• Keep it simple by starting with basic text, lists, links, and simple formatting.
• Focus on utility and functionality.
• Don't waste time on making things pretty, graphics, and animation.
• Limit your use of color to headings(optional) and link text.
• Make it obvious as to where each link will lead.
  
  
• Focus on the value added that comes from organizing information.
• Organization is implemented in how you employ links in web pages.
• Be clear about what your links/connections between information mean.
  
  
• Don't use html unless you have to.
• The primary benefit of web pages in the work environment is creating links.
• Tables are clumsy in html, so do them in Word or Excel where they are natural.
• Use the right tool for capturing/presenting each piece of information.
• Only use web pages as the glue that holds multiple pieces of information together.
  
  
• Work environments aren't as limited as the WWW.
• You can assume that others have all the basic MS Office applications.
• Converting MS Office application to html generally loses functionality.
• e.g. ability to search and/or to sort and/or to use revisions to modify
• Leave documents in original format for greatest flexibility.
  
  
• Basic web pages are easy to build. Use them to become the Master of information.
• Greatest value is in putting information at your fingertips in a useful context.
• What is useful to you may be useful to others. So SHARE what you learn!

On the WWW, links go to URLs [Unique Resource Locators] that provide sufficient information to get to an actual resource regardless of where it exists in the world. When one works in a local mode, such all links become relative to the root of the machine that one resides on. In my personal case, my work environment is replicated in folders that are on different shared drives on machines that are in different locations. Further, the machines are on completely separate networks.

The following are some of my lessons learned regarding links based on over two months of using this technology in a local mode:

• Storing shared files in a single folder makes linking easier, since filename.ext can be used without specifying a path.
  
  
• Establishing a common hierarchical folder structure(using identical folder names) is necessary to make relative links work in multiple network environments. The drive and folder structure that is prior to the root folder of interest is not important since all local file names/paths are relative to the location of the local html folder of the current file.
  
  
• If you create files in the folder that they will reside in and use browse to get to the files for any links, then the relative path will be set appropriately in Netscape Gold.
  
  
• Use filename.ext to link to a file in the same folder.
  
  
• Use ../filename.ext to back up one level in the directory structure.
  
  
• Use ../directory/filename.ext to reach a file in a different directory at the same level.
  
  
• Use index.html to create a directory of the current folder. This can be preceeded by path instructions to create a directory for a folder relative to the current one.
  
  
• Be careful NOT to use Save As from Netscape Gold to move a file to a different directory unless you mean for the links to change to be reflect the change in file location. This can cause your links to stop working resulting in File Not Found errors.
  
  
• If you do this, the usual result is the addition of ../ or ../../ in front of all relative links. The easiest way to correct this is via an editor such as Wordpad that permits global replacements.
  
  
• Another alternative is to scroll through the document and cut out such additions to relative links.
  
  
• I learned this the hard way, resulting in several hours of work to repair links in multiple files on several systems earlier today. This is not something you want to have to do if you can avoid it ... so be very careful when using Save As from Netscape Gold's editor. The safe way is to use copy file to replicate files that contain relative links.
  
  
  
• Operating in a local mode does not limit you from using mixing URLs with local links in your documents. These will continue to work properly so long as you have WWW access.

Note (1): This is one area where web page editors/browsers might want to offer new capabilities that make it easier to work in local, non-WWW environments. In particular, provide more intuitive control of how relative links are managed.

Note (2): A second area for improved browser performance in local environments would be to offer an option that results in doing an Open File from a Helper application if the application is already open, rather than launching a new instantiation of the Helper application each time a link requiring a helper is selected.

Note (3): A third area for improved browser performance in local environments would be to offer an option for Windows NT users that brings a Helper application to the front when a link is allocated, rather than bringing Netscape automatically to the front. Presently, this requires doing an ALT TAB every time a Helper application is launched to bring the selected file back to the front.