HTML Editors for Windows 3.x Reviewed

A few years ago, the trial period ran out on an HTML editor I was using. At the same time, I was sent twenty-five HTML files to check for errors and then to upload. So I was in the market for an HTML editor that might make repetitious tasks less tedious.

In the wake of this nightmare, I investigated several HTML editors. Perhaps my experience can benefit others who are considering an HTML editor for Windows 3.x.

HTML Editors Reviewed:

A Greener Pasture

Cost: Shareware?
Description: Small text-based editor. Could be a good choice for those who want a Notepad-like interface, but with pull-down menus for some HTML.
Screen shot of A Greener Pasture.
Pro: Very small--under half a meg, and could be run from a 3.5" floppy. Dialogue boxes for sound, images, QuickTime, and tables. Choice of 4 JavaScripts, some support for forms and style sheets, word wrap on or off.
Con: No search function at all, no help files, only 16 colors. The tag for no word wrap and the entity for double quote are wrong. No indication of file name, line, or column number of cursor. File sizes limited to around 32K, no user macros. Although you can still download AGP, the software developer appears to be defunct.

Anansi

Cost: Free.
Description: A project-oriented toolbar editor. Great for people who have a lot of web pages to maintain and who are already familiar with HTML.
Version tested: 1.0 (build 6).
Screen shot of Anansi.
Pro: Global search and replace, color picker that shows you the effect without firing up your browser, highly configurable user tools, open multiple files at once, word wrap on or off, indication of line and character (column) position, can view on choice of four browsers, automatically changes .htm extension to .html, some shortcut keystroke commands, over 300 levels of undo and redo, insert files, image helper automatically inserts height and width, automatic backup of edited files, assistants for forms and style sheets. Click-and-drag in the table assistant for colspan and rowspan. Can install FTP, spellchecker, imagemap utility, or the WDG's HTML 3.2 (Wilbur) Reference as helper applications. Could be run from a 3.5" HD floppy. A new version should appear Real Soon Now.
Con: Help files are minimal, no extensive list of tags, no list of attributes, no way to strip non-ASCII characters. Two shareware spellcheckers I have tried will not work with Anansi.

DominHTML

Cost: Shareware, $20, feature-limit demo.
Description: Toolbar HTML editor. Requires 2.8M disk space to install, 1.7M to run 16-bit version.
Version tested: 3.7.
Screen shot of DominHTML.
Pro: Preview GIF and JPEG files, insert files, undo, ordered list allows number type and starting number, nice forms helper, hot keys, 15 user tags, auto-indent, color picker can show you the effect without firing up your browser, image helper can automatically calculate height and width, 2 documents open, specify browser and up to 7 helper applications, global search and replace, project manager, table helper, return-to-editor icon when viewing in browser, can strip all tags from selected area, no nags, uninstall. The 32-bit version will run in Windows 3.x if you have Win32S. In registered version only: unlimited file size, more than two documents open, 750 more user tags, specify second browser, color syntax highlighting.
Con: 10K limit on file size in free version--I am tempted to go back to calling this "crippleware". No way to strip non-ASCII characters, allows table cell width to be specified as percentage, word wrap is very buggy.

FlexEd

Cost: Commercial, $40 AUS/$32 US, 30-day demo.
Description: Windows 3.11 toolbar HTML editor.
Version tested: 2.4b.
Screen shot of FlexEd.
Pro: File sizes up to 60M, open multiple files, automatic backup, undo/redo, HTML syntax highlighted in color, hot keys, user-defined tags, word wrap on or off, can edit and view at the same time, save as UNIX or Mac, auto-indent, can strip all HTML markup, time and date stamp, line and column number indicated, double-click on elements to edit attributes, built-in imagemap utility. Assistants for tables, frames, and forms. Free e-mail tech support and upgrades for 6 months for registered users.
Con: Spellchecker caused a general protection fault, wizards are clunky for links and imagemaps, "cellspacing" is misspelled, FONT dialogue allows only one FACE to be specified, comment syntax is incorrect, no global search and replace, no way to strip non-ASCII characters, cannot save custom tags until paid. Gives all new files the DTD for HTML 2.0. If default color is chosen for a BODY attribute, FlexEd does not define it. Some elements have a space before the closing > . You cannot try FlexEd 3.2 before you buy, and the mailto address at their site bounces.

