x-rated: baring the future of (x)html, molly e. holzschlag
June 09, 2000.
By Bonnie SooHoo. (Link to original article.)
When hypertext markup was introduced as a way to navigate between documents and structure its contents, who knew that it was the start of a completely new industry? Unfortunately, in the excitement to build this new industry, HTML development ran rampant, and things got a little out of control. Luckily, we have Molly Holzschlag, a definitive expert on all things HTML, to explain how XHTML will steer things back on course.
Bonnie SooHoo: What is XHTML?
Molly Holzschlag: XHTML is the Extensible Hypertext Markup Language. Technically speaking, it is a reformulation of HTML as an XML application. I like to think of HTML as the wilder older sibling, and XML as the more precise middle child. They are learning from each other--and what HTML has to learn from XML is that precision in code can allow for more stable extension of that code. That's the ultimate goal--to extend what we have today into where we want to be tomorrow.
SooHoo: Are there any backward compatibilities problems with XHTML in older browsers?
Holzschlag: Very few. If an XML declaration is used in the XHTML document,the code may display in certain browsers. This declaration is recommended but not insisted upon by XHTML 1.0 and is really only necessary in XHTML 1.0 documents when you want to declare a UTF version for internationalization purposes.
SooHoo: Should developers stop using HTML and start coding in XHTML now?
Holzschlag: If they want to code to the standard, yes. But to do this requires a bit of study. It's not that XHTML is so difficult, because in its 1.0 version it really is quite simple. The problem is that most people don't really understand the role of standards and how to use them properly. Also, WYSIWYG editors have made people, and browsers, lazy. XHTML is an opportunity to learn how to code well, and I think we can all benefit from taking that opportunity.
SooHoo: The proprietary avenues HTML development has taken made developing around browser inconsistencies frustrating and allowed a lot of sloppy coding, thus creating the need for a more rigorous standard. What is to prevent the same thing from happening with XHTML?
Holzschlag: That's a great question, but the reality is that it can't happen with XHTML. If documents do not conform to the rules, they're not considered to be XHTML!
SooHoo: What things can we expect in future XHTML standards development?
Holzschlag: XHTML 1.1 is completely modularized. In other words, components that were always part of HTML, such as frames or forms, are now outside of the basic language and placed into an independent module. What's more, more of XML's customization features begin to appear in XHTML. If you think of XHTML as a bridge from HTML to XML, you can place XHTML 1.0 on the HTML side, and XHTML 1.1 in the middle. The further along we go, the closer to XML we get.
