How to View Source Code for Web Pages

Viewing source code for web pages is handy when you are reporting a bug and when you see something new on the web that catches your eye. This tutorial will cover how to do it in Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Internet Explorer.

In Mozilla Firefox, click on View then click on Page Source near the bottom of the drop down menu. It will open another window of Firefox that contains the source code. You can also do this with keyboard shortcut hotkeys by pressing Ctrl+U as long as your cursor isn't active in a text field on the page.

Once your new window opens you can copy and paste and also execute many familiar functions from the menu options located in the upper left hand corner of the window. Rudimentary syntax highlighting is available in this window.

Microsoft Internet Explorer works in a similar fashion. Simply click on View then click on the word Source. You can also use the keyboard shortcut hotkey sequence Alt+v+u. Your source code will open in a new window with familiar menu and functionality with added bonus of line counting on the left side of the window. Attempting to select all in this window will highlight the line counting numbers but they will not be copied and pasted. Syntax highlighting is available in this window as well.