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So far we have discussed about various types of tags and objects of HTML documents but haven’t come across any methodology which can control the data embedded in them. In a simple HTML document the web browser cannot separate data from the content and thus the user can’t manage and manipulate it. In order to solve this issue the concept of Data Binding was introduced. Via data binding one can associate the data of a database with the HTML pages. Once the web page is downloaded and opened by the web browser the data associated with that page can be differentiated from the any other content and the user has full control over it. Data binding offers a vast array of new methods and properties for HTML tags which can be used to associate a database with the web page.

Data binding involves three basic steps:

1) Adding a data source to the HTML document
2) Binding HTML elements to the data source
3) Developing scripts to control the bonded database table

Adding the Data Source object to the web page

The first and foremost step towards data binding is to identify the data source and add it to the web page. In order to accomplish this The Data Source Objects (DSO) are used. DSOs are provided by Microsoft and are used for supplying data to the web browser. In order to do this, the DSO identifies the data source through various methods such as SQL queries, URLs etc.

Apart from this DSOs are also used to manipulate the data. It is used to give the user complete control over the data. DSO offers a large number of properties, events and methods in order to accomplish this.

The Microsoft’s Internet Explorer comes with two built-in DSOs. The first one is the Advanced Data connector (ADC) and the other one is the Tabular Data Control (TDC). ADC is meant to access the database via server and ODBC (Open Database Connectivity) components. TDC is used to access tabular data stores in the form of comma-delimited text files. Without the DSO no web page can get and access the data.

Binding HTML elements to the data source

It is very crucial to associate the HTML page to the Data source Object. With the help of DATASRC and DATAFLD attributes, the data can be bonded with the HTML elements. The DATASRC refers to the Data Source Object (DSO) and the DATAFLD refers to a specific column of the database. Both of them have to be defined in the HTML code in order to associate a database table with the web page.

Scripting of Data Source Objects

Once the data source has been identified and associated with the HTML document, the final step is to create a script for that which will allow the user to control the data in a particular manner. Without scripting the user cannot manipulate the data. Scripting is done by using different types of properties and methods of Data Source Object.

In today’s world the internet is growing at the speed of a jet. Day by day websites are being improved in terms of interactivity, entertainment, multimedia, graphics and animations. HTML documents now do not refer to the static pages which were used as the source of information only. In fact, the web is being used as the all in one entertainer for every age group.

Web sites based on gaming, animations, 3D graphics etc. are designed to provide the children the whole package of fun and excitement on their fingertips. Customers can look at the product features and virtually use the products before they actually buy it by real time simulation on World Wide Web. These miracles are possible only because of VRML language.

VRML, short for Virtual Reality Modeling Language is a language impeccably designed to facilitate hi-end 3 dimensional real time simulations on the internet. Initially, the SGML and its derivative HTML, both were designed to support two dimensional structures. But with the evolution of VRML, the internet standards have been redesigned in order to full utilize the 3D powers of the web. VRML uses various types of virtual reality objects and virtual worlds which uses three dimensional paradigms for different purposes. These placements of these objects with respect to each other can be defined using the VRML co-ordinate system. Once the positioning has been done, you can define the behavior of different elements of your virtual world.

VRML can be used to beautifully design the HTML documents. This language invokes life in the static web pages. You can do a number of tasks via VRML such as:

• Adding motion to an object
• Creating a virtual world
• 3D simulation of products
• Improving graphics
• Inserting event oriented tasks
• Controlling the behavior of various elements of the virtual world
• Embedding and controlling animations in HTML documents
• Inserting real time games in web sites

How to view VRML worlds?

To view a VRML world we need a VRML browser. A VRML browser is just like the other web browser but it has got additional features which support fascinating world of VRML. VRML browser reads a VRML file and displays the complex geometry, animations and lightning effects as a 3D world. If the 3D world allows navigation, you can examine the different objects of VRML world and navigate through it in an exciting way. VRML browser can be installed as a standalone software application or it can be embedded in the existing web browser as a plug-in.

The best VRML browser

There are a number of VRML browsers available in the market but no one is best. Every VRML browser has got its own set of benefits and constraints. While choosing a VRML browser one should keep in mind the cost, features, objective of using the VRML browser, extra features, hardware acceleration, scripting and overall performance. If you are using the VRML browser as a plug-in, you should also keep in mind that for which browser you need VRML before you select a particular one because for different web browsers different types of VRML plug-ins are developed.

