HTML EXAMPLES
<!DOCTYPE html><html>
<body>
<h1>My First Heading</h1>
<p>My first paragraph.</p>
</body>
</html>
Example Explained
- The DOCTYPE declaration defines the document type
- The text between <html> and </html> describes the web page
- The text between <body> and </body> is the visible page content
- The text between <h1> and </h1> is displayed as a heading
- The text between <p> and </p> is displayed as a paragraph
HTML markup tags are usually called HTML tags.
- HTML tags are keywords (tag names) surrounded by angle brackets like <html>
- HTML tags normally come in pairs like <p> and </p>
- The first tag in a pair is the start tag, the second tag is the end tag
- The end tag is written like the start tag, with a slash before the tag name
NOTE: <tagname>content</tagname>
HTML Elements
In HTML, most elements are written with a start tag (e.g. <p>) and an end tag (e.g. </p>), with the content in between:
NOTE: <p>This is a paragraph</p> Web Browsers
The purpose of a web browser (such as Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari) is to read HTML documents and display them as web pages.
The browser does not display the HTML tags, but uses the tags to determine how the content of the HTML page is to be presented/displayed to the user:
HTML Page Structure
Below is a visualization of an HTML page structure:
<html>
<body>
</html>
<h1>This a heading</h1>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
<p>This is another paragraph.</p>
</body>The <!DOCTYPE> Declaration
The <!DOCTYPE> declaration helps the browser to display a web page correctly.
There are many different documents on the web, and a browser can only display an HTML page 100% correctly if it knows the HTML version and type used. HTML Editors
Write HTML Using Notepad or Text Edit
Write HTML Using Notepad or Text Edit
HTML can be edited by using a professional HTML editor like:
- Adobe Dreamweaver
- Microsoft Expression Web
- Coffee Cup HTML Editor
However, for learning HTML we recommend a text editor like Notepad (PC) or Text Edit (Mac).We believe using a simple text editor is a good way to learn HTML.
Follow the 4 steps below to create your first web page with Notepad.
Step 1: Start Notepad
To start Notepad go to:
- Start
- All Programs
- Accessories
- Notepad
Type your HTML code into your Notepad:
Step 3: Save HTML Page
- Select File -> Save as.. in Notepad's menu.
- When saving an HTML file, use either the .htm or the .html file extension. There is no difference, it is entirely up to you.
- Save the file in a folder that is easy to remember, like w3schools.
Step 4: View HTML Page in Your Browser
Start your web browser and open your html file from the File, Open menu, or just browse the folder and double-click your HTML file.
The result should look much like this:
HTML Basic Examples
HTML Headings
HTML headings are defined with the <h1> to <h6> tags.
<h2>This is a heading</h2>
<h3>This is a heading</h3>
HTML Paragraphs
HTML paragraphs are defined with the <p> tag.
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
<p>This is another paragraph.</p>
HTML Links
HTML links are defined with the <a> tag.
Example
<a href="http://www. Facebook.com ">This is a link</a>
Note: The link address is specified in the href attribute.
HTML Images
HTML images are defined with the <img> tag.
Example
<img src="facebook.jpg" alt="Facebook.com" width="104" height="142">
Note: The filename and the size of the image are provided as attributes.
HTML Elements
HTML Elements
An HTML element is everything from the start tag to the end tag:
| Start tag * | Element content | End tag * |
|---|---|---|
| <p> | This is a paragraph | </p> |
| <a href="default.htm"> | This is a link | </a> |
| <br> |
* The start tag is often called the opening tag. The end tag is often called the closing tag.
HTML Element Syntax
- An HTML element starts with a start tag / opening tag
- An HTML element ends with an end tag / closing tag
- The element content is everything between the start and the end tag
- Some HTML elements have empty content
- Empty elements are closed in the start tag
- Most HTML elements can have attributes
Tip: You will learn about attributes in the next chapter of this tutorial.
Nested HTML Elements
Most HTML elements can be nested (can contain other HTML elements).
HTML documents consist of nested HTML elements.
HTML Document Example
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>
<p>This is my first paragraph.</p>
</body></html>
<html>
<body>
<p>This is my first paragraph.</p>
</body></html>
The example above contains 3 HTML elements.
HTML Example Explained
The <p> element:
<p>This is my first paragraph.</p>
The <p> element defines a paragraph in the HTML document.
The element has a start tag <p> and an end tag </p>.
The element content is: This is my first paragraph.
The element has a start tag <p> and an end tag </p>.
The element content is: This is my first paragraph.
The <body> element:
<p>This is my first paragraph.</p></body>
The <body> element defines the body of the HTML document.
The element has a start tag <body> and an end tag </body>.
The element content is another HTML element (a p element).
The <html> element:The element has a start tag <body> and an end tag </body>.
The element content is another HTML element (a p element).
<html>
<body>
<p>This is my first paragraph.</p>
</body>
</html>
The <html> element defines the whole HTML document.
The element has a start tag <html> and an end tag </html>.
