What Is HTML Used For?

 

HTML, or Hypertext Markup Language, is used to create web pages. Site authors use HTML to format text as titles and headings, to arrange graphics on a webpage, to link to different pages within a website, and to link to different websites.

How HTML is used to Create a Web Document

HTML is a set of codes that a website author inserts into a plain text file to format the content. The author inserts HTML tags, or commands, before and after words or phrases to indicate their format and location on the page. HTML tags are also used to add tables, lists, images, music, and other elements to a webpage.

Web documents contain three main sections: the head, title, and body. The head includes the webpage’s identifying information, including the website’s title and important keywords. The viewer sees the site’s title, but any other information is hidden. The site’s title appears in the browser’s tab and is what appears when a user tries to bookmark a site. The body section is the main portion of the webpage visible to the viewer, including the text and graphics. HTML tags are also used in two additional ways that are not visible to the viewer: as meta tags and comments. Meta tags indicate keywords associated with the webpage to search engines. Comments are intended as explanation or additional information for other writers or readers of HTML code.

Website authors do not need to write HTML code themselves to create a webpage. Using an HTML editor, site authors design web documents while the program writes the HTML code. A WYSIWYG (What You See is What You Get) HTML editor is a software program with an interface similar to a word processing program that site authors use to write and format text and position graphics as they will appear on the webpage.

How HTML is used to Navigate the Internet

Hypertext is text that references other web pages or text and that, when clicked on, allows the user to access the referenced text or webpage. HTML is used to embed hyperlinks within web pages. Hyperlinks allow the user to move easily within web pages and between websites stored on different servers.

  • HTML and the Internet: An explanation of Internet basics and how HTML functions in the Internet environment.
  • Beginning HTML: A basic explanation of HTML, how it works, and how to build a simple webpage.
  • Using HTML: A resource for understanding and using HTML.
  • Introductory HTML: An introduction to HTML, how it is used to create web pages, and a brief tutorial.
  • An Introduction to Building WebPages using HTML: Why understanding the basics of HTML is important, both for coding your own text and when using an HTML editor.
  • HTML Basics: Information on what HTML is, how it works, and how to use it to create web pages.