HTML or XHTML?

[LadyLily]

Which one would be better to design your pages in? I'm wondering if I should translate all of my pages to XHTML. Is it worth it? Do the older browsers recognize the script?

One last question: Is there a converter from HTML --> XHTML?

[sowen]

you can setup HTMLTidy to output (almost valid!) xHTML
you can find a link on the w3.org xHTML page. It's always a good idea to backup your files before you use it.

[Maelstrom]

I use the transitional. I still like to try and offer something for old browsers to look at. But this is strictly web design. When designing for an intranet where I control what browser all of the employees use I do a strict XHTML and force them to use IE6.0

[five40]

A List Apart has an article about XHTML. Also, you might want to check XHTML Guru or W3Schools for further reading about the subject.

[redemption]

Originally posted by LadyLily
Do the older browsers recognize the script?

yes they will provided you translate correctly... XHTML is backwards compatible... HTML isn't forward compatible of course

[cybercodeur]

If you're wondering about which to use, you're already on the right track. As a matter of fact, it actually means you're ready to jump into xhtml. As MAelstrom says, I too, use transitional because I try to make it easy on everyone I work with in terms of adaptation to the new xml rules in html.

I believe you should definitely go with xhtml, even though for now it wonm't matter much. It's a question of being future oriented, not the other way around.

You can download html tidy (html to xhtml converter) here

Good luck!

[LadyLily]

Thanks for all the input. I think I'll start to learn XHTML, but is XML worth leaning? I know it has something to do with XHTML but what's the big picture?

[cybercodeur]

XML will be the way of the future. You WILL have to learn it eventually if you plan on coding professionnally in the long run. It will be inevitable. Hopefully, it's just about the best thing that ever happened to the W W W.

xhtml is nothing more than html written as an xml application. What it means is that in order to be able to process your html, your html will have to follow certain rules (rules that define xml). But this is not something that will ave to learn in the next year. It's still a little far off before it becomes widespread.

You don't have to think about xml for now. By the time you're ready for it (after you've mastered your html xml-style (or if you prefer, xhtml)), this structural markup language will have become so common that it will be as easy to learn as html (or xhtml) is today.

I cannot begin to insist enough on this link for helping you learn html and xhtml :w3schools.com

You will find all you need to learn in the beginning in here.

I hope this will answer most of your questions. We'll be here to answer more.

[Maelstrom]

I don't necessarily think that XML is the next big thing in its entirety. I still haven't seen a reason to convert over fully to xml. But then again I am the type that need proof of use.

eg Python why??? I did tonnes of research and actually did find a number of reasons but with xml I haven't seen those reasons yet. At least not the full implementation

[redemption]

Originally posted by Maelstrom
eg Python why??? I did tonnes of research and actually did find a number of reasons...

i'd be glad to hear your reasons why... i've looked a bit into Python and am sufficiently convinced... but i'd like to know your reasons too...

but this is not the place for this maybe you could start a thread on your findings Maelstrom??

[cybercodeur]

I'll give you that xml is not there yet. Basically, we haven't really seen anything thta xml does that somehow cannot be made otherwise with the technologies we presently rely on. From that perspective, I understand what you're saying and I also understand why you would be saying it.

However, I believe the main reasons why we will switch to xml are all related to the application of web standards in the years to come. XML will be the perfect structural markup available and as such will be used largely to control data inside Web documents. Once sontent and layout really are separated through specific structures, XML will turn out to take all its flavor. And this is when we will start using it.

So far, I've only used it to do things that could easily have been done with either jsp or databases. We've used it because it would make people around us think we were smart (no kidding ). It gave us nothing more to use XML. As a matter of fact, we had to bust our brains to figure stuff out as we went along. Stuff we could easily have done otherwise.

But we learned along the way. It's always that much gained.

I don't know about python. I really don't. But I know we don't hear half as much about python as we do xml. Everybody is flipping over xml. The W3C is building the future of the Web on it.

It might not be tomorrow, but it'll be soon. And all for the better I'm sure.

[Maelstrom]

I should say that in theory I think the idea of XML is awesome and creates some real power for transer of information. But for me I think I will wait until they settle a bit. Essentially every time I look I find something new in XML and I am not in the mood to be relearning different aspects of the same language (not really but you know what I mean) constantly.

As for Python I think I may. I have considered at the very least doing something similar to Skunks PHP links for python. I have a few friends REALLY pushing this language so I did some research. Most is heresay of course. Anyways I will get on that.

[cybercodeur]

Well, I'd be happy to hear about python a tad more... I had barely heard of it before crashing in here. I'd reallly love to be on the inside with upcoming technologies in order to know if it'll be worth the shot (which is most likely the case).

But I hear what you're saying; I went into XML almost two years ago and decided after banging my head against the of my incomprehension that I had better wait until things settle down a bit. I've kept looking at it, reading and test-proofing, but I am not interested in pushing it just yet.

I just make sure that I'll be ready when the time is right.

[Maelstrom]

Originally posted by redemption

i'd be glad to hear your reasons why... i've looked a bit into Python and am sufficiently convinced... but i'd like to know your reasons too...

but this is not the place for this maybe you could start a thread on your findings Maelstrom??

Check out the java, coldfusion and more section. What I found is listed there.

[LadyLily]

Thanks you guys. Your input helped.