GMUtant Editor

Cost: Free.
Description: Windows 3.x ASCII text editor. Replacement for Notepad.
Version tested: 1.08.
Screen shot of GMUtant Editor.
Pro: Large files OK, word wrap on or off, open multiple documents, undo/redo, time and date stamp, line and column indicated. Right-click for a very short menu of HTML tags. Very small: 670K, and if you already have VBRUN300.DLL and EMEDIT.VBX in your windows\system directory, you can bring it down to 104K.
Con: No global replace, no help files, almost all HTML markup must be done by hand.

HoTMetaL Free

Cost: Free.
Description: Windows 3.1x WYSIWYG HTML editor. Actually, in default mode HoTMetaL 2.0 is an odd blend of WYSIWYG and "view codes" in WordPerfect. Requires 486 (Pentium recommended), 8M RAM, Windows 3.1x, mouse, minimum 6.5M disk space.
Version tested: 2.0 release 3.88.
Screen shot of HoTMetaL.
Pro: In default mode, it is almost impossible to create invalid markup. Automatic save, view in browser, ordered list allows number type and starting number, multiple files open, paste in a search term, search limited by element, visible spaces and end-of-line, default template.
Con: The least intuitive interface I have seen, inserts extra paragraphs and some unnecessary closing tags, dialogues are clumsy, no tech support, help files are complex but not very informative, no way to turn word wrap on or off, no indication of line or column position, no global replace, no user macros, some buttons/menu items are inoperable. Will not teach you HTML--except for partial URLs, the actual markup is completely hidden.

HTML Assistant Pro 3.

Cost: Commercial. $50 upgrade, $60 competitive upgrade, or $90 first-time registration. 30-day demo.
Description: Commercial toolbar HTML editor.
Pro: Global search and replace, word wrap on or off, 255 levels of undo, menus for commonly-used markup for tables and forms, converts from UNIX to DOS and vice versa, automatic backup, allows large file sizes, RTF to HTML, spellchecker, unlimited e-mail tech support. Toggle small floating toolbar for frequently-needed tags (<LI>, <DT>, <DD>, etc.).
Con: If you don't register, HTML Assistant is timebombed so that even if you uninstall it and remove its files, you cannot demo it again. No way to strip non-ASCII characters. If you tell it to remove excess lines, it spits out very long double-spaced lines. Link dialogue is clumsy for relative URLs. User tools hard to configure. Sometimes difficult to figure out under which menu or button a particular tag is hidden. Older versions limit file size to 30K.

HTML Notepad

Cost: Commercial, £24 (Europe), $45 US (outside Europe), 30-day demo.
Description: Toolbar HTML editor.
Version tested: 2.2 (patch 1).
Screen shot of HTML Notepad.
Pro: Automatically create table of contents from anchors, comma- or tab-delimited text to HTML tables, HTML2TXT (can do batches), automatic backup, insert file, undo, remove all HTML markup from a selected area, converts UNIX to DOS and vice versa, word wrap on or off, color picker, time and date stamp, ordered list allows number type, file splitting. Possibly the best options for entities that I have seen. Some support for imagemaps, forms, frames, Java, JavaScript. Some support for conversion to C, Perl, JavaScript. Table assistant could be better, but produces valid syntax. Very small--242K. This editor could be run from a 5.25" DS DD floppy!
Con: No indication of line and column number, cannot close a file without saving, no way to strip non-ASCII characters, only one file open, cannot specify percentages in attributes. You are guessing blind when defining imagemap areas.

HTML Writer

Cost: Shareware, $10.
Description: Toolbar HTML editor.
Version tested: 0.9 Beta 4.
Screen shot of HTML Writer.
Pro: File sizes up to 4M, multiple files open, word wrap on or off, undo/redo, converts UNIX to DOS and vice versa, insert files, time and date stamp, can strip all HTML markup, can paste in a term to search for, user templates, forms helper, URL builder, shortcut keys, toggle toolbar and status bar, no nags. Small: 634K, and if you already have EMEDIT.VBX, CMDIALOG.VBX, and COMMDLG.DLL in your windows\system directory, you can bring it down to 348K.
Con: No global replace, no indication of line and column number, can't strip all non-ASCII characters, can't browse for an image. No longer being developed, and seems to have ended before HTML 3.0.

