WWW: Beyond the Basics

Chapter 13 - HTML

13.7 Conclusion

HTML is the language that powers the World Wide Web. Its greatest strength is its ability to allow sharing of textual and graphical information freely, regardless of the hardware and software used by the author or the user.

With the out-of-control growth of the Web has come a plethora of HTML tags added by commercial Web browser manufacturers. These tags are specific to a particular browser and may be presented by other browsers in an unexpected way, or not at all.

HTML is limited in its ability to present document formatting, it is especially weak in presenting mathematical formulas. Future plans for HTML include cascading style sheets, which will give authors much more control of presentation, and math support.

The future of the Web, and HTML, ultimately rests with HTML authors. Authors must understand which tags have been introduced by commercial concerns and carefully choose what kind of HTML to use, based on their document content and expected audience. Information that is useful to the world and has a long "shelf-life" should be marked up with HTML that is as widely usable as possible. Non-spec HTML is more appropriate for information that is meant for a small audience, or an intranet, where the author knows what kind of software and hardware the users will have.


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Pris Sears <sears@vt.edu>