ZippyPractice  Help


ZippyPractice is a plain text online editor that allows you to find/replace within your code, add tags to your code, play with colors, practice, practice, practice, and then save to a file on your own computer. The code will not be saved on the site.

Top Bottons and boxes

Enter code: Type or paste or import your HTML, or select starter code from the drop list.

Find/replace: Find phrases one by one and replace if desired, match case or not, or replace all occurrences within the highlighted region. Really handy when changing template links from ebay.com to ebay.ca or ebay.com.au or ebay.co.uk.

Tags: Most of the basic tags are available on buttons across the top of the tool, and there is a custom button where you can add your own tag (even with parameters). You may also use ctrl-key sequences to add HTML tags (like Ctrl+C for <center></center> and Ctrl+Enter for <br>). Simply checkmark the HotKey box on the upper toolbar to use Ctrl-key tagging. Uncheckmark the box if you are accustomed to using Ctrl-keys for copy/paste functions.

Undo: There is a one-step undo for most functions.

Side Toolbox

Toolbox: A pop-open toolbox is minimized on the left. Click the tiny puller on the left edge to open/close the toolbox.

Starter codes: A small set of starter codes is included for making basic tables, borders, click-gallery, chart, or links.

eBay Links: All of the eBay page links used in the QuickyButtons are also available in the tool. Add a link to your code and change the "Your_eBay_sellerID" to your own selling ID.

Symbols: The more popular symbols are available on buttons and the entity name will be inserted in the code.

Fonts: A popup window provides a view of all characters and symbols in an entire font set of your choosing - which you can print out for archival reference. The most common fonts are in the list, but you can view any other font on your computer if you know its name.

Formatting: One of the hardest parts of helping someone else fix their code involves sifting through the formatting to find tags. So there are many different formatting options in the tool. Code can be stairstep-indented so matching pairs of tags are easy to see, or it can be left aligned, or blocks of code can be shifted right, or all the code can be bunched up. The only caveat here is that some scripts can't be bunched up, and the scripting of some HTML relies on relationships between elements (nextSibling,etc) that formatting might alter.

Editing aids: Dewebifying is not needed for templates, but it is included here for completeness. A chunk of latin is provided as placeholder text, and the mysterious option to "spread text" will be useful for making spam proof links with CSS styling if scripting is banned.

Doctype: The preview defaults to quirks mode (the same as eBay auctions), but you can choose from a few other doctype settings for non-eBay pages. You may see your page format shift a little with different doctype settings, depending on the complexity of the coding.

Colors: Probably one of the neatest features for templates is the ability to highlight a color code in your text and then click the palette to see what color it is, or click the color palette to change it to a different color. Colors can be added anywhere by using the palette to set a color, click a destination in the code, and then click a button to insert the color in the code. The tool will recognize color names, RGB colors, and 3 or 6 digit hex values. It will always return a 6-digit #hex code and will display the RGB value in a copyable format on the palette.

Bottom Buttons and Tools

Scan: The scan function will look for basic coding errors - specifically, mismatched tags. It will also highlight words that are not allowed on eBay or that might pose a problem if not used correctly. It's the same scan that the AuctionTester uses.

Preview: The code is previewed in the same page, without leaving what you are currently doing. So it's quick and efficient to preview as frequently as needed. If the template appears to be longer than the window, click one of the pullers at the bottom of the page, and the tool will attempt to resize to fit the template. Some extremely long pages may actually be too large for the browser, and the scrollbars will remain. Some types of absolute positioning near the bottom of the page may not be visible. If that is the case, consider adding content below your absolute element, as it is not likely to display correctly in eBay's page either.

Save: The code can be saved to a text file downloaded to your computer. It is not saved on the site. You can still copy the code and paste it into PracticeWriter, PracticeCoder or PracticeBoard if you would like to share the code with others.

Ruler: Click the ruler to move the starting point, making it easier to measure the width of internal template elements. Double-click to return the ruler to its home position.

Supported Browsers: Firefox 2 and up, Internet Explorer 6 and up. The page may work with other browsers to a lesser degree, where some features may not work, or may underperform.

Designers: Have a hosted template you want to send to ZippyPractice? This is the basic link to get to ZippyPractice: http://zippypractice.com

This is how you would send your template to ZippyPractice: http://zippypractice.com?pg=full_url_of_your_page.

For instance, here is a holiday template: http://zippypractice.com/?pg=http://www.zippyhelp.com/templates/22D82.htm


ZippyPractice.com is an online HTML practice site with special help for eBay templates.
Optimized for Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers. Hover mouse over buttons for help.
ZippyPractice tool copyright 2008-2009 © ZippyHelp.com and ShipScript