HyperType Edit

Cost: Shareware, $10.
Description: Toolbar HTML editor.
Version tested: 1.0b.
Screen shot of HyperType Edit.
Pro: Multiple files open, collapsible toolbar, color picker (slider bars) with preview, date stamp, double click on color in toolbar to insert anywhere in document, allows lowsrc, some support for imagemaps, basic prefab mailto form, no nags. Many of the most frequently used tags are on toolbar; more elements, attributes, and templates in pulldown menus. Very small: 342K, and if you already have CMDIALOG.VBX, COMMDLG.DLL, and THREED.VBX in your windows\system directory, you can bring it down to 174K.
Con: File size limited to 32K, no global replace, no indication of line and column number, "undo" doesn't, no quotes around relative font sizes, cannot turn off word wrap, no help file, no choice of editor display font face or size. Comments, name anchors, all entities, and all frame target attributes are wrong. Some elements and attributes are browser-specific, invalid, or obsolete. Unaccountably missing <DT> .

InfoScape MultiPad HTML

Cost: Commercial, $35 AUS (about $28 US), demo.
Description: Commercial toolbar Windows 3.11 HTML editor that doubles as a word processor. Requires 386, 4M RAM. Demo is missing a few features. You can use the evaluation version 21 times; after that, you cannot save files.
Version tested: 2.3.
Screen shot of InfoScape MultiPad HTML.
Pro: Can handle long lines and very large files, 255 levels of undo, up to 255 documents open at once, will run on a 386 with 4M RAM, time and date stamp, format blocks of text, line and column position indicated.
Con: Handles mailto incorrectly, uses names rather than numbers for colors, no global search and replace.

Mega Edit.

Cost: Shareware, $36.
Description: Windows 3.1x text editor/word processor.
Version tested: 2.14.
Screen shot of Mega Edit.
Pro: Open 25 files at once, large files OK, runs on a 286, shortcut keys, line and column indicated, split pane. Converts between DOS, UNIX, and Mac. Can paste in a term to search for. No nags, but registration allows unlimited file sizes.
Con: No global search and replace, word wrap does not seem to work correctly. All HTML markup must be done by hand.

Netscape Composer

Cost: Varies. Free to $107.
Description: WYSIWYG HTML editor. Component of Netscape Navigator 3.x Gold and of Netscape Communicator.
Pro: JavaScripts, some support for tables and Java, can edit HTML directly.
Con: Creates bloated, invalid markup. Removes some markup that author has inserted by hand. Inserts markup (notably the  ) without author's say-so. No support for forms, imagemaps--or frames! Netscape leads users to believe that Composer generates HTML 3.2, but, in fact, the output does not validate as even Netscape ("Mozilla") at the W3C's Validation Service.

Notepad

Description: Windows 3.x text editor.
Version tested: 3.11.
Pro: If you have Windows 3.x, you already have Notepad. Time and date stamp, won't add odd characters.
Con: "Save" behaves erratically: sometimes perfect, other times as one long line. File size limited to about 32K, no replace, no way to strip non-ASCII characters. Doesn't understand UNIX end-of-line convention. All HTML markup must be done by hand.

PC-Write 4.15, at Garbo

PC-Write Lite, 2.01, 3.04, Advanced Level 4.0, at funet.fi
Cost: Shareware?
Description: MS-DOS/Windows 3.x text editor/word processor. Requires DOS 3.0, 448K RAM for spellchecker. Versions 4.* require approximately 1.3M total space; earlier versions require just under 1M total for installation (three 5.25" DS DD floppies), 400K total after setup. Note: do not let your compression utility run the installation program. You must extract/unzip all of the download files to the same empty temporary directory, and then run workdisk (v. 3.*) or install (v. 4.*) manually from the DOS prompt or file manager.
Version tested: 4.16.
Screen shot of PC-Write.
Pro: Reformat blocks of text in a flash, spellchecker, can be installed and run from floppies, automatic backup, automatic save, indicates line and cursor position, word wrap on or off, customize installation, pair checking, "shorthand" for user-defined text strings, no nags. Easy to move to top or bottom of document, or to beginning or end of line. Versions 3.* and later run in DOS or Windows 3.x, and use mouse or keyboard. Versions 3.* and 4.0 AL make it easy to strip all non-ASCII characters at once; 4.15 and 4.16 can search and replace non-ASCII characters but the procedure is more complicated. PC-Write 3.04 would be a worthy choice for those who have older computers--it even runs happily from floppies on an 8088.
Con: No global search and replace, at least older versions choke on file sizes over 60K. I could not get 4.15 or 4.16 to convert to WordPerfect, as they promise to do. Starlite seems to have gone belly-up.