Since its evolution in 1994, the most impressive web developer language VRML has been through a lots of modifications and upgrades. In the year 1997, VRML was upgraded for the first time and its name was changed from VRML94 to VRML97 (which is also known as VRML2 or VRML 2.0). This upgraded version of the web language became an ISO standard and was used to design home pages and sites offering 3D chat facilities.

As the web graphics and vectors began to improve, a lot of alternate languages emerged in order to provide better options for virtual 3D modeling and stood in the competition. The various alternatives to the traditional VRML language are:

A) COLLADA: It stands for COLLAborative Design Activity for developing interchangeable file format for 3D applications. This language defines an open standard XML schema which lays down the standards for exchanging the digital files among a number of graphic software applications.

COLLADA documents use XML files having a .dae (digital asset exchange) extension. This language was originally produced to facilitate transfer of digital data from one digital content creation tool to another DCC. This language is used by a number of popular applications such as Maya, 3D Studio Max, Google Earth etc.

B) U3D: Short for Universal 3D, U3D represents the compressed file format for 3D data. It was developed to get a universal standard for exchanging all types of 3D data.

C) X3D: It is a successor of VRML which was developed to enhance the VRML capabilities. X3D features various extensions to VRML such as Humanoid Animation, NURBS, GoeVRML etc. X3D defines a large number of extensions which are used for various purposes. Some of the popular X3D extensions are X3D Core, X3D Interchange, X3D CAD, X3D Geospatial and X3D Immersive.

D) 3DMLW: It is short for 3D Markup Language for Web. This is an XML based standard file format which is used for representing both three dimensional as well as two dimensional interactive content on the World Wide Web. 3DMLW is an open source engine and is licensed under GPL (General Public License).

In order to view and ripe the amazing benefits of 3DMLW, a 3DMLW plug-in or a 3DMLW standalone web browser has to be installed on the PC. The plug-in renders the 3D and 2D effects using the OpenGL (Open Graphics Library) standard. Thus it can be used under cross language, cross platform environments.

3DMLW separated the 2D and 3D objects and uses a text file format based on the XML 1.0 standard.

All the different 3D applications and graphic standards have their own abilities and disabilities. Therefore, one should keep in mind the objective of using these applications, the features of the applications, the cost and scalability factor while choosing one of them. You can also use more than one application and standard simultaneously to have a larger pool of exciting features as most of them supports cross platform functionality as well as backward compatibility.

Since its evolution, the HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) has been revised and upgraded a number of times in order to make the World Wide Web a better place to live virtually. HTML is a derivative of SGML (Standard Generalized Markup Language), but its major flaw is that it is not extensible. Thus HTML is not appropriate for deployment under a network environment.

So, the World Wide Web Consortium (popularly known as W3C) decided to develop a new breed of extensible language and came up with XML, which stands for eXtensible Markup Language. Web developers use XML to dynamically describe the information stored on a web page. Though XML, the new generation web pages describes themselves which is helpful to gain good rankings in search engine listings and help the developers to write codes for custom search tools.

• XML shall be straightforwardly usable over the Internet.
• XML shall support a wide variety of applications.
• XML shall be compatible with SGML.
• It shall be easy to write programs that process XML documents.
• The number of optional features shall be kept to the absolute minimum, ideally zero.
• XML documents shall be human-legible and reasonably clear.
• The XML design should be prepared quickly.
• The design of XML shall be formal and concise.
• XML documents shall be easy to create.
• Terseness in XML markup is of minimal importance.

(Source: http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-xml/)

XML is referred as a Metalanguage which describes other languages. It is called so because XML allows the web developers to create documents which describes themselves to their reader. Though the XML tags look like the HTML ones, the main difference between the two is that the HTML documents do not tell the web browser how to display the web page. On the other hand, the XML documents are downloaded by the web browser along with a style sheet or Document Type definition (DTD) which guides the web browser on how to display the web page.

In its raw form, an XML document looks like the HTML and SGML documents, but all are functionally different. The main difference between the HTML and XML coding is that the XML tags are very rigid. For example; the HTML language has tags which have a closing and which don’t have a closing section. But in XML either all the tags must exist in pair or announce to the reader that a closing tag is not present.

For example: in HTML you can use <BR> tag without having to close it, but in XML you have to use it as <BR>…</BR> or simply as <BR/> which announces that there is no closing tag for BR.

