Writing documents in Microsoft Word™ is convenient and produces good looking results, but posting these documents to web sites presents a problem. Students who do not have a copy of Word installed can not view the documents. When a person without Word left-clicks on the link to the word document, they will be prompted to download the doc as a file. If they figure out how to download it and then try to open it, they will be presented with several unfriendly looking windows asking them how to open the file. This is more than enough to scare off the average student.

Fortunately, there is an easy way to make Word convert documents into web friendly HTML pages. HTML pages can be viewed in any modern web browser and students do not need Microsoft Word™ to view them. This document covers creating a web friendly Word document, converting the word document into a web friendly HTML file, and uploading that file to a Blackboard Vista course.

A guide to creating web friendly Word documents
Most basic word documents translate very well into web friendly HTML files with little to no modification, but there are a few guidelines that it helps to follow while writing the Word doc.
Some Word elements translate easily into web pages. Try to use these elements to format your pages as much as possible. Elements that work well for the web include:
• Alignment (left, right, centered).
• Bold and italics. Try to avoid using underline if possible.
• Font size and color.
• Bulleted and Numbered lists work well, but don’t use fancy bullets.
• Tables.
• Hyperlinks.
Other word elements translate poorly into web pages. Try to use these elements as little as possible.
Elements that work poorly for the web include:
• Fancy fonts. Stick with Times New Roman or Arial.
• Line spacing.
• Headers and Footers.
• Symbols, comments, or most other items under the Insert menu in Word.
• Images.
• Borders or backgrounds.
Try to keep the document well formatted, clearly focused, and clean. This type of document translates well into a web page, and is easy for students to read on their computer screens. Once you have your document finished, it’s time to convert it into a web page.

Download pdf How to create, save, and upload Microsoft Word documents as Web pages