Programmer's File Editor

Cost: Free.
Description: Windows 3.1x text editor. An excellent replacement for Notepad, especially for those who do programming in addition to HTML authoring.
Version tested: 1.01.
Screen shot of Programmer's File Editor.
Pro: File sizes/multiple files limited only by memory, edit in UNIX or DOS or convert between them, undo, 20 user-defined macros, word wrap on or off, displays line and column number, reformat blocks of text at any time, user-defined defaults for different file types, automatic backup, remappable keyboard, pair checking of braces, insert files, use templates, auto-indent if you like, hard or soft tabs, delete to end of line, insert ASCII or ISO Latin-1 character, e-mail files if you have MAPI, run DOS commands, launch Windows applications, compile and see output in window, use keyboard or mouse. Add up to 5 Windows help files, such as the WDG's HTML 3.2 (Wilbur) Reference. Can remove characters for form feed, line feed, end of line, tab. Can set to be "language-aware" of C or TeX. Supports DDE, Y2K compliant. "Execute" menu lets you switch directly to Program Manager, File Manager, or Print Manager. Cursor "remembers" where you were last time you edited a file. Just over 1M; could be run from a floppy.
Con: No global search and replace, no HTML built-in, can't strip all non-ASCII characters, can't strip special characters unless you can determine the hex value. Oddly, some of the commands for manipulating text are hidden in a second-level menu. No longer being developed.

Prolix

Cost: Free for non-commercial use by individuals.
Description: Windows 3.x text editor.
Version tested: 2.1.
Screen shot of Prolix.
Pro: File sizes up to 16M, multiple files open, undo/redo (and cancel undo), time and date stamp, displays line and column number, word wrap on or off, auto-indent, automatic backup of edited files, option to strip trailing spaces or leave them intact. Could be run from a 3.5" floppy.
Con: No global replace, no way to strip non-ASCII characters, help files are minimal, all HTML markup must be done by hand.

Tag

Cost: Free.
Description: Windows 3.x text/HTML editor.
Version tested: 3.
Screen shot of Tag.
Pro: Very small (128K to install, 141K to run)--this editor could run from a 5.25" floppy! Fast. Well-organized pulldown menus for the most commonly needed HTML markup, cheat sheet for newcomers to HTML, undo.
Con: File size limited to somewhere between 40K and 64K. Only one file open, no search function at all, no hash mark before hex numbers for colors, help file incorrectly says that the function of <BLOCKQUOTE> is to indent text. <IMG> tag has the (invalid) attribute ALIGN="CENTER" by default, and program does not so much as mention the ALT attribute. Includes <PLAINTEXT>, which was deprecated in HTML 2.0 and obsoleted in the HTML 3.0 draft. Entities are fine for Spanish, but there is no entity for double quote. You'd have to build tables, forms, and frames by hand.

TC-Director

Cost: Shareware, $25.
Description: Toolbar HTML editor.
Version tested: 2.24.
Pro: Automatic backup, pair checking, color picker, imagemap helper, forms wizard, global search and replace, user tools.
Con: I could not get it to install. It was missing an *.ini file, and they never answered my mail asking about the problem. They used someone else's program to write their own home page.

TextPad.

