How To Set Up a Custom Web Browser Home Page
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How To Set Your Web Browser's Start Page (Home Page)
The web browser home page, or start page, is the first page you see when you open your web browser. It is the starting point for whatever you plan to do on the internet at that time.
For convenience sake, most people set their web browser home page to a URL (web site) that is most useful to them when they first come onto the internet. Google is a popular choice because internet searches can be performed as soon as the web browser starts.
Others use different web sites or web pages that are contained on their hard drive and have been customized to include links to their favorite web sites all in one place - the web browser home page. The browser home page that you can create with our Start Page Generator is a good example of these types of home pages. It can contain search boxes to both Yahoo and Google plus many links to websites you commonly visit or like to keep handy. It resides on your computer and therefore loads extremely quickly when the web browser is opened. (If you want to build a customized home page for your web browser, visit our Start Page Generator page here.
 How to Set Your Web Browser's Home Page (Start Page)
After you have decided on a start page for your web browser, you need to set it up so that your browser knows to open this page when it starts, or when you press the 'Home' button.
If you are using one of our custom web browser home pages, or another customized home page, you will simply need to tell your browser where the document exists on your computer. If you plan to use a web site as the browser home page, it is usually easiest for those not familiar with this process to navigate to that web site first. We will explain why in the next section. If this is the case for you, open a new window in your browser and navigate to the web site you wish to use as your home page.
This next section will explain how to set your web browser's home page in Internet Explorer and Firefox, the two most popular web browsers.
Setting Up a Home Page in Internet Explorer
Your version of Internet Explorer may differ slightly from the information provided below; however, the difference, if any, will be slight. You should be able to accomplish Home Page Setup in Internet Explorer with these instructions:
- Open Internet Explorer
- If you plan to use a web page from the internet, go to that page now. This will make setting up your browser home page simple and fast. If you plan to use a custom page from your hard drive, continue on with the next step.
- From the menu bar at the top of Internet Explorer, choose Tools > Internet Options. The options window will then open.
- In the options window select the General tab at the top of the window. After doing so you will see a box marked "Home Page" This is where the path to the home page you wish to use is entered.
- If you are using a page from the internet and have navigated to that location, simply click the button marked 'Use Current' then click OK at the bottom of the options window.
- If you are using a custom home page such as one created with our Start Page Generator, enter the path to where the start page is located on your computer into the box, for example, C:\Folder\Start_Page.html then click OK at the bottom of the options window. (Note: After entering a custom start page in this manner, Internet Explorer will change the format from C:\Folder\Start_Page.html to file:///C:\Folder\Start_Page.html The next time you open the options window you will see the path to your home page entered in that format.)
Notes:
If you don't know how to get the path to your custom start page, alternatively you can choose File > Open from the menu bar at the top of Internet Explorer then choose the Browse button in the window that opens. Navigate to the custom home page on your computer, click Open then click OK in the original window. This will open your custom home page in Internet Explorer. Now, since the page is already open you can click the Use Current button in the options window to set up the home page, as opposed to entering the path manually. If you want to use this method of setting up a custom web browser home page, open the page first, then go to Tools > Internet Options to setup the file as your browser's home page.
Setting Up a Home Page in Firefox
It's possible your version of Firefox may operate slightly different than indicated below; however, it will be similar and the instructions below should get you through the process.
- Open Firefox
- If you plan to use a web page from the internet, go to that page now. This will make setting up your browser home page simple and fast. If you plan to use a custom page from your hard drive, continue on with the next step.
- From the menu bar at the top of Firefox, choose Tools > Options. The options window will then open.
- At the top of the options window select the tab labelled Main. After doing so you will see a box marked "Startup." At the top of this box is a drop-down list labelled, When Firefox Starts. Choose Show My Home Page from the list.
- Underneath the drop-down list is a box marked, Home Page. This is where the path to the page you wish to use is entered.
- If you are using a page from the internet and have navigated to that location, click the button marked 'Use Current Page' then click OK at the bottom of the options window.
- If you are using a custom home page such as one created with our Start Page Generator, enter the path to where the start page is located on your computer into the box, for example, C:\Folder\Start_Page.html then click OK at the bottom of the options window. (Note: After entering a custom start page in this manner, Firefox will change the format from C:\Folder\Start_Page.html to file:///C:\Folder\Start_Page.html The next time you open the options window you will see the path to your home page entered in that format.)
Notes:
If you don't know how to get the path to your custom start page, alternatively you can choose File > Open File from the menu bar at the top of Firefox to find the custom page on your computer. Once you have done so, the page will open in Firefox allowing you to select the Use Current Page button (options window) to indicate that the custom start page is to be used as Firefox's home page. After completing those steps, press the OK button at the bottom of the options window.
If you want to use this method of setting up a custom web browser home page, open the page first, then go to Tools > Options to setup the file as your browser's home page.
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