Re: structure or presentation?

The boundary between content and presentation is somewhat fuzzy.

> > Could anyone tell me the difference between a structural 
> > element and a presentational one.
> 
> Structure = what it *is*.
> 	HTML examples:  
> 	<p> is a paragraph
> 	<q> is an inline quote
> 	<blockquote> is a block quote
> 
> Presentation = what it might *look like*.
> 	HTML examples:
> 	<b> can look bold (on a device that can show it)
> 	<center> can make a section centered (on a device that can do
> it)
> 	<font> can show a font (on a device that can show it)

It is generally asserted that <strong> is content markup while
<b> is presentation.  If, however, "b" is perceived as standing
for "bold" -- parallel in English meaning to "strong" -- rather
than "boldface" -- a font style, then the distinction between
<strong> and <b> disappears.

While "center" does suggest presentation, a content-level container
for, say, inline, paragraphs, and lists, called "display" would by
default, in my view, suggest the same screen application handling as
"center".  A way to present "display" in an audio stream, for example,
might be to switch voice gender.

                                    -- Bill

Received on Saturday, 16 February 2002 12:54:12 UTC