Cost: Shareware, $27, feature-limit demo.
Description: Windows 3.1x text editor. Replacement for Notepad. Requires 386, 4M RAM, 2.3M disk space, Windows 3.1x running in 386 enhanced mode, 3.5M disk space for installation. 32-bit version will run in Windows 3.1x if you have a 486, 4M RAM, 2.5M disk space, and Win32S 1.30.172 (Win32S 1.30c). You can install Win32S or upgrade to Win32S 1.30.172.
Version tested: 3.2.5.
Screen shots of TextPad.
Pro: User interface in 7 languages, fast spellchecker with dictionaries available in 10 languages, global replace can use regular expressions, unlimited undo/redo, word wrap on or off, automatic save, automatic backup, reformat, multiple files open, 2 user macros, displays line and column number, insert file, time and date stamp, view file in browser. "Clip library" includes lists of some HTML elements and attributes (including a basic table) and some of the most common entities. Convert to DOS, save as DOS, UNIX, or Mac. Can paste in a search term, run DOS commands, sort, display visible spaces and end-of-line. Can view, search, and edit binaries in hex mode. Word count, character count, line count, can use WordStar key bindings. Can download clip files for some computer languages (C, VB, Perl, TeX, etc.). Registration gives capacity for 16 user macros. A nice touch: when I tried 3.2.5, users of the two previous versions could get a patch instead of downloading the whole thing.
Con: File size in 16-bit version limited to 64K. Doesn't close off table rows by default. "View line numbers" doesn't. Setting up user tools (for helper applications) is complicated. No longer being developed for 16-bit Windows.

UltraEdit

Cost: Commercial, $30, 45-day demo.
Description: Windows 3.1x text/hex editor. Excellent replacement for Notepad. Topnotch. If you are willing to consider a text editor, UltraEdit should be first on your list.
Version tested: 6.10a.
Screen shots of UltraEdit.
Pro: Unlimited file sizes, multiple files open, global search and replace can use regular expressions, spellchecker, custom syntax highlighting. Customizable lists of HTML elements, attributes, and entities. Insert file, automatic backup, multiple undo/redo, time and date stamp, word wrap on or off, auto-indent, shows line and column number, display ruler if you like, user macros, templates, some keystroke commands, remappable keyboard, configurable toolbar with 10 user tools, view file in browser, pair checking of braces, visible space and end-of-line, send current file as e-mail attachment if you have MAPI, displays file size and time last modified, convert tabs to spaces and vice versa, organize projects, word count, context-sensitive help, Y2K compliant. Dictionaries for 9 languages. ASCII table shows character, dec number, hex number, name, and control character. Converts from UNIX or Mac to DOS, and from DOS to UNIX. In addition to the tag lists, you can download some user-submitted macros for HTML. Can run DOS commands, launch Windows programs, compile, sort. Can add other Windows help files, such as the WDG's HTML 3.2 (Wilbur) Reference. Can use up to 10 computer languages; available add-ons include Cascading Style Sheets, Cold Fusion, Delphi, FoxPro, JavaScript, JScript, MathML, Oracle, Perl, PHP, Python, VRML, and XML. (Capabilities for C/C++, VB, Java, and HTML are built in.) Can edit hex files. Free updates for one year for registered users--and the author makes improvements often, and is open to suggestions.
Con: Though you can delete some special characters, I don't think you can strip all non-ASCII characters at once. No integrated FTP in 16-bit version. No longer being developed for 16-bit.

Web Page Creator

Cost: Commercial, $20, 30-day demo.
Description: Toolbar HTML editor. Requires 2M disk space, 2.8M disk space for setup.
Version tested: 7.33.
Screen shot of Web Page Creator.
Pro: Multiple files open, global search and replace, nice built-in imagemap utility, global spellchecker, ordered list allows type of number and starting number, preview GIFs, image helper automatically sets height and width, view in choice of two browsers, time and date stamp, automatic backup, collapsible toolbars, project manager, color picker, 20 user macros can be placed on user toolbar, good explanation of marking up sound files, nice frame builder. Indicates line and column position, number of lines in current file, and byte size. GIF animator is included, though not documented. Two user templates: one for frames and the other for non-framed pages. Won't mess with other directories. Much improved from the last version I tried.
Con: Uses nonstandard terminology, table wizard is confusing, forms dialogue is tedious, does not quote percentages in attributes, strips trailing spaces, uses absolute sizes for FONT. The "subject" hack for mailto forms won't determine a subject. "Undo" sometimes behaves strangely--either doesn't delete all of last action or deletes more than one previous edit. If a default color is chosen for a BODY attribute, Web Page Creator does not define it. If you change your mind about word wrap, you have to close the file and open it again before the change will take effect. WPC may have gone belly up.