Another prominent difference between the two languages is that the XML requires all the tag attribute values to be enclosed within quotation marks. For example:

<font color=red>……</font>, this is wrong in XML. It should be like <font color=”red”>…….</font>

HTML can be classified into two categories namely SGML based HTML (traditional) pitted against XML based HTML (also called XHTML) and the second one being a strict versus transitional versus frameset. In this article, the former has been described in detail.

One notable difference between the traditional version and XHTML is the technical distinction between the two of them. However, Inspite of all the modifications being done, the root element name “HTML” has been kept the same. The area which requires loads of effort is the one where the limitations of XML start showing in comparison to the more complex SGML inspite of the W3C intended HTML 4.01 being identical to XHTML 1.0. Due to the similarity quotient between HTML and XHTML, they are documented in parallel at many times.

The difference between an XHTML 1.0 document and an HTML 4.01 document is mostly syntactic in each of the corresponding DTDs except for the different opening declarations applicable for the document. There are many shortcuts which XHTML does not allow but HTML allows because of the underlying syntax. Be it elements with optional opening or closing tags, empty elements not having an end tag, all these are examples of the shortcuts that a user can take advantage of in HTML. HTML requires all elements to have an opening tag or a closing tag.

After contemplating on the whole process, the developers of XHTML have also come out with a shortcut. The opening and closing of an HTML tag has to be done within the same tag but a slash (/) can be added before the closing of the tag. For demonstration of the concept, let us take this example: <avi/>, where “<” is the opening tag and “>” the closing tag, “avi” is a fictitious HTML tag and as mentioned above, the slash (/) comes before the tag is closed.

To properly understand the minute differences between HTML and XHTML, the tips listed below need to be kept in mind:

. XHTML makes use of XML’s built in language defining functionality attribute. The language for an element should be specified with a lang attribute rather than the XHTML attribute.
. The XML namespace has to be removed as HTML does not have a provision for namespaces.
. The document type declaration has to be changed from XHTML 1.0 to HTML 4.01.
. The empty-element syntax of an XML has to be developed into a style empty element of an HTML.

A technically well constructed XHTML document will always follow all the syntax requirements of XML. The structure of a document is thoroughly described by the content of XHTML and legitimate documents will religiously follow its specified data.

To migrate easily between HTML and XHTML, several conventions have been recommended by the W3C and by meticulously following these guidelines, a user will be able to easily interpret the document as HTML or XHTML. The XHTML 1.0 documents that have been made compatible in this way are permitted by the W3C to be served either as HTML or as XHTML.

To begin with, there is no existence of a term called “Semantic HTML” in Hyper Text Markup Language. Basically, the term is in reference to the effort made to produce documents in HTML which are completely devoted to the writer’s intended meaning without any slight indication as to how the meaning is being conveyed. If one tries to draw a comparison between the emphasis element (<em>) and the italics element (<i>), it can be observed that the emphasis element is drawn in italics bringing in a lot of typical similarity into the presentation.

But what really makes the difference is the same element of presentation that was talked above. A classic example of this would be a book title which would be displayed in a different element than emphasized text, which would again be displayed in a different element so that both of them end up looking unique just like their meanings.

Semantic HTML basically requires two things while working on:

. Avoidance of the use of presentational markup, i.e. attributes, elements and other entities.
. Creation of a visible difference between the structure of the document and the meaning of the phrases by making use of the available markup.

This form of HTML also requires some minute specifications and compliance of software. The development of CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) has in many ways increased the demand of semantic HTML as the CSS caters to the needs of the designers by providing them with a rich language enabling them to alter the presentation of the documentation prepared on semantic HTML. The need for inclusion of presentational properties in a document has been virtually eliminated with the eventual development of CSS. Using semantic HTML not only leads to consistency in representation of phrases and statements having the same meaning but also gives the authors the freedom from the mentally draining concern of the details of presentation.

An example might make things easier. The number 2, when being written should be written in words as two or in numeric form as 2? In this case, the semantic markup might portray it as <number>2</number> and let the stylesheet designers do the honors when it comes to presentation details.
So if this is co-related to the authors, then all they need to do is indicate quotations and stop thinking about presentations.

Another additional advantage is the repurposing of documents that can be done and the allotment of device independence. The pairing of a semantic HTML document can be done with any number of sheets so that the output comes on the computer screens via web browsers, devices that can be handheld and also printers having a high resolution. Not many changes are required in an HTML document to accomplish this feat as the readily available stylesheets simplify this by pairing semantic HTML documents with appropriate stylesheets.

