HTML Level 1 and 2 Manual

<HTML> Element

Category: Document
Period: HTML 1 / HTML 2.0
Status: core

Description

The outer document element. It says that the whole file is an HTML document.

Syntax

<HTML>
<HEAD>...</HEAD>
<BODY>...</BODY>
</HTML>

Attributes

None in strict HTML 2.0.

Usage Guidelines

Use HTML as the outside wrapper of every file in the manual.
Put HEAD and BODY inside it. Do not put visible page text before BODY.
Browsers sometimes guessed missing structure, but full wrappers make pages easier to maintain.
For strict HTML 2.0, place a DOCTYPE before HTML if you want validators to know the dialect.

Common Mistakes

Do not nest one HTML document inside another.
Do not rely on the browser to invent missing HEAD and BODY sections.

Example Code

<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//IETF//DTD HTML 2.0//EN">
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>My page</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<H1>Hello</H1>
<P>This is a document.
</BODY>
</HTML>

Authoring Note

Write the document first, then test it in a graphical browser and a text browser. The page should remain understandable if images fail, colours are ignored, or the browser uses its own fonts.

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HTML Level 1 and 2 Manual.