HTML and CSS Reference
In-Depth Information
A ppendix A
A history of web standards
n this appendix, you'll get a brief overview of how the web was invented
and its subsequent development. You'll also learn how standards are
made by the
W3C
, why the Web Hypertext Application Technology
Working Group
(WHATWG)
was formed, and the aims behind
HTML5
.
To conclude, we'll take a brief look at the process behind the other major
standard that's covered in this topic:
CSS3
. None of this information is
necessary to use web standards but, like many other human endeavors,
web standards are a product of their history as much as they are rational
technical documents. An appreciation of the history will help you under-
stand why the standards are the way they are.
A short history of the web
In the following sections, you'll learn about the history of the web, from
its beginnings as an easy way to share physics papers to its current incar-
nation as the repository of all the world's knowledge and possible replace-
ment for traditional operating systems. You'll also learn about the World
Wide Web Consortium
(W3C)
and its role in providing the standards on
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