There are certain aspects of authoring documents which make the separation of semantics from presentation complicated. One can also find certain hybrid elements which make use of presentation in their very meaning. The separation of the actual meaning from their presentation becomes tough in case of these types of elements. But for many, the process of translation becomes extremely smooth.

So far we have studied and understood a variety of elements, tags and options of the HTML language. Now it is the right time to discuss about the appropriate usage of elements in the web document. The sole objective of a company’s web site is to spread the business and increase profitability. In order to achieve this goal the web site should be captivating enough so as to pull the customers towards it. In fact, if a web page is not created for money minting, then also it should be good looking, readable and presentable so that the audience can judiciously use it.

So, what type of web page can be called as the perfect one? No one! Every web site has its own pros and cons and there are no hard criteria to compare different web sites and judge their perfection. But in order to make web more useful and fruitful, there are some basic guidelines which should be considered before designing the HTML page.

Image is not EVERYTHING

The first and foremost thing which is to be kept in mind is that ‘Images’ are not everything. People generally think that the images will make their web site more beautiful (which is partially right) and put too much images in their HTML documents. This results in the loss of the main theme.

If too much images are used on a web page the visitor gets confused and cannot get hold of the intended meaning of the web page. Thus, images should be used only when it is important.

Too much of Flash work?

Just like the images, animations also need appropriate planning before it finds a place in your web site. Too much graphics and animations overwhelm the website and hides the core message.

Web Site content

The content written on the web site should be as crisp and concise as possible. Internet users are addicted to fast scanning. They only read the first few lines in order to decide whether to visit your web site further or not. Thus the content or the HTML stuff should be focused and to the point.

• Break long topics into small paragraphs, each portraying one distinct idea.
• Use lists wherever possible.
• Provide intuitive hyperlinks at appropriate places in order to give the user a hassle free navigation system.
• Maintain consistency with respect to the main style and design. For this purpose make a site map of your web site.

Maintain RELEVANCE of your HTML document

Information system is highly dynamic in today’s era. What is new and important today might become a crap after few hours. Thus, the web pages should be updated from time to time in order to maintain its relevance. Updation process becomes real time process in case of web sites related to stock markets, news and similar ones where the web pages are updated in fraction of a second.

Web Etiquette

It refers to all the rules which have to be followed by every web developer.

• Do not use offensive language
• Do not criticize any other web site, religion, race etc.
• Do not copy patented images and logos of others.
• Do not copy-paste the content of any other web page onto yours. Stop plagiarism.
• Do not hack any resource on the web
• Avoid the use of offensive images and cheap language.

Whenever we prepare long documents we divide it into various paragraphs each expressing a different and complete thought. We also use headings, sub-headings, horizontal lines etc. and align various portions of the document in different styles so that overall it becomes more captivating and meaningful to read. In HTML documents also, we can apply these techniques to make the web page look more impressive and fruitful to visit.

A single HTML document does not have any end. You can write infinite number of characters and the page will still go on. In the absence of proper formatting, the web browser will show the whole HTML document as a single paragraph. So, we have to use different formatting tags at appropriate places.

Inserting Line Breaks in the HTML documents:

We can enter a new line in the HTML document by using <BR> tag. This tag does not have an ending part. For example:

<HTML>
Joe woke up this morning and ate breakfast. <BR> It was cold out so he took a coat with him to work.
</HTML>

Output:

Joe woke up this morning and ate breakfast.
It was cold out so he took a coat with him to work.

Breaking up the text into paragraphs:

In order to break up the long text into paragraphs, the <P>…..</P> tag is used. For example:

<HTML>
Web content writing is a phenomenon that lets you speak, convey the message and articulate your thoughts to the customers…well at the end of the day it also sells your services/products to the customers. Besides, web content writing services at Content Mantra ensure that you do not miss our basic things like having website content without any basic language errors, succinct in nature and in sync with the target customer. <P>Needless to say, our web content writing is original. Having catered to some of the largest corporate clients, we are embarrassed to say that time and again. It is something that is ingrained in the Content Mantra culture.</P>
</HTML>

Output:

Web content writing is a phenomenon that lets you speak, convey the message and articulate your thoughts to the customers…well at the end of the day it also sells your services/products to the customers. Besides, web content writing services at Content Mantra ensure that you do not miss our basic things like having website content without any basic language errors, succinct in nature and in sync with the target customer.

Needless to say, our web content writing is original. Having catered to some of the largest corporate clients, we are embarrassed to say that time and again. It is something that is ingrained in the Content Mantra culture.