HTML
4 Errata
The latest version of HTML 4.01:
HTML 4.01 supersedes HTML 4.0.
The latest version of HTML 4:
This document last modified:
$Date: 2005/03/23 14:19:27 $
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©1999-2005 W3C®
(MIT,
ERCIM, Keio), All Rights Reserved. W3C liability,
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and software
licensing rules apply.
About this document
This
document records known errata to HTML 4 specifications, including HTML 4.0 and
HTML 4.01 (which supersedes HTML 4.0).
Errata
for HTML 4.0 versions are listed in separate documents:
This
document records errata beginning with the 24 December 1999
specification of HTML 4.01.
Please
email error reports to www-html-editor@w3.org.
How this document is organized
Each
erratum entry below includes the following information:
- A unique entry number.
- The date it was added to
the errata page.
- Whether the entry is
considered an important error, a minor typographical error, a
clarification, or a known problem with the document itself.
- The document version and
section referred to.
- A description of the
problem and correction if applicable.
References
to this errata sheet should refer to it as of a specific date and include the
number of the most recent error recorded.
Known Errors in HTML 4.01
1. Missing
reference to changes from 4.0 to 4.01
Added: 17 Jan 2000
Type: Editorial
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
1.1
How the specification is organized, Appendixes [p. 16]
Description: The paragraph does not
refer to the changes from HTML 4.0 to HTML 4.01.
Correction: Include that information.
2. Values
of marginwidth/marginheight may be 0.
Added: 17 Jan 2000
Type: Error
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
16.2.2
The FRAME element [p. 210]
Description: The definitions of the
marginwidth and marginheight attributes say that the value must be an integer
greater than zero.
Correction: The value must be an
integer greater than or equal to zero. That is, furthermore, what the list
of changes states.
3. Missing
semicolons in entity name of parameter entity references
Added: 17 Jan 2000
Type: Editorial
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
6 Basic
HTML data types [p. 53 - 56]
Description: Every entity name of
parameter entity reference is followed by semicolon in DTDs (and fragment
DTDs).
Correction: Examples of parameter
entity references in section 6.8 - 6.13 should be: "%LanguageCode;"
(section 6.8), "%Charset;" (section 6.9), "%Character;"
(section 6.10), "%Datetime;" (section 6.11), "%LinkTypes;"
(section 6.12), and "%MediaDesc;" (section 6.13).
4. URIs
also used for background images
Added: 26 Jan 2000
Type: Editorial
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
2.1.3
Relative URIs [p. 21]
Description: This section lists
elements in the HTML that use URIs but omits the (deprecated) use of background
images specified on the BODY element.
Correction: Add another bullet:
"Designate a background image (see the BODY element). This is a
deprecated usage and style sheets should be used instead."
5. Missing
DTD comment for OPTION/selected
Added: 26 Jan 2000
Type: Editorial
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
21
Document Type Definition [p. 274]
Description: The "selection"
attribute of the OPTION element is missing a comment. Also, this example appears
in the section 3.3.4.2
Boolean attributes. While it was corrected in this version of the
specification, the correction doesn't appear in the list of changes.
Correction: Add the comment
"option is pre-selected" to the DTD.
6. Gzipped
PDF file problematic on Macs
Added: 26 Jan 2000
Type: Document Issue
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version.
Description: When unzipped, the online PDF
format of the specification may cause problems on Adobe Acrobat on MacIntoshes.
Correction: Try using the Postscript
format. The PDF format will not be gzipped in future versions.
7. Syntax
error in comments
Added: 26 Jan 2000
Type: Editorial
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
7.4.4.
Meta data, "Meta and Search Engines" [p. 67]
Description: The comments such as
"<-- For speakers of US English -->" are missing an
"!" after the "<".
Correction: "<!-- For speakers
of US English -->" The same applies to the two comments that follow.
8. Use
"hreflang" with "Alternate" link types
Added: 26 Jan 2000
Type: Error
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
6.12
Link types [p. 55]
Description: The definition of
"Alternate" link types says to use the lang attribute to
indicate a translated document.
Correction: Use hreflang to suggest
the language of the linked document.
9. content-disposition:
attachment
Added: 26 Jan 2000
Type: Error
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
17.13.4
Form content types, "multipart/form-data" [RFC2388]
Description: RFC2388 incorrectly states in
section 4.4: "in the case of multiple files, in a
"content-disposition: file" header of the subpart." This syntax
appears in the examples in section 17.13.4.2
Correction: Change to
"content-disposition: attachment".
10. OBJECT
instantiation
Added: 26 Jan 2000
Type: Clarification
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
13.3.4
Object declarations and instantiations [p. 170]
Description: Indicate how OBJECT
instantiation works.
Correction: After this part of the
example at the end of 13.3.4:
...later in the document...<P>A neat <A href="#earth.declaration"> animation of The Earth!</A>
Add:
Another way of instantiating such a declared object is: <object data="#earth.declaration"></object>
11. Unzipping
PDF/PS on Windows
Added: 28 April 2000
Type: Document Problem
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
Online Gzipped
PDF version (as well as PS, I presume).
Description: Problem unzipping html40.pdf.gz.
Correction: There is no problem with
the gzipped PDF file. If you are having problems unzipping the file it may be
that Windows has already unzipped it for you during the download. In this case,
simply remove the ".gz" suffix from the file and view it with your
PDF viewer.
12. Local
links to style sheets in gzipped distribution
Added: 12 May 2001
Type: Document Problem
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
Gzip'ed tar
archive of HTML.
Description: Absolute links to style
sheets and icons.
Correction: This was a conscious
decision, but may be revised in a future release to allow for easier offline
viewing. In theory, caching should address this issue, but in practice that
won't work in today's browsing environments.
13. Clarify
element declaration exceptions in tutorial.
Added: 12 May 2001
Type: Clarification
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
section
3.3.3.1 Content model definitions. [p.
34]
Description: Exceptions (inclusions and
exclusions from the content model) not well-described.
Correction: Indicate that exceptions { +(A) and -(A) } appear at
the end of the content model description. Show example of this using the A element
declaration.
14. It
is not specified whether the values of the "coords" attribute (A and
AREA elements) are 0-based or 1-based
Added: 12 May 2001
Type: Error
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
section
13.6.1 AREA element declaration. [p. 174, 175]
Description: The specification is
unclear about whether x,y coordinates are 0-based or 1-based. Is the top left
corner (0,0) or (1,1)?
Correction: None yet (seeking HTML WG
input).
15. Mistaken
reference to image instead of object.
Added: 12 May 2001
Type: Editorial
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
section
15.1.3.1 Float an object. [p. 197]
Description: The "align"
attribute values "left" and "right" refer to objects first,
then images.
Correction: Substitute
"object" for "image" in second sentence of each definition,
as in "Subsequent text flows along the object's right side."
16. Example
missing TITLE element in
head.
Added: 12 May 2001
Type: Editorial
Refers to: 24 Dec 1999 version,
section
14.1. [p. 184]
Description: The example in the
introduction is a complete HTML 4.01 document instance and is missing a
required TITLE element in the HEAD.
Correction: Add a TITLE element.