XHTML 2 is dead!

[David]

As you're all aware, we've been using XHTML 1.0 Strict for all our new websites on this programme. Some of you may be aware that W3C have been working on a specification for XHTML 2.0 for some time but that is now going to stop. See the Sitepoint article (http://www.sitepoint.com/blogs/2009/07/06/rip-xhtml-2/) for details.

OK, so what's next? Well it's back to good old HTML, HTML 5 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTML_5) to be exact. That won't mean any major changes in the way we code because the syntax is similar to what we're already used to but it does present a whole range of new opportunities - especially for web applications. The latest draft (http://dev.w3.org/html5/spec/Overview.html) for HTML/XHTML 5 was published today and as you'll see there are a whole host of new tags to learn.

If you like, you can start using HTML5 now as most browsers have at least some support (http://www.hagenburger.net/2009/05/4-useful-html5-browser-support-overviews) and the situation is changing fast as most developers see HTML 5 as a very bright future.

[David]

The calling of an end to XHTML 2.0 development by W3C and the continued support for HTML5 has caused a massive amount of debate on the web as one would expect. This is possibly one of the most controversial issues in modern web design and the one most likely to affect the way we build websites from now on. If you're not sure what all the hoo-ha is about, take a look at The Great XHTML DOA WTF Debate (http://www.webstandardistas.com/2009/07/the-great-xhtml-doa-wtf-debate.php).

Probably the key issue here is that designers can still use strict XHTML rules to write HTML5 but it's worrying that this is no longer obligatory.