The element content is another HTML element (the body element).
The element has a start tag <html> and an end tag </html>.
The element content is another HTML element (the body element).
Don't Forget the End Tag
Some HTML elements might display correctly even if you forget the end tag:
The example above works in most browsers, because the closing tag is considered optional.
Never rely on this. Many HTML elements will produce unexpected results and/or errors if you forget the end tag .Empty HTML Elements
HTML elements with no content are called empty elements.
<br> is an empty element without a closing tag (the <br> tag defines a line break).
Tip: In XHTML, all elements must be closed. Adding a slash inside the start tag, like <br />, is the proper way of closing empty elements in XHTML (and XML).
HTML Attributes
Attributes provide additional information about HTML elements.
HTML Attributes
- HTML elements can have attributes
- Attributes provide additional information about an element
- Attributes are always specified in the start tag
- Attributes come in name/value pairs like: name="value"
Attribute Example
HTML links are defined with the <a> tag. The link address is specified in the href attribute:
<a href="http://www.facebook.com">This is a link</a>
Always Quote Attribute Values
Attribute values should always be enclosed in quotes.
Double style quotes are the most common, but single style quotes are also allowed.
| Tip: In some rare situations, when the attribute value itself contains quotes, it is necessary to use single quotes: name='John "ShotGun" Nelson' |
HTML Tip: Use Lowercase Attributes
Attribute names and attribute values are case-insensitive.
However, the World Wide Web Consortium (Wfb) recommends lowercase attributes/attribute values in their HTML 4 recommendation.
Newer versions of (X)HTML will demand lowercase attributes.
HTML Attributes Reference
A complete list of legal attributes for each HTML element is listed in our: HTML Tag Reference.
Below is a list of some attributes that can be used on any HTML element:
| Attribute | Description |
|---|---|
| class | Specifies one or more classnames for an element (refers to a class in a style sheet) |
| id | Specifies a unique id for an element |
| style | Specifies an inline CSS style for an element |
| title | Specifies extra information about an element (displayed as a tool tip) |
HTML Headings
Headings are important in HTML documents.
HTML Headings
Headings are defined with the <h1> to <h6> tags.
<h1> defines the most important heading. <h6> defines the least important heading.
Example
<h1>This is a heading</h1>
<h2>This is a heading</h2>
<h3>This is a heading</h3>
<h2>This is a heading</h2>
<h3>This is a heading</h3>
Note: Browsers automatically add some empty space (a margin) before and after each heading.
Headings Are Important
Use HTML headings for headings only. Don't use headings to make text BIG or bold.
Search engines use your headings to index the structure and content of your web pages.
Since users may skim your pages by its headings, it is important to use headings to show the document structure.
H1 headings should be used as main headings, followed by H2 headings, then the less important H3 headings, and so on.
HTML Lines
The <hr> tag creates a horizontal line in an HTML page.
The hr element can be used to separate content:
Example
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
<hr>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
<hr>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
<hr>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
<hr>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
HTML Tip - How to View HTML Source
Have you ever seen a Web page and wondered "Hey! How did they do that?"
To find out, right-click in the page and select "View Source" (IE) or "View Page Source" (Firefox), or similar for other browsers. This will open a window containing the HTML code of the page.
HTML Tag Reference
W3Schools' tag reference contains additional information about these tags and their attributes.
You will learn more about HTML tags and attributes in the next chapters of this tutorial.
| Tag | Description |
|---|---|
| <html> | Defines an HTML document |
| <body> | Defines the document's body |
| <h1> to <h6> | Defines HTML headings |
| <hr> | Defines a horizontal line |
| <!--> | Defines a comment |
HTML Paragraphs
HTML documents are divided into paragraphs.
HTML Paragraphs
Paragraphs are defined with the <p> tag.
Examples
<p>This is a paragraph</p>
<p>This is another paragraph
Note: Browsers automatically add an empty line before and after a paragraph.
Don't Forget the End Tag
Most browsers will display HTML correctly even if you forget the end tag:
Examples
<p>This is a paragraph
<p>This is another paragraph
<p>This is another paragraph
The example above will work in most browsers, but don't rely on it. Forgetting the end tag can produce unexpected results or errors.
Note: Future version of HTML will not allow you to skip end tags.
HTML Line Breaks
Use the <br> tag if you want a line break (a new line) without starting a new paragraph:
Examples
<p>This is<br>a para<br>graph with line breaks</p>
The <br> element is an empty HTML element. It has no end tag.
HTML Output - Useful Tips
You cannot be sure how HTML will be displayed. Large or small screens, and re-sized windows will create different results.
With HTML, you cannot change the output by adding extra spaces or extra lines in your HTML code.
The browser will remove extra spaces and extra lines when the page is displayed. Any number of lines count as one line, and any number of spaces count as one space.
HTML Tag Reference
The tag reference contains additional information about HTML elements and their attributes.
| Tag | Description |
|---|---|
| <p> | Defines a paragraph |
| <br> | Inserts a single line break |
