Appendix A. HTML 4.0 Quick Reference

This appendix gives a brief overview of HTML 4.0. This version of HTML is the first to contain the elements and attributes necessary for effective use of style sheets, in particular STYLE and CLASS. There are, in fact, two versions of HTML 4.0: HTML 4.0 and HTML 4.0 "Transitional." The latter contains a number of tags (the so-called "extensions") that existed in HTML 3.2, but are now deprecated in favor of style sheets. We describe only HTML 4.0 here, which doesn't contain the extensions.

The following text focuses on the elements that are most useful in combination with a style sheet. Other elements are also mentioned, but with less explanation. For the same reason, not all the possible attributes are described. The rules for how elements can be nested have been stratified by leaving out some cases that are allowed in HTML 4.0. The result is simpler to explain than the full rules, but a little more restrictive.

The text is not a tutorial on HTML. It assumes you've read at least Chapter 1, "The Web and HTML." This appendix focuses on the list of HTML elements and the rules for combining them.