Web Development Overview

Introduction

Tools

Technology Directions

Web Site Management

Content Management

Servers

User Centered Design

UW Policies

Resources

Technology Directions

The Arrival of XML

Web technologies, including Web publishing programs, HTML itself, databases, and servers are now based wholly or partly on XML, a meta-language for defining languages. This uniformity in basic technology means all these different tools and types of code can work together much more effectively.

  • HTML itself now conforms to XML standards. This change was easy since both HTML and XML were derived from the source.
  • XHTML is a modular version of HTML that allows you to create new elements to so pages can interact more effectively with other XML-based technologies.
  • DreamWeaver and GoLive use XML internally
  • Microsoft's .NET family of products are based on XM

HTML Is Changing

Old HTML

Early versions of HTML were designed to make it easy for anyone to create Web pages. The syntax was "loose" - many tags were optional. Plus, browsers were designed to accept improper code and do their best to display the page anyway.

<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>Coffee Club</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<H1>Important Message</H1>
<P>A new coffee maker is available 
in the break area. Please
read the instructions carefully 
before using. 
<UL>
  <LI>The maker is intended for 
  members of the coffee club. 
	<LI>Coffee for use in the 
  maker can be found in the refrigerator. 
	<LI>When you make coffee 
  please immediately put the brewed 
	    coffee into the thermos and 
  turn off the maker.
</UL>
</BODY>
</HTML>

New HTML

As page and site designs get more complex, Web publishing tools become more powerful, and pages interact with other technologies like databases and active graphics, the old loose way of doing things created too many problems. The new emphasis is on strict, structured HTML, much like most programming languages. 

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN"
    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
  <head>
    <title>Coffee Club</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Important Message</h1>
    <p>A new coffee maker is available in the break area. Please
    read the instructions carefully before using.</p>
    <ul>
      <li>The maker is intended for members of the coffee
      club.</li>
      <li>Coffee for use in the maker can be found in the
      refrigerator.</li>
      <li>When you make coffee please immediately put the brewed
      coffee into the thermos and turn off the maker.</li>
    </ul>
  </body>
</html>

Standards are developed through an industry-wide consensus process facilitated by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

Most Web publishing tools now have features to insure that your HTML strictly complies with current standards.

Separating Content and Presentation

An important fundamental change in how Web pages are created is the separation of content from presentation directives. The content is organized into a scheme of logical element types. Instructions on how each type of element is to be presented are declared in style statements, which are usually in a separate file. This approach results in simpler HTML and allows different style sheets for different types of devices.

HTML

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 
  Transitional//EN"
  "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
  <head>
    <title>Coffee Club</title>
    <link type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" href="demo1.css">
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Important Message</h1>
    <p>A new coffee maker is available 
    in the break area. Please
    read the instructions carefully 
    before using.</p>
    <ul>
      <li>The maker is intended 
       for members of the coffee
      club.</li>
      <li>Coffee for use in the 
      maker can be found in the
      refrigerator.</li>
      <li>When you make coffee 
      please immediately put the brewed
      coffee into the thermos and turn 
      off the maker.</li>
    </ul>
  </body>
</html>

Style Sheet

h1 { font-family: sans-serif;
      background-color: tan }
h2 { font-family: sans-serif }
p  { margin-top: 1em;
     margin-bottom: 1em }
li { list-style-image: url(diamond.gif) }

Keeping The Client-side Simple

The key to providing Web-based services to a diverse audience is to keep what you send to the client-side (the browsers) technically minimalist and conforming to standards. They use the latest and most appropriate technology on the server-side, but they carefully control what technology reaches the client.

  • HTML downloads fastest.
  • Standards-based HTML works on the widest variety of browsers
  • Standards-based HTML works well with assistive and adaptive technologies for the handicapped
  • Technologies that require plug-ins or other downloaded software are a problem.
    • Some users may not have the software installed
    • Obtaining or updating such software takes time and interrupts the site visit
    • The software may not work on the full range of computers used by your audience

Many Sites Are Minimalist

Many Web services want to work well for anyone who visits them, whether they are connecting with a slow modem or a fast DSL line, using a Windows computer or a Macintosh, using Netscape or Mozilla, or technically adept or not interested in technology.