Set Up Your HTML Workspace

You do not need a framework, package manager, or build tool to start writing HTML. A text editor and a modern browser are enough.

Create a folder named html-practice. Inside it, create a file called index.html. Visual Studio Code is common, but any editor that saves plain text will work.

html-practice/
├── index.html
├── about.html
├── images/
└── notes.txt

Save the file with the .html extension. Avoid names such as index.html.txt; Windows may hide known file extensions, so check the full filename when something does not open as expected.

Open the page#

Double-click index.html, or right-click it and choose a browser. When you edit the file, save it and refresh the browser. A local file is enough for the first exercise; later, a local development server will be useful for understanding paths and browser security rules.

Get comfortable with developer tools#

Open the browser’s developer tools (usually F12). The Elements panel shows the DOM the browser constructed, not just the text file you typed. The Console reports script errors, and the Network panel helps explain missing files and slow requests.

Keep the workflow simple: edit, save, refresh, inspect. Do not install extra tooling until a lesson gives you a reason to use it.