Webford

Cost: Free.
Description: Toolbar Windows 3.1x HTML editor. Requires 386, 8M RAM, mouse, 1.5M disk space for installation.
Version tested: 2.01.
Screen shot of Webford.
Pro: The price is right. Might be nice for beginners. Nicest default for mailto links that I have seen, 6 JavaScripts, easily inserts most common META tags, menu of links to more than 2 dozen popular search engines, basic mailto form, forms for 4 popular search engines, ability to remove all HTML markup from document, table wizard, converts from UNIX to DOS. Default template, two user templates. Can run on a 386--but is very slow if you do so. After unzipped, weighs in at around half a meg, so could be run from a 3.5" floppy.
Con: File size limited to 29K, only 16 colors and uses names instead of hex value, no user tools, can't turn word wrap off, doesn't put quotation marks around percentages in attributes, allows percent as width in TD, uses <BLOCKQUOTE> for "indent", automatically hides console for sound files, no accented characters or list of tags. I find the tooltips annoying. No longer being developed for Windows 3.1.

WebMania!

Cost: Shareware, $35 (Standard), $50 (Pro), 30-day demo.
Description: Toolbar HTML editor. Requires VBRUN300.DLL, and at least 6M disk space. Mailto forms processing requires a POP3 account. If you keep the shareware version longer than 30 days, some features will be disabled.
Version tested: 2.0a.
Screen shot of WebMania!
Pro: Complicated but very thorough forms setup and processing, with built-in JavaScripts, cgi scripts, Perl, and boilerplate text for e-mail forms. Color picker, collapsible toolbars, hide HTML markup, user tools, open multiple documents, undo. Free support and free upgrades for registered users. In the Pro version only: Spellchecker, built-in imagemap/usemap utility, assistants for tables and frames, user-defined browser, automatic import of forms responses.
Con: The DOS SHARE specification which WebMania requires in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file interferes with the functioning of other applications and causes a SHARE protection fault. No global replace, no way to turn word wrap off, no way to strip non-ASCII characters, no indication of line or column position, no entities, no list of elements or attributes. Doesn't quote FONT FACE or FONT COLOR, no hash mark preceding hex value of colors, doesn't close off table rows, dialogue boxes are not movable. Inserts an ad at the bottom of all edited pages.

WebMaster Gold (at various software archives).

Cost: Commercial, $60, time-limit demo.
Description: Windows 3.1x toolbar HTML editor. Requires 386, 4M RAM, 6M disk space for setup, SVGA, mouse.
Version tested: 1.0.
Screen shot of WebMaster Gold.
Pro: Less expensive version (WebMaster Standard, $30, has 255 levels of undo/redo, color picker, useful lists of tags and attributes, good help files, free tech support and free upgrades for one year, user-defined tags, dialogues for tables and forms. Large files OK. User-specified image editor, imagemap helper, telnet, FTP. WebMaster Gold has all of the above, plus spellchecker, image library, some JavaScript support, time and date stamp, indication of line and column number, floating mini-toolbar. Allows low res image. Table and META dialogues could be better, but produce valid syntax.
Con: No global search and replace, none of the entities are followed by a semicolon, doesn't use quotation marks around percentages in attributes, no way to strip non-ASCII characters. I am told that WebMaster is slow on a 386, but not nearly as slow as Webford. WebMaster Gold for Windows 3.x no longer being developed.

WebWord.

Cost: Free.
Description: Toolbar HTML editor. 486 and Windows 3.11 recommended.
Version tested: 1.0.
Screen shot of WebWord.
Pro: File sizes up to 255K, multiple files open, undo, word wrap on or off, highly configurable user tools. Assistants for tables and forms. Very small--under half a meg, and could be run from a 3.5" floppy. Source code (Delphi) available.
Con: No global replace, comments syntax is wrong, doesn't close table rows or cells by default, no indication of line or column number.

So what's the bottom line? There are a few bow-wows which everyone would do well to avoid. Several could be made more useful with add-ons for web page creation. A few are very good, but there is no perfect HTML editing tool. You must decide which features are most important to you, and whether you can live with the shortcomings of a particular editor.

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