update process can be.
Create your own E-Books that you can give away free to drive traffic to your web site, or sell for profit. Download and try a FREE copy of the software today at: http://www.ebookcompiler.com/
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