Demystifying HTML
A brief history of the foundations on which the Internet is built.
It underpins the whole world’s internet activity, yet few people even know what HTML stands for. The system was created by the same man who pioneered the World Wide Web, but it’s received far less acclaim than the WWW. Despite being the gold standard for displaying universally accessible documents and applications, the world’s most commonly programmed language remains an unsung hero of the modern age.
HyperText Markup Language was the creation of Sir Tim Berners-Lee while he was working at CERN in Switzerland. Its line-by-line English language instruction code was reminiscent of established programming languages such as PASCAL and BASIC, but it also borrowed heavily from typesetting instructions. However, HTML was always designed to be used through the networks of computers. Each parcel of code was downloaded and interpreted by browser programs on recipient devices which displayed the content according to the contained instructions. The method of transmission was christened Hypertext Transfer Protocol, which explains the ‘http’ prefix in every website address.
HTML has been continuously evolving since its launch in the early 1990s, and HTML 2.0 is widely regarded as the real starting point of this internet-friendly programming language. Within two years HTML 4.0 was unveiled, and this version has remained in use ever since. Sub-strands such as XHTML have been created along the way, although the recent arrival of HTML5 will gradually render version 4.0 obsolete after 18 years of faithful service.
HTML is surprisingly simple to translate, even for complete beginners. English-based commands are contained within < > brackets, where each line represents a distinct instruction or message. Once you know that <html> indicates the start of a web page and </html> indicates its end, for instance, it becomes easy to interpret what the instructions are in these elements. The / symbol typically denotes the end of something such as a particular instruction, use of a certain font or the conclusion of a paragraph. These bracketed intro and outro lines are known as tags, and they enable web browsers to follow each distinct instruction without getting confused by previous or subsequent commands.
Like other markup languages and programming languages, it’s possible to code in HTML using a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor. Split-screen software programs display HTML source code on one side and a visual depiction of what this code will create directly opposite; as elements are moved or inserted within the visual display the code automatically updates. This relatively simple method of programming has enabled many enthusiastic amateurs to create their own websites and software, reflecting HTML’s free and unrestricted nature.
The lack of control or ownership over HTML hasn’t always been such a blessing. As an open-source markup language its development has often been ad-hoc and reactive rather than structured and proactive. In an attempt to remedy this situation, the World Wide Web Consortium was founded in 1994. This international community appointed itself as the guardian of the web, constantly seeking to raise standards and expand internet access. By establishing protocols and guidelines it’s hoped that everyone around the world can enjoy the same standard of information provision, irrespective of their language, personal circumstances, hardware/software configurations or attainable download speeds.
Continual refinements of this global standardisation have culminated in the creation of HTML5. Effectively the biggest shake-up to HTML in its history, this dynamic new version has been under development since 2008 and was finally released in October 2014. HTML5’s key advances include greater efficiency on mobile devices, geolocation technology and embedded video functionality. However, few people will notice any difference between HTML’s latest iteration and its illustrious ancestors, so in terms of browsing the web, it remains business as usual.