There are more resources out there than one can possibly absorb, but the quick start is to see a simple webpage that you like and go in Netscape or Internet Explorer VIEW SOURCE. You will then see what a webpage looks like. If you look at a simple page, you can then use the CTL+C to copy it to a text editor and modify it to match your needs or wants (barring copyright limitations). (While my recommendations are tailored toward PC's, Mac users can just substitute Mac based applications.) You can use Notepad to edit it. I would recommend against using Word as it seems to have a mind of its own (a Microsoft trademark), but you can save any Word document as an HTML document. My favorite simple HTML editor is HTMLed and my favorite compact graphics editor is LViewPro. You should save these both and install them on your own PC. They can be found for downloading at Stroud's CWS Apps (who have gobs of other useful apps and reviews on line).
You can go down to Walden Books or your favorite bookstore and look for a book on HTML editing that makes sense to you. Web pages should be in my opinion informative and not full of graphics and cutsey stuff that doesn't add to the content. File and graphic sizes and tables should be kept relative small to maximize speed of loading. Use the "alt" tag to provide a descriptive tag for graphics.
To actually create your own webpage, the opening file is usually called "index.htm" or "index.html" (your choice on file extension). When someone goes to your directory without specifying a file name, it opens this index file. Frontpage tends to use the "default.htm" filename instead.
Here's a small but useful collection of links for dealing with homepage design and graphic elements on the web.
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Last updated April 25, 2002