Quick Reference to HTML tags.

If this page doesn't answer your question, try posting to the USENET group comp.infosystems.www.authoring.html, or one of the other three authoring groups. Also, if you're just learning HTML, you're better off with Ian Graham's pages, or for more explanation but no examples see Kevin Werbach's Bare Bones Guide to HTML.

I've documented every option of every tag that I could find, and that Netscape supports. The only section I've left out is Forms. There are two Netscape 1.1 tags that I haven't been able to find documentation for: <CELL> and <COLORMAP>. Also, there's a Netscape 2.0 tag that's undocumented: <HYPE>. If you have any info on them, please email me.

Tags marked "N1.1" are supported in Netscape 1.1 and up, but not in Mosaic 2.6. Those marked "N2.0" are supported in Netscape 2.0, but not in Mosaic 2.6. Bascially, although around 80-90% of transfers are to Netscape browsers, 10-20% are to non-Netscape browsers. So when you write your pages, keep in mind that it should look good no matter what browser the person is using. If something's understood by Netscape but not Mosaic, chances are that quite a few people won't be seeing it. And if it's understood by both Mosaic and Netscape, odds are it's understood by most browsers. If you have any questions or comments, drop me a line.

GENERAL

The entire document must be enclosed in <HTML> and </HTML>. Every HTML document has two parts, the "head" and the "body":

<HTML> ... </HTML>: The entire document must be enclosed in these.
<HEAD> ... </HEAD>: Surrounds the head.
<BODYN1.1:BACKGROUND="URL"N1.1:BGCOLOR="#RRGGBB"N1.1:TEXT="#RRGGBB"N1.1:LINK="#RRGGBB"N1.1:VLINK="#RRGGBB"N1.1:ALINK="#RRGGBB"> ... </BODY>: Surrounds the body.
WARNING: NEVER REPLACE ONLY ONE COLOUR
When you want to over-ride only one colour, simply set the others to Netscape's defaults. They are:
<BODY BGCOLOR=C0C0C0 TEXT=000000 LINK=0000EE VLINK=551A8B ALINK=FF0000>

The colours that Netscapes uses can be overridden in the Options menu, under General Preferences. Don't assume the default is black text on a grey background, since the user may have over-ridden this in the General Preferences window. For example, the colours used here are the defaults I use for all Netscape pages. White text on a dark blue background. Pretty, don't you think? But many pages are unreadable to me, because people insist on using <BODY BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF">, which makes the background white but doesn't change the text colour. Of course, Netscape should do it automatically: if a page over-rides one colour, Netscape should use it's compiled in colours for the others. But until they wake up and realize this, you should either over-ride all colours or none.
For this document I used:
<BODY BGCOLOR=000080 TEXT=FFFFFF LINK=80FFFF VLINK=FF00FF ALINK=FF0000>
<SUBDOC> ... </SUBDOC>: Defines a sub document with it's own environment. Can be nested.
: Comment

N2.0: FRAMES

N2.0: <FRAMESET ROWS="[value]|[value]%|[value]*,..." COLS="[value]|[value]%|[value]*,..."> ... </FRAMESET>:
Create a grid of frames. Can be nested to achieve non-grid layouts.
N2.0: <FRAME SRC="URL" NAME="[Window Name]|_blank|_self|_parent|_top" MARGINHEIGHT=[pixels]MARGINWIDTH=[pixels]SCROLLING=YES|NO|AUTO NORESIZE>:
Define a single frame in a frameset.
<NOFRAMES> