Re: code, samp, kbd, var

Frank Ellermann wrote:
> Tina Holmboe wrote:
> 
>>    (a) All presentational elements - and yes, this does include I, B,
>>        FONT, and the way M is defined today - are removed from the HTML
>>        specification.
> 
> Breaking backwards compatibility for something that's supposed to work,

You actually  mean forward compatibility. Her proposal doesn't break 
such compatibility, because there is no conflicting meaning, so user 
agents can still support the old standard.  HTML has had several 
occasions on which things were removed.  WHATWG's proposal does break 
such compatibility, because it changes the meaning of some elements.

> 
> Some wikis support '' or ''' or ''''' (5) constructs.  About a year ago
> this was intentionally rendered as <i> or <b> or (IIRC) <i><b>, because

Wikis use HTML as a final form output language, not as  the revisable 
form.  It doesn't matter what HTML is generated by them, as long as it 
produces the "right" result in browsers that are contemporary with the 
server.  If you want an accessible version, you need the Wiki code.

(This does represent a failure of HTML to meet its original objectives, 
because it means that it is more attractive to author in Wiki language, 
than HTML.)

Received on Sunday, 20 May 2007 09:51:04 UTC