What is HTML5?
HTML is an acronym for Hyper Text Mark-up Language. The initial standard was developed in 1990 by the World Wide Web Consortium. HTML 5 is the latest update of this specification used to build websites. Many people are still unaware of many of the benefits of HTML5, so here we will describe some of its top attributes and benefits.
HTML is a form of high level programming language used for structuring and presenting content on the Web consistently, across web browsers. HTML5 has been designed to meet the increasing demands presented by today’s rich media and mobile display requirements. Likewise it makes cross-platform mobile application development possible along with new styling options available in CSS3 (Cascading Style Sheets version 3). As HTML5/CSS3 it operates entirely within a web browser, as HTML5 does, it is not dependent on the underlying operating system, which frees applications from the significant development/support overhead to otherwise make it all compatible with Android, iOS, Blackberry, etc.
HTML5 is already supported in the latest web browser versions on PCs and tablets; of which about a billion new compatible phone devices are being produced each year. It is quite important not to ignore the importance of HTML5 when considering your mobile site.
CSS3: What is it?
CSS stands for ‘Cascading Style Sheets’. It is the language of format and design of web pages. It provides website designers the power to site documents that are styled. CSS is compatible with all popular web browsers regardless of device and operating system. It separates the structure of a web page from the details of how elements are displayed. CSS can also be used to tailor a web page specific to a particular screen resolution or device/screen-size. In short, CSS is the language used for implementing front-end web design.
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HTML5 & CSS Benefits:
The most obvious benefit actually lies in its abstraction. As it is generally termed: Write once, run anywhere.
HTML5 and CSS3 help businesses design and deploy web content and applications to create visually stunning and accurate web pages which operate across devices, operating systems and web browsers. Without these standards the vast variety of devices and operating systems would present many perplexing design and functional problems.
Increased page ranking:
If pages of a website are not syntactically ‘well-formed’ (non-standard based coding) then the page itself will most likely not attain a good rank within search engines. No amount of Inbound market or most SEO (Search Engine Optimization) techniques will make a big difference to rankings if your page is not first composed in well structured HTML, which is subsequently easily readable by search engines. But HTML5’s new tags/elements when properly used are of value when SERPS (search engine results page are being) re-indexed.
Important new tags · <article> specifies an independent block of content. The contents of article tags should be entirely self-contained. A blog post or new article could be wrapped in an <article> tag, for example. · <section> specifies a subsection of a block of content, such as an <article>. If a blog post was broken into several sections by sub-headers, each section could be wrapped with a <section> tag. Just as books have chapters, blocks of content can have sections. · <header> could serve two purposes: (1) to specify the header of a page or (2) to indicate the header section of a self-contained block of content (an <article>). <header> tags might contain navigation, branding or the document headline. · <hgroup> is used to wrap a section of headings (<h1> through <h6>). A great example would be an article with both a headline and sub-headline at the top: <hgroup> <h1>Main Headline</h1> <h2>Article tagline or subheading</h2> </hgroup> · <footer> is a bit like the <header> tag. It could specific the <footer> of an entire HTML document or the footer of an <article>. This may contain things like footer navigation or meta-data about an article (author, data, etc) · <nav> is meant to enclose site navigation. This can be used anywhere: main site navigation, previous/next article links, or pagination. · <aside> is for content related to the parent element in which is resides, but not strictly part of the main document. In other words, it could be used on a website sidebar or it could be used within an <article> for special call outs – like the “did you know?” call outs found in many books. · <video> is for video content. Its purpose is to provide a cross-browser compatible way to display video.
Embedded video and audio format
Previously, web designers needed to use third-party applications, such as Adobe Flash Player, Silverlight, Quicktime or other options to be able to play embedded audio and video. That often resulted in errors and incompatibilities. HTML5 offers the solution to that problem with full support for embedded video and audio.
Example: <video poster="myvideo.jpg" controls><source src=”myvideo.ogg" type="video/ogg"><source src="myvideo.mp4" type="video/mp4">Your particular browser or version does not support the <code>video</code> element.</video>
Browsing offline
The way most apps can be used offline, HTML5 supports local storage of web content, through a content and application cache. This is an advantage to businesses because HTML5 provides an offline web experience for readers on the move. The offline cache also produces performance enhancements; as more of the site and/or scripting code and content is accessed quickly, locally.
Better access browser based analytics tools
Future development of HTML5 applications should lead to better access to business intelligence as all devices that are compatible in having the same ability to collect, collate, and use data.
Geolocation
HTML5 supports geolocation. An HTML5 application can use the user's location after a user opts to share their location. It is of importance when developing location based services or apps.
Enhanced user experience
HTML5 gives the developers more flexibility and greater scope of possibilities enabling production of better web sites and web applications. User engagement and retention is key to conversions, producing accessible and usable websites ensures that users will be more likely to engage.
Conclusion
The first reason why you should start using HTML5 soon is that it is the future, start using it now so you don’t get left behind.
HTML5 & CSS3 represent a new evolution for businesses. Utilizing these new techniques, you can optimize your users' experience, provide a better foundation for optimizing your search engine ranking and content marketing strategy, simplify your cross-platform web development and also down the road support costs; basically increasing your reach while reducing costs.
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