What is HTML?

HTML (HyperText Markup Language) is the code that gives structure and content to web pages. It uses tags to define elements like headings, paragraphs, images, and links, which tell web browsers how to display the information.
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Related terms: Python | JavaScript

What is HTML?

HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language, and it’s the foundation of every web page. It provides the underlying structure and organization for all the content you see online. HTML uses tags, which are simple instructions enclosed in angle brackets (like <p> for a paragraph or <h1> for a main heading), to define different elements of a web page. These tags tell the web browser how to display the content, such as whether it should be a heading, a paragraph, an image, or a link.

Without HTML, web pages would just be a disorganized collection of text and images. HTML provides the necessary framework for creating organized and meaningful content on the web.

What is HTML used for?

HTML is used for many tasks in web development, including:

  • Creating web page structure
  • Adding content to web pages
  • Creating web forms
  • Building web applications

Creating web page structure

HTML defines the basic structure of a web page, dividing it into sections like headings, paragraphs, lists, and tables. This organization makes the content easy to read and understand.

Adding content to web pages

HTML allows you to add different types of content to web pages, such as:

  • Text: Paragraphs, headings, lists, and other written content.
  • Images: Photos, illustrations, and other visual elements.
  • Links: Connections to other web pages or resources.
  • Multimedia: Embedded audio and video content.

Creating web forms

HTML is used to create forms that allow users to enter information and interact with websites. This includes elements like text fields, checkboxes, radio buttons, and submit buttons. These forms are essential for gathering user data, processing orders, conducting surveys, and enabling various other interactive functionalities on websites.

Here's an example of a simple HTML form that gathers a user's name and email address:

<form action="/submit_form" method="post">
    <label for="name">Name:</label><br>
    <input type="text" id="name" name="name" required><br><br>

    <label for="email">Email:</label><br>
    <input type="email" id="email" name="email" required><br><br>

    <input type="submit" value="Submit">
</form>

This code snippet demonstrates the use of various HTML tags to create a functional form:

  • <form>: Defines the form element.
  • <label>: Provides a label for each input field.
  • <input>: Creates different input types like text and email.
  • <br>: Adds line breaks for better formatting.
  • required: Specifies that the fields are mandatory.

Building web applications

HTML provides the basic structure for web applications, working together with JavaScript and CSS to create interactive and dynamic user experiences.

HTML and web scraping

Understanding HTML is very important for web scraping because it's the basis of how data is organized and shown on web pages. When you scrape a website, you're extracting data from the HTML source code.

Here's how knowing HTML helps with web scraping:

  • Identifying Data: You can use HTML tags and attributes to find the exact data you want to extract from a web page.
  • Understanding Structure: HTML's hierarchical structure helps you understand how data is organized on a page, making it easier to navigate and extract the information you need.
  • Parsing HTML: Web scraping tools rely on parsing HTML to extract data. Understanding HTML structure allows you to write more effective parsing rules.

Example: If you want to extract all the product names from an e-commerce website, you can look at the HTML code to identify the tags that contain the product names (e.g., <h2 class="product-title">). You can then use a web scraping tool to target these tags and extract the product names.

HTML versions and evolution

HTML has evolved significantly since its early days, with new versions introducing additional features and capabilities to make websites more interactive, dynamic, and accessible.

  • Early HTML (1990s): The first versions of HTML were relatively simple, focusing on basic text formatting and hyperlinks. They laid the foundation for the web but lacked many features we take for granted today.
  • HTML 4 (1997): HTML 4 introduced significant improvements, including support for stylesheets (CSS), scripting languages (JavaScript), and improved accessibility features. This version marked a major step towards the modern web.
  • XHTML (2000): XHTML was an attempt to make HTML more strict and compliant with XML standards. While it promoted good coding practices, it also introduced some complexities and wasn't fully adopted by the web development community.
  • HTML5 (2014): HTML5 is the latest and most significant evolution of HTML. It introduced a wide range of new features.

HTML5 features

  • Semantic elements: Tags like <article>, <aside>, <nav>, and <footer> provide more meaningful structure to web pages.
  • Multimedia support: Native support for audio and video elements without relying on plugins like Flash.
  • Improved forms: New input types and attributes for better form handling and validation.
  • Canvas and SVG: Support for drawing graphics and animations directly within the browser.
  • APIs for web applications: APIs for geolocation, local storage, and other functionalities that enable more complex web applications.

HTML5 has become the standard for modern web development, and its features have greatly impacted how websites are built and how users interact with them.