XHTML Syntax
Writing XHTML demands a clean HTML syntax.
Some More XHTML Syntax Rules:
- Attribute names must be in lower case
- Attribute values must be quoted
- Attribute minimization is forbidden
- The id attribute replaces the name attribute
- The XHTML DTD defines mandatory elements
Attribute Names Must Be In Lower Case
This is wrong:
<table WIDTH="100%"> |
This is correct:
<table width="100%"> |
Attribute Values Must Be Quoted
This is wrong:
<table width=100%> |
This is correct:
<table width="100%"> |
Attribute Minimization Is Forbidden
This is wrong:
<input checked> <input readonly> <input disabled> <option selected> <frame noresize> |
This is correct:
<input checked="checked" /> <input readonly="readonly" /> <input disabled="disabled" /> <option selected="selected" /> <frame noresize="noresize" /> |
Here is a list of the minimized attributes in HTML and how they should be written in XHTML:
| HTML | XHTML |
|---|---|
| compact | compact="compact" |
| checked | checked="checked" |
| declare | declare="declare" |
| readonly | readonly="readonly" |
| disabled | disabled="disabled" |
| selected | selected="selected" |
| defer | defer="defer" |
| ismap | ismap="ismap" |
| nohref | nohref="nohref" |
| noshade | noshade="noshade" |
| nowrap | nowrap="nowrap" |
| multiple | multiple="multiple" |
| noresize | noresize="noresize" |
The Lang Attribute
The lang attribute applies to almost every XHTML element. It specifies the language of the content within an element.
If you use the lang attribute in an element, you must add the xml:lang attribute, like this:
<div lang="no" xml:lang="no">Heia Norge!</div> |
Mandatory XHTML Elements
All XHTML documents must have a DOCTYPE declaration. The html, head and body elements must be present, and the title must be present inside the head element.
This is a minimum XHTML document template:
<!DOCTYPE Doctype goes here> <html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"> <head> <title>Title goes here</title> </head> <body> </body> </html> |
Note: The DOCTYPE declaration is not a part of the XHTML document itself. It is not an XHTML element, and it should not have a closing tag.
You will learn more about the XHTML document type definition in the next chapter.