Test reports

3. Software test: HTML-Composer »Webplug V2 beta« (by Klaus Moddemann)

Recently, the new version 2.0 of the HTML composer "Webplug" (WP) was released on Aminet. After unpacking the archive don't look for an install script - there isn't one. But that's not really a problem, you can do it yourself easily. Copy two libraries to LIBS: and the config file to ENV: and ENVARC: and you are set.

Like most programs, you start WP by double-clicking on its icon in the Webplug directory. The upper part of the main window contains a toolbar to call up the function groups as separate windows. You can customize your interface and thanks to MUI, which is used by WP, you can snapshot all windows to make them open at a certain place on the screen.

Below the toolbar, you find the editor itself, displaying the raw HTML code of your page. All functions called from the menus are displayed here and can be edited. If you, for example, want to create a "Bold" text, select "Bold" from the "Styles" menu. Then the HTML tag appears inside the editor, together with the appropriate end-tag. Between these two, you can now enter your text.

This principle is used throughout the whole program - you select an option and then edit it by hand in the editor.

Because of the number of features and the complexity of the program, you should read the manual thoroughly. It is not included in version 2.0 , so you will have to download it together with version 1.45 from Aminet. The manual is HTML and written in English. After reading it and getting used to the program, WP is very easy to use.

According to the author, Webplug needs:

Workbench V39+
MUI 3.8+
TextEditor.mcc
BetterString.mcc
WWW-Browser

Starting with version 2.0, WebPlug has become Freeware, which makes it even more interesting for people who want to create their own homepages.

The only drawback: Webplug 2.0 is currently only a beta version, and during the next few months, there will be no further development, due to lack of time.

Klaus Moddemann <Elfmagier@gmx.de>