HTML and CSS Reference
In-Depth Information
16.4. XHTML 1.1
In May 2001, the W3C released an updated the XHTML standard, XHTML
1.1. While most standards expand upon their previous versions, XHTML
1.1 takes the unusual step of defining a more restrictive version of
XHTML. If you think of XHTML 1.0 as unwieldy, picky, and time consum-
ing, you'll find XHTML 1.1 even more so. In our opinion, XHTML 1.1 is
an example of the standards process taken to absurd levels, defining a
standard that may be academically pure but is essentially unusable.
16.4.1. Differences in XHTML 1.1
XHTML 1.1 begins with the XHTML 1.0 strict DTD and makes a few modi-
fications. By supporting only the strict version of XHTML 1.0, version
1.1 eliminates all deprecated elements and all browser extensions still in
common use on the Web. It also makes the following minor changes:
•
The
lang
attribute has been removed from every element. Instead,
authors should use the
xml:lang
attribute.
•
The
name
attribute has been removed from the
<a>
and
<map>
ele-
ments. Authors should use the
id
attribute in its place.
Finally, the XHTML 1.1 standard defines a new set of elements that im-
plement a typographic feature known as
ruby text
. Ruby text is short
runs of text placed alongside the base text; it is often used to annotate
the text or to indicate pronunciation. Ruby text has its roots in East Asi-
an documents, particularly Chinese schoolbooks and Japanese topics and
base text and follows certain alignment rules to ensure that it appears
adjacent to the appropriate base text element.
[*]
The origin of the name "ruby" lies in the name that printers use for the 5.5-point font used by the Brit-
ish press to set this smaller adjacent text.
