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Authoring Web Sites in XHTML

Internet Librarian International. Birmingham, UK. Authoring Web Sites in XHTML . Darlene Fichter darlene.fichter@usask.ca University of Saskatchewan Library Canada . 26 March, 2003. Overview. Frameworks Portlets Why use XHTML? XHTML syntax How XHTML differs from HTML XHTML and CSS

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Authoring Web Sites in XHTML

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  1. Internet Librarian International Birmingham, UK Authoring Web Sites in XHTML Darlene Fichter darlene.fichter@usask.ca University of Saskatchewan Library Canada 26 March, 2003

  2. Overview • Frameworks • Portlets • Why use XHTML? • XHTML syntax • How XHTML differs from HTML • XHTML and CSS • XHTML tools

  3. Yesterday

  4. Today

  5. Computer - Device

  6. Static HTML hand coding HTML Web Page Tag Editors HTML, Forms, Client Side Scripts Web Services Portals & Personalization “My Library” Objects - XML WSIWYG & Management Tools Distributed Authoring Portals & Portlets Web Services XML, SOAP Web Site Dynamic / Database SQL & Perl/PHP/ASP CMS Authoring & workflow

  7. Content Challenges in 2003: Document Collections • Storage & Management • Content • Structure • Work • Ease of use • Ease of creation • Good retrieval

  8. Service Challenges • Just in Time • Repackaging • Over the Long Term • Preservation • Migration

  9. HTML • Simple, general-purpose document markup language • Simple hyperlinking • Designed for collaborative authoring • Combined authoring and viewing roles

  10. HTML Strengths • Open standard • Lots of tools and applications • Easy and cheap • Rapidly adopted

  11. HTML Weaknesses • Not extensible • Supports only “simple” document types • Mixes presentation and structure • Cross-browser wars

  12. XML • More meaningful searches • Flexible web applications • data from disparate sources/applications • client processing • multiple views • granular updates • Open standard • Unicode • Hope --> good for web delivery

  13. What is XHTML? • Called “Next generation” HTML • HTML that conforms to XML standards • Will eventually support integration with other XML applications • Device independent web access

  14. Why use XHTML? • Most documents on the Internet are in HTML – this is the logical next step • Simpler than XML for most authors • XHTML documents are XML compliant, which allows you to use XML tools such as XSL • Future -- XHTML easier than HTML with the next generation of browsers

  15. Why do We Need XHTML? • Both HTML and SGML have major drawbacks. • XML’s use for encoding web documents is still at early stages of adoption

  16. Benefits of Adoption • Easier to develop software • handle specialized information distributed over the Web • Process data using inexpensive software • Allows greater end-user control of information display • stylesheets • Metadata for resource discovery

  17. XHTML - What does it take? • All documents must have a doctype declaration • The transitional doctype declaration-- <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/transitional.dtd"> • Head and body • Syntax

  18. XHTML – 3 Variations • Strict • <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/strict.dtd"> • Used when CSS is used for all your formatting • Transitional • <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/transitional.dtd"> • Frameset • <!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Frameset//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/frameset.dtd">

  19. Syntax: Lower case • Case matters • HTML: <Title> or <TITLE> or <title> • XHTML: <title>

  20. Syntax: Attributes • Attributes must be quoted • HTML <p class=quotes> • XHTML <p class=“quotes”>

  21. Syntax: Close Elements • All tags must be closed • HTML: <p>Le chien dort. <p>La chat joue. • XHTML: <p>Le chien dort. </p><p>La chat joue.</p>

  22. Syntax: Empty Elements • Empty elements must be terminated • HTML: <br> • XHTML: <br />

  23. Elements Must Be Nested <bigdoll> <mediumdoll> <littledoll> <littlestdoll/> </littledoll> <mediumdoll> </bigdoll>

  24. Scripts • <script> and <style> tags must be marked as CDATA <script> <!-- <![CDATA] (script) ]]> - -> </script> Tip: Place your scripts in a external file.

  25. Use entities for all ampersands • <a href="http://www.lights.ca/cgi-bin/script.cgi?what=chien&id=9"> • <a href="http://www.lights.ca/cgi-bin/script.cgi?what=chien&amp; id=9">

  26. Style Sheets & XHTML • The use of external style sheets is recommended <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href=“lib.css" /> • The type attribute is mandatory for <style> tag – text/css • Enclose inline styles with <![CDATA[ and the ending tag ]]>

  27. Find Out More: XHTML syntax • W3C http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/ • XHTML: le web devient coopératif • http://www.xhtml.net/ • XHTML.org • http://www.xhtml.org • Darlene Fichter. “Web Authoring in XHTML”. ONLINE Magazine November/December 2002 • www.findarticles.com

  28. What about conversion? • HTMLTidy • http://www.w3.org/People/Raggett/tidy/

  29. Resources for Conversion • Converting HTML documents to XHTML by Bejoy Alex Jaisonhttp://www22.brinkster.com/beeandnee/techzone/articles/htmltoxhtml.asp • Roy Tennant. XML for Libraries. Neal-Schuman Publishers, 2002.

  30. XHTML Validators • Validator • http://validator.w3.org/

  31. Typical Web Author XHTML is available in standard tools • Macromedia Dreamweaver • HTML-Kit • Macromedia HomeSite 5 • NoteTab Pro

  32. Content Provider • Usually authoring in Word • Import in Dreamweaver • Run it through a program like HTML TIDY

  33. New York Public Library www.nypl.org/styleguide/

  34. Major Project • Consider the value of the content over the long term • Likelihood of delivery to “appliances” • If there is an XML “dialect”, use it • If not, use XHTML (ideally XML rendered as XHTML)

  35. Example: Law Cases • 1994 • 527 law cases edited, and formatted as HTML • rigourous coding rules, poor validation • Cost: $150,000 • 2001 • converted to XML, DTD creation, enhanced, rendered as XHTML • Cost: $15,000 • Future • Cost < $300 Canadian Native Law Cases http;// library.usask.ca/native/cnlch.html

  36. Developers • Repackaging, reuse, migration, archiving • Code • How long will this content be around? • Always wise to separate presentation from content • Decision/Balance • Short term pain/effort vs. long term gain?

  37. XHTML &amp; You • XHTML will make your life a little more challenging • XHTML will make your computer happier (eventually)

  38. Silver Bullets? XHTML / XML • No! In fact, these new choices just raise some interesting challenges • Only certainty is change Content will outlive devices!

  39. Thank you! • Darlene Fichter darlene.fichter@usask.ca University of Saskatchewan Library

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