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What can I do if my code is being altered by a web-editing program?

WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) web-editing programs will sometimes alter code after you paste it into your page. This can lead to unexpected and sometimes negative results. Altering Javascript code can cause tracking problems, and you may not receive proper credit for impressions and clicks originating from your site.

You can use the following procedure to ensure link integrity no matter which web editor you use:

1. Once you have finished designing/editing the page, close your web editor.
2. Open the HTML source file of the associated page with a text-editor (e.g., Notepad).
3. Add the generated link code.
4. Upload/publish the page before opening it again in your web editor.

Depending on the web editor you use, there may be a way to avoid undesirable changes in your code within the program itself. For each of the common web-authoring tools listed below, there is at least one method you can use to keep your links intact:

• Adobe Page Mill 3.0
• Allaire HomeSite 4.0
• AOL Hometown
• AOL Press 2.0
• Coffee Cup HTML Editor++
• Microsoft FrontPage 2.0/2000
• Microsoft Word 97/2000
• ipagebuilder
• Netscape Composer
• Netscape Gold

  NOTE: It is a good idea to check your HTML source code against the generated code to look for inconsistencies even when using one of the listed procedures. As always, monitor your impressions data to ensure that your activity is being properly recorded.

Adobe PageMill 3.0

If you are pasting code for The Gospel Banner Exchange into Adobe PageMill 3.x, follow these steps to successfully place the link:

1. Open the page you want to edit with PageMill.
2. Choose Source Mode from the View menu.
   The HTML code appears.
3. Paste the code for The Gospel Banner Exchange into the HTML code.
4. To view the link, choose Preview Mode from the View menu (or press Ctrl + Enter).
   The banner now appears on your page.
5. Save and upload the page.

Allaire HomeSite 4.0

If you are pasting code generated for The Gospel Banner Exchange into Allaire HomeSite 4.x, follow these steps to successfully place the code:

1. Open the page you want to edit with HomeSite.
2. Make sure you are working on the Edit tab in the main window.
3. Paste the code for The Gospel Banner Exchange into the HTML code.
4. Click the Browse tab to view the banner.
   HomeSite's Browse feature is a full-functioning web browser. It allows you to click on the banner and go to the corresponding web site.
5. Save and upload the page.

AOL Hometown

If you are pasting code from The Gospel Banner Exchange into AOL Hometown Publisher 1-2-3, follow these steps to successfully place the code:

1. Log on to AOL.
2. In the keyword search box, type Easy Designer.
3. Open the page you want to edit.
4. From the Insert menu, choose Advanced HTML.
5. Paste the tag code into the box that appears and click OK.
6. Drag the HTML object to the location where you want the tag to appear.
7. Save and upload the page.

   NOTE: You can use the HTML editor of your choice to create your page locally and then post it to AOL using an FTP client. You can also use a web editor that has one-click publishing to AOL, so you do not need to use a separate FTP client. One such program is HotDog Express.

AOL Press 2.0

If you are pasting code from The Gospel Banner Exchange into AOL Press 2.0, follow these steps to successfully place the code:

1. Open the page you want to edit with AOL Press.
2. Choose Show HTML from the Tools menu.
   A new window opens containing the page's HTML source code.
3. Paste the code for The Gospel Banner Exchange into the HTML.
4. Close the window.
   A dialog box appears asking you if you want to apply changes.
5. Select Apply.
   The new banner should be visible on the web page.
6. Save and upload the page.

Coffee Cup HTML Editor++

If you are pasting code generated for The Gospel Banner Exchange into Coffee Cup HTML Editor++, follow these steps to successfully place the banner code:

1. Open the page you want to edit with Coffee Cup.
   You will see the existing HTML source code for that page.
2. Paste the code for The Gospel Banner Exchange into the HTML.
3. Choose Test with Favorite Browser (or Test with Default Browser) from the Tools menu.
   Your web page appears with the new banner code.
4. Save and upload the page.

Microsoft FrontPage 2.0/2000

If you are pasting code for The Gospel Banner Exchange into Microsoft FrontPage 2.0/2000, you may experience difficulties because FrontPage encodes certain characters (e.g., ampersands) contained in the banner code. You can avoid this problem in one of two ways.

Option #1:

1. Open the page you want to edit with FrontPage.
2. Choose HTML Markup from the Insert menu.
   A dialog box appears.
3. Paste the code for The Gospel Banner Exchange into the dialog box.
4. Click OK.
   An icon will represent where the banner will appear on the web page.
5. Save and upload the page.

   NOTE: If you add code this way, the banner will not appear in the FrontPage editor and will only appear after you preview/publish.

Option #2 (this option is not available for FrontPage Express users):

1. Open the FrontPage editor and the page you want to edit.
2. Click the HTML tab at the bottom of the page.
   This lets you modify the HTML source code directly; however, FrontPage will check the HTML you enter and may encode it.
3. In order to avoid the encoding problem, add the code using the format below:

   <!-- webbot bot="HTMLMarkup" startspan ---->
   Add the Javascript code here
   <!-- webbot bot="HTMLMarkup" endspan ---->
   

4. Save your web page.

If you are using FrontPage Express, you can modify the HTML directly:

1. Open the page you want to edit with FrontPage Express.
2. Choose HTML from the View menu.
   This lets you modify the HTML directly; however, FrontPage will check the HTML you enter and may encode it.
3. In order to stop FrontPage Express from encoding the generated code, add it using the format displayed below:

   <!-- webbot bot="HTMLMarkup" startspan ---->
   Add the Javascript code here
   <!-- webbot bot="HTMLMarkup" endspan ---->
   

4. Save and upload the page.

   NOTE: If you add code this way, it will appear in FrontPage editor.

Microsoft Word 97/2000

If you are pasting code for The Gospel Banner Exchange into Word 97/2000, follow these steps to successfully place the code:

NOTE: In Word, Web Page Authoring is not installed when you select the Typical installation option during Setup.
1. Open the page you want to edit with Word.
2. Choose HTML Source from the View menu.
   A new window opens containing the page's HTML source code.
3. Paste the code for The Gospel Banner Exchange into the HTML.
4. Click the Exit HTML Source button.
   A dialog box appears asking you if you want to save the changes you made.
5. Select Yes.
   Word will then preview the link.
6. Save and upload the page.

ipagebuilder

I page builder has stated that they do not currently allow the insertion of any special scripts. I have not been able to find a work-around for this problem. I would appreciate any input you may have, or a solution to inserting code into ipagebuilder. Email me with your solution.

Netscape Composer

Install The Gospel Banner Exchange with Netscape Composer

1. On the menu bar, choose "Edit->Preferences...".
2. Choose "Composer->Publishing".
3. Uncheck "Maintain links" and "Keep images with page".
4. Click "OK".
5. On the menu bar, choose "Insert->HTML Tag...".
6. Copy and paste The Gospel Banner Exchange code exactly as it was given to you.

   IMPORTANT! Make sure the cursor is flush against the end of The Gospel Banner Exchange code with no spaces or linebreaks. This editor is extremely picky. If the cursor is not flush against the end of the code, you'll get a "Premature close of tag" error message.

7. Click "OK".

That's it. You should see a yellow link symbol appear. If you preview the page, you should see the banner.

Netscape Gold

Install The Gospel Banner Exchange with Netscape Gold

1. On the menu bar, choose "Options->Editor Preferences...".
2. Click the "Publish" tab.
3. Uncheck "Maintain links" and "Keep images with page".
4. Click "OK".
5. On the menu bar, choose "Insert->HTML Tag...".
6. Copy and paste The Gospel Banner Exchange code exactly as it was given to you.

   IMPORTANT! Make sure the cursor is flush against the end of The Gospel Banner Exchange code with no spaces or linebreaks. This editor is extremely picky. If the cursor is not flush against the end of the code, you'll get a "Premature close of tag" error message.

7. Click "OK".

That's it. You should see a yellow link symbol appear. If you preview the page, you should see the banner.