Re: HTML 4.0 draft available

Jordan Reiter wrote:
> 
> At 6:04 PM -0000 7/8/97, Paul Prescod wrote:
> >[1] The new spec. is quite clear that your usage of the word "tag" is
> >incorrect. It always was, but now it says so outright.
> Hmm... In my mind this is a *language* issue similar to grammar arguments
> I've gotten in.  

Of course it is a language issue. 

> And while there is a P element, there
> is also a P tag:  <P>  

No, you still don't understand. <P> is not the p tag. It is a P
start-tag. </P> is the P end tag. <P>abcd</P> is a complete P element.

If we are going to meaningfully discuss markup, HTML, SGML, XML, etc.
then we must use common terminology. This issue of confused terminology
leading to confusing thought was serious enough that Dan Connolly once
published an informational note (still available) called "Character set
considered harmful" because people were using "character set" and
"character encoding" interchangably just as you use "element" and "tag"
interchangably.

 Paul Prescod

Received on Wednesday, 9 July 1997 08:02:43 UTC