How To Create An Anchor In Dreamweaver

(Archives) Adobe Dreamweaver CS3: Creating Links to Text in a Document

Last updated Monday, Aug. 31, 2020, at 10:22 a.m.

This article is based on legacy software.

Creating links to specific text in a document allows for users to jump directly to desired information within your page. These links assist in creating web pages that are easy and convenient to navigate. This document offers instructions for creating and maintaining links to specific text in a document.

Linking to Text in the Current Document

Creating links to specific text is a two-step process: creating an anchor and linking to an anchor.

Creating an Anchor

The first step in creating a link to specific text is setting an anchor at the place in the text that you would like to link to.

Place the insertion point before the section that is to be linked to.
From the Insert menu, select Named Anchor.
OR
Press [Ctrl] + [Alt] + [A].
OR
From the Insert bar, in the Common tab, click Named Anchor.
The Named Anchor dialog box appears.
In the Anchor name text box, type a name for the anchor.
HINTS:
Assigning meaningful names to your anchors will make page maintenance easier.
Spaces cannot be used when naming your anchor.
Anchor names cannot begin with a number.
Click OK.
An anchor icon appears.

Creating the Link: Properties Pane

The second step in creating a link to specific text is creating a link to the Named Anchor you created. The Properties pane can be used to complete this step.

Select the entire text that is to be linked.
In the Properties pane, in the Link text box, type a # symbol followed by the name of the Named Anchor.
EXAMPLE: #Namedanchor
Press [Enter].

Creating the Link: Hyperlink Dialog Box

The second step in creating a link to specific text is creating a link to the Named Anchor you created. The Hyperlink dialog box can be used to complete this step.

Place the insertion point where the link is to appear.
From the Insert menu, select Hyperlink .
OR
From the Insert bar, in the Common tab, click Hyperlink.
In the Text text box, type the text to be linked.
From the Link pull-down list, select an anchor in the current document.
OR
In the Link text box, type a # symbol followed by the name of the Named Anchor.
EXAMPLE: #Namedanchor
From the Target pull-down list, select the desired option:
blank opens the link in a new window.
parent opens the link in a main frameset window.
self opens the link in the current frame.
top opens the link in the current window.
Click OK.

Deleting Anchors

As you modify your page, your anchors may change. To keep your web page clean, you should remove any unused anchors.

Select the anchor icon.
Press [Delete].
NOTE: Be sure to remove any links which referred to this anchor.

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