What these sites are for
= Index DOT Html by Brian Wilson =

Index DOT Html: Main Index | Element Tree | Element Index | HTML Support History
Index DOT Css: Main Index | Property Index | CSS Support History | Browser History

What the Site Is
The Index DOT Html and Css sites are meant to be repositories and references for technical information about the HTML and CSS languages. Index DOT Html covers the elements, attributes and the popular browsers that support them. Index DOT Css covers CSS syntax, properties, the popular browsers that support them, as well the zillion or so miscellaneous bits that make CSS such a wonderful boon/headache for authors. These references are not meant to replace any of the official references put forth by the W3C or its member companies, it is rather meant to collect all of the far-flung resources into a single, hopefully coherent whole.

Who This Site Is Aimed At
While some of the external links provided here are good beginner's entry points to learning HTML and CSS, the contents of this site are directed generally toward the more experienced author. It should be fairly easy to come up to speed quickly on the basics though.

Why A Web Site?
The Internet in general, and the Web/HTML/CSS in particular, are fast moving targets which change quickly. My goal is to keep up with that rapid pace of change, in regards to the HTML and CSS languages. Compiling these references and keeping them up to date in most ANY other format would be nearly impossible. Wish me luck... All you readers out there can help me achieve this.

Index DOT Html: What Is Covered
  • Comprehensive tables of all HTML elements and attributes currently supported by Internet Explorer, Mosaic, Netscape and Opera.
    Support in the HTML 2.0, 3.2, 4.0 and XHTML 1.0/1.1 specifications are also detailed (as well as HTML 3.0 features implemented in current browsers.) This list breaks down the HTML elements and attributes by first letter and details the very first version of each browser and standard where support began.
  • Brief overviews and histories of HTML 2.0, 3.0, 3.2, 4.0, XHTML, CSS1 and CSS2
  • Summary of Browser releases important to the support of HTML.
    These pages detail the platforms that the browsers run on, as well as version release dates.
  • Side by side comparison of Internet Explorer, Mosaic, Netscape and Opera release dates and versions.
  • Tree structure detailing all HTML elements in use today by the major browsers.
    This tree organization loosely groups HTML elements by location in an actual HTML document.
  • Tag grouping overviews.
    This part of the tree structure consists of pages giving an introduction to each element section topic. Also included in these pages are links to related sites on each HTML topic.
  • Alphabetic element index to all currently used HTML elements
  • Tag pages for every HTML element.
    This is THE biggest portion of the site. It lists everything you might want to know about the HTML elements in common use. I decided to cover all HTML 2.0, 3.2, and 4.0 elements, all XHTML 1.0 and 1.1 elements, browser created extensions, and only those HTML 3.0 elements in general use (because 3.0 was never officially adopted.) Elements and attributes from HTML 3.0 that are not in general use today (which is a large portion of the draft) will be of little interest to authors unless they become supported at some future date. (I hope. If I left anything out, please tell me.)
    In the pages for each element, you will find:
       - Browser and standard support for each element
       - A brief element description
       - All known attributes for each element including allowed attribute values
       - Element examples
       - Parent/content usage models
       - Tips and tricks for using the element
       - Known peculiarities in the implementation of the element in the popular browsers.
Index DOT Css: What Is Covered
  • Comprehensive tables of all CSS properties and values currently supported by Internet Explorer, Netscape and Opera.
    Support in the CSS1 and CSS2 specifications is also detailed. This list breaks down the CSS properties and values by category and details the very first version of each browser and standard where support began.
  • Brief overviews and histories of CSS1 and CSS2
  • Summary of Browser releases important to the development of CSS support.
    These pages detail the platforms that the browsers run on, as well as version release dates.
  • Side by side comparison of Internet Explorer, Netscape and Opera release dates and versions.
  • Property category overviews.
    Each of these pages gives a general overview of the properties in the category, and explanations of why they are lumped together. Also included in these pages are links to related sites on each CSS topic.
  • Category index to all currently used and proposed CSS properties.
  • Pages detailing every CSS property proposed or in use.
    This is THE biggest portion of the site.
    In the pages detailing each property, you will find:
       - Browser and standard support for the property
       - A brief description of the property
       - All known property values for the property
       - Property syntax, as needed (for properties utilizing any complex syntaxes.)
       - Examples
       - Special notes regarding usage, where known
       - Known peculiarities in the implementation of the property in the popular browsers.
Why Were These Browsers Chosen?
Internet Explorer (HTML/CSS)
This browser currently has the largest market share and supports an extremely wide range of HTML and other standards.
Mosaic (HTML)
This is the most historically interesting of all the reviewed browsers in terms of effect on the current state of the market, although it does not have the market share it once commanded in 1994. The sad news is that the 3.0 release will be the last Mosaic. This means that it will never support CSS and coverage of this browser in Index DOT Html will be mainly for historical interest.
Netscape (HTML/CSS)
This browser has had the largest market share for many years, although recently its market share has fallen off. The browser supports a wide range of HTML and various browser features on a wide number of platforms. The open-source Mozilla project which has been under development for quite some time, has promised to completely support all of the W3C HTML 4.0, XML, CSS1 and DOM specs.
Opera (HTML/CSS)
This browser is not based on Mosaic like the other browsers reviewed. Its user-base is very vocal, and growing. It has excellent support for CSS1 and CSS2 and should be of interest to many authors.
Design Strategy
The complexity inherent in presenting information about a language is inescapable. I have tried to manage this complexity by offering several different views on the same information, so that the readers may choose for themselves the method of interface that works best for them.



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