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HTMLOverviewWeb Design in a Nutshell, eMatter EditionChapter 5HTML OverviewCHAPTER 5
HTML Overview
HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) is the language used to create web docu-
ments. It defines the syntax and placement of special instructions (tags) that aren’t
displayed, but tell the browser how to display the document’s contents. It is also
used to create links to other documents, either locally or over a network such as
the Internet.
The HTML standard and all other Web-related standards are developed under the
authority of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Standards, specifications,
and drafts of new proposals can be found athttp://www.w3.org/. The most recent
work is the HTML 4.0 Specification, which is growing in support by major
browsers.
In practice, the HTML “standard” is influenced heavily by the tags that are intro-
duced and supported by the popular browsers, i.e., Microsoft Internet Explorer
and Netscape Navigator. These tags may or may not be part of the current HTML
specification at any given time.
This chapter provides a basic introduction to the background and general syntax
of HTML, including document structure, tags, and their attributes. It also looks
briefly at good HTML style and the pros and cons of using WYSIWYG authoring
tools.
For a more in-depth study of HTML, I recommendHTML: The Definitive Guide,
Third Edition, by Chuck Musciano and Bill Kennedy (O’Reilly & Associates, 1998)
Another excellent resource for HTML tag information is the HTML Compendium
(created by Ron Woodall). The Compendium provides an alphabetical listing of
every HTML tag and its attributes, with explanations and up-to-date browser
support information for each. The browser support charts accompanying each tag
in this book are based on their work. The HTML Compendium can be found at
http://www.htmlcompendium.org/.