Let’s dive in and set up our environment to start coding. This tutorial will walk you through installing Visual Studio Code (VS Code) and some essential extensions to streamline your HTML development process.
What do you need to start learning HTML? You don’t need any prior knowledge to start learning HTML. It’s the fundamental language of the web and often the first step for aspiring web developers.
Essential Tools for Creating HTML Pages
- HTML Editor: This is where you’ll write your HTML code. You can use any text editor, but for this tutorial, we recommend Visual Studio Code due to its simplicity and versatility.
Some popular editors include Notepad++, TextEdit, Sublime Text, Visual Studio Code, WebStorm, Eclipse, and online platforms like CodePen and JSFiddle.
Note: You can even use a simple Notepad to write HTML. Editors like VS Code just make the process more convenient.
- Web Browser: Browsers interpret HTML tags and display web pages in a visually appealing format. For this tutorial, we’ll use Google Chrome, but you can also use Chromium, Firefox, Safari, or Microsoft Edge.
Installing and Setting Up Visual Studio Code for HTML
We’ll walk through installing Visual Studio Code and configuring it for HTML development. Additionally, we’ll install extensions to enhance its functionality.
Here’s how to set up Visual Studio Code for HTML on your system.
- Search for “Visual Studio Code download” on Google.
- Download Visual Studio Code for your Operating System (e.g., Windows).
- Follow the installation instructions specific to your OS.
For a visual guide on installing VS Code, check out this quick video tutorial:
Installing the Live Server Extension
We’ll also install the Live Server extension in Visual Studio Code to enable live reload functionality for HTML pages. This extension launches a local development server, automatically reloading your page as you make changes.
Here’s a quick video tutorial on installing the Live Server extension in VS Code
In the upcoming lesson, we’ll start writing some code and explore the structure of HTML documents. Stay tuned!