Serving the Most Appropriate Content to Multiple User Agents from a Single Document Source: XHTML Media Types

aloha!

as many of you are aware, XHTML™ 1.0, The Extensible HyperText Markup 
Language (A Reformulation of HTML 4 in XML 1.0 - Second Edition)

   * [http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1]

included an informative Appendix C: "HTML Compatibility Guidelines"

   * [http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/#guidelines]

now, the XHTML2 Working Group has clarified how to use XHTML 1.0 to 
serve the most appropriate content to multiple user agents from a 
single document source, in a new document:

"XHTML Media Types: Serving the Most Appropriate Content to Multiple 
User Agents from a Single Document Source"; current drafts of XHTML 
Media Types are available from

  * [http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/Drafts/Overview.html#xhtmlmime]

currently, the latest editor's draft is located at:

  * [http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/2008/ED-xhtmlmime-20081024/]

explanation: this document supersedes the informative Appendix C of 
the original XHTML 1.0 Recommendation, entitled: "HTML Compatibility 
Guidelines", located at:

  * [http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/#guidelines]

as a normative document. 

Abstract of XHTML Media Types: Many people want to use XHTML to author 
their web pages, but are confused about the best ways to deliver those 
pages in such a way that they will be processed correctly by various 
user agents. This Note contains suggestions about how to format XHTML 
to ensure it is maximally portable, and how to deliver XHTML to various 
user agents - even those that do not yet support XHTML natively. This 
document is intended to be used by document authors who want to use 
XHTML today, but want to be confident that their XHTML content is going 
to work in the greatest number of environments. 

XHTML Media Types has rammifications for (at least) the AU WG, the GL WG, 
the PF WG and the UA WG and it is strongly encouraged that those 
concerned about serving the most appropriate content and how to achieve
such content, review the latest editor's draft at:

http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/2008/ED-xhtmlmime-20081024/

gregory.

Received on Wednesday, 5 November 2008 16:02:05 UTC