HyperText Markup Language more popularly known as HTML is the standard markup language used in writing web pages. HTML describes the structure of a web page which is rendered by a web browser.
HTML consists of elements that are the building blocks of HTML documents. These elements are used to describe how to present the content which could be anything from text, and embedded images to multimedia video, audio, and much more.
HTML History
Berners-Lee in late 1991 but “HTML 2.0” was the first standard HTML specification which was published in 1995. HTML 4.01 was a major version of HTML and it was published in late 1999. Though HTML 4.01 version is widely used currently we are having the HTML-5 version which is an extension to HTML 4.01, and this version was published in 2012.
Why Learn HTML?
The current modern HTML standard is HTML5 and we will be referring to HTML5 when we mention HTML where applicable unless stated otherwise.
Knowledge of HTML is essential for any aspiring web developer. With it:
- You will be able to create basic websites
- You will be in a position to get a meaningful career in web designing and development
- You will have the skills to troubleshoot and optimize your web pages
- You will be grounded in the basics in readiness to learn related technologies like CSS, JavaScript, and the many Frameworks and related libraries.
A Basic HTML Document
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>This is document title</title>
</head>
<body>
<h1>A Simple heading</h1>
<p>Hello World paragraph!</p>
</body>
</html>Who is HTML Tutorial For?
This HTML tutorial is ideal for both beginner and professional web designers and developers looking to better understand HTML, to simply use it as a reference in their daily work, or for educators to use it as a teaching aid and for students to prepare for an exam.
Practical Uses of HTML
Being the most widely used language over the web, HTML has some genuine real-world practical applications. This is by no means a comprehensive list of what you can do with HTML.
- Web Page Designing: HTML is the primary language used to create documents or web pages, the core of the World Wide Web, for viewing in a web browser.
- Rich User Interfaces (UI): HTML can be found in all sorts of application software where it is used for designing user interfaces in areas such as embedded systems, industrial control systems, consumer devices, business applications, etc.
- Game Development: HTML5 comes with built-in in support to allow game developers to create games.
- Mobile Development: HTML5 is the natural go-to when incorporating web technologies in mobile apps.
Prerequisites
This HTML tutorial targets absolute beginners and professionals alike. Therefore it requires very little in terms of prior knowledge of information technology to get started. To get started one needs to have a basic working knowledge of a computer and the underlying operating system such as Windows, Linux, macOS, etc.
- Experience with a plain text editor such as Notepad. Note: Rich text editors such as Notepad++, Visual Studio Code, Sublime Text, etc. would be more suited for writing HTML5 code. This is because these editors come with features such as syntax highlighting, auto indenting, working with multiple files, etc.
- How to create files and directories on your preferred operating system environment.
- How to navigate between directories and their relation to each other. This will be helpful when linking web pages and inserting images or rich media such as audio or video.
What Next
Get started with this HTML tutorial to start your journey to becoming a competent web designer and developer.