Setting Up Your First HTML File

You do not need any fancy software to start writing HTML. A simple text editor is enough, though most people use something like VS Code because it makes writing code easier with color highlighting and suggestions.

An HTML file always ends with the extension .html.

Once you save a file that way, install the Live Server extension from the Extensions panel in VS Code, then click the Go Live button at the bottom-right corner of the editor to open your HTML file in the browser with live reload.

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <title>My First Page</title>
</head>
<body>
  <h1>Hello, World!</h1>
</body>
</html>

Explanation: This is the smallest complete HTML page you can write. Save this as index.html and open it in any browser. You will see a heading that says Hello, World! on a blank page. We will break down every line of this in the next lesson.