What is HTML?

So what exactly is html? It is a special type of text document that is used by web browsers to present text and graphics. It stands for Hyper Text Markup Language and is the language used to describe the different components of a hypertext document on the web.

Hypertext - refers to the way in which documents are link together. It allows you to create a link in a web page that leads visitor to any other web page. When you click on a link in a web page, you are using hypertext.

Html is called a markup language because you simply mark up a text document with tags in a plain text that define the structure of that document’s content (heading, paragraph, list, and etc) and influence the way a browser displays the document.

All you need to do to use Html is to identify the type of markup to use to get the result you want.

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3 Key Markup Concepts

The first step toward learning html is to understand the basic terms that describe most of the functions of this language.

HTML Tags

The tags determine the presentation of the page being displayed. A tag begins with < and ends with >. <hr> is an example of a tag. Most tags come in pairs, embodying the text they affect between them.

The two tags are referred to as the start tag - , and the end tag - . is an example of tags the do not require end tag.

HTML Elements

All HTML pages are made up of elements. The element is made up of three parts, a start tag, content/text, and an end tag. The page content appears between the two tags.

Example:

This pair of tags specifies a paragraph.

This HTML element starts with the start tag: The content/text of the element is: This pair of tags specifies a paragraph The element ends with an end tag:

The purpose of the tag is to define the HTML element that starts a new line.

HTML Attributes and Values

Attributes are another important part of HTML markup. It is used to define the characteristics of an element. Not every tag uses attributes and some tags are meaningless without certain attributes.

Example:

The attribute appears in the start tag, but not the end tag. The attribute name is separated form the element name by a space. Each attribute has a value – the attribute and its value are separated by an =, and the value is enclosed in single or double quotes.

HTML Document Structure

All HTML documents must contain the elements listed below in the order shown:

A line containing the HTML version information called document type declaration:

<html>...</html> - defines the beginning and end of the document.

<head>...</head> - the document header
- Title - the title element is nested inside the header

<body>...</body> - contains the body of the web page.

Example of a Simple HTML Document
<html>
<head>
<title>Page title goes here</title>
</head>
<body>Page content goes here</body>
</html>

The HTML Element

The HTML is the standard opening tag that must be at the beginning of any page that contains HTML codes. This tag let’s the browser know that HTML code will be received and that it needs to be compiled by the browser to display.

The Head Element

The head is the section in your document reserved for items and information about your page’s title. There are several specific elements which also belong in the head element – such as - meta tag, description, etc.

Title - The content of the title element will not appear as part of the document. Text within the title element will be display at search engine result page.

The Body Element

The body is the part of your web document that contains all of the content that you want your visitors to see.

HTML code is not case sensitive so <title> is viewed by the browser the same as <titLE> or <TITLE>

Creating HTML Documents

You can use any of the methods below to create your HTML documents:

Text Editors
Use text editors – such as – Bare Bones BBEdit, Notepad, Apple® SimpleText, etc.

The best way to learn html is by using Notepad for creating your web document. This is because Notepad does not add any html code automatically, which means everything you do in Notepad must be entered manually.

HTML Editors

While HTML is easy to understand, it is very time consuming and tedious to code by hand. It requires that you not only learn html but that you must work with the vision of your design in your head.

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Here are lists of Free HTML editors that do a pretty decent job and are simple to use:

Amaya 9.52
Is an open source software application that will enable you to create and update documents directly on the web. It is compatible with Linux, Windows and Mac.

Open Bexi Html Builder
Is a web browser that allows you to create web pages without any programming knowledge.

Mozilla Composer
Is a free open source web browser that you can use to create your web pages.

See also the links below for additional Tutorials:

W3Schools
You will find all the tutorials you need from basic HTML and XHTML to advanced XML.

Annabella’s Tutorial
You will find simple step by step guide and tutorials to basic HTML tags that will help you with the creation of your web site.

HTML Code Tutorial
Provides the most useful and complete guide to creating web pages.

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