Contents
This specification is divided into the following sections:
The brief SGML tutorial gives readers some understanding of HTML's relationship to SGML and gives summary information on how to read the HTML Document Type Definition (DTD).
This document has been organized by topic rather than by the grammar of HTML. Topics are grouped into three categories: structure, presentation, and interactivity. Although it is not easy to divide HTML constructs perfectly into these three categories, the model reflects the HTML Working Group's experience that separating a document's structure from its presentation produces more effective and maintainable documents.
The language reference consists of the following information:
What characters may appear in an HTML document.
Basic data types of an HTML document.
Elements that govern the structure of an HTML document, including text, lists, tables, links, and included objects, images, and applets.
Elements that govern the presentation of an HTML document, including style sheets, fonts, colors, rules, and other visual presentation, and frames for multi-windowed presentations.
Elements that govern interactivity with an HTML document, including forms for user input and scripts for active documents.
The SGML formal definition of HTML:
This document has been written with two types of readers in mind: authors and implementors. We hope the specification will provide authors with the tools they need to write efficient, attractive, and accessible documents, without over-exposing them to HTML's implementation details. Implementors, however, should find all they need to build conforming user agents.
The specification may be approached in several ways:
Read from beginning to end. The specification begins with a general presentation of HTML and becomes more and more technical and specific towards the end.
The front pages of the three sections of the language reference manual extend the initial table of contents with more detail about each section.
Element names are written in upper case letters (e.g., BODY). Attribute names are written in lower case letters (e.g., lang, onsubmit). Recall that in HTML, element and attribute names are case-insensitive; the convention is meant to encourage readability.
Element and attribute names in this document have been marked up and may be rendered specially by some user agents.
Each attribute definition specifies the type of its value. If the type allows a small set of possible values, the definition lists the set of values, separated by a bar (|).
After the type information, each attribute definition indicates the case-sensitivity of its values, between square brackets ("[]"). See the section on case information for details.
Informative notes are emphasized to stand out from surrounding text and may be rendered specially by some user agents.
All examples illustrating deprecated usage are marked as "DEPRECATED EXAMPLE". Deprecated examples also include recommended alternate solutions. All examples that illustrates illegal usage are clearly marked "ILLEGAL EXAMPLE".
Examples and notes have been marked up and may be rendered specially by some user agents.
Thanks to everyone who has helped to author the working drafts that went into the HTML 4.0 specification, and to all those who have sent suggestions and corrections.
Many thanks to the Web Accessibility Initiative task force (WAI HC group) for their work on improving the accessibility of HTML and to T.V. Raman (Adobe) for his early work on developing accessible forms.
The authors of this specification, the members of the W3C HTML Working Group, deserve much applause for their diligent review of this document, their constructive comments, and their hard work: John D. Burger (MITRE), Steve Byrne (JavaSoft), Martin J. Dürst (University of Zurich), Daniel Glazman (Electricité de France), Scott Isaacs (Microsoft), Murray Maloney (GRIF), Steven Pemberton (CWI), Robert Pernett (Lotus), Jared Sorensen (Novell), Powell Smith (IBM), Robert Stevahn (HP), Ed Tecot (Microsoft), Jeffrey Veen (HotWired), Mike Wexler (Adobe), Misha Wolf (Reuters), and Lauren Wood (SoftQuad).
Thank you Dan Connolly (W3C) for rigorous and bountiful input as part-time editor and thoughtful guidance as chairman of the HTML Working Group. Thank you Sally Khudairi (W3C) for your indispensable work on press releases.
Thanks to David M. Abrahamson and Roger Price for their careful reading of the specification and constructive comments.
Thanks to Jan Kärrman, author of html2ps for helping so much in creating the Postscript version of the specification.
Of particular help from the W3C at Sophia-Antipolis were Janet Bertot, Bert Bos, Stephane Boyera, Daniel Dardailler, Yves Lafon, Håkon Lie, Chris Lilley, and Colas Nahaboo (Bull).
Lastly, thanks to Tim Berners-Lee without whom none of this would have been possible.
Copyright © 1997 World Wide Web Consortium, (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique, Keio University). All Rights Reserved.
Documents on the W3C site are provided by the copyright holders under the following license. By obtaining, using and/or copying this document, or the W3C document from which this statement is linked, you agree that you have read, understood, and will comply with the following terms and conditions:
Permission to use, copy, and distribute the contents of this document, or the W3C document from which this statement is linked, in any medium for any purpose and without fee or royalty is hereby granted, provided that you include the following on ALL copies of the document, or portions thereof, that you use:
When space permits, inclusion of the full text of this NOTICE should be provided. In addition, credit shall be attributed to the copyright holders for any software, documents, or other items or products that you create pursuant to the implementation of the contents of this document, or any portion thereof.
No right to create modifications or derivatives is granted pursuant to this license.
THIS DOCUMENT IS PROVIDED "AS IS," AND COPYRIGHT HOLDERS MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, OR TITLE; THAT THE CONTENTS OF THE DOCUMENT ARE SUITABLE FOR ANY PURPOSE; NOR THAT THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SUCH CONTENTS WILL NOT INFRINGE ANY THIRD PARTY PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS, TRADEMARKS OR OTHER RIGHTS.
COPYRIGHT HOLDERS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF ANY USE OF THE DOCUMENT OR THE PERFORMANCE OR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CONTENTS THEREOF.
The name and trademarks of copyright holders may NOT be used in advertising or publicity pertaining to this document or its contents without specific, written prior permission. Title to copyright in this document will at all times remain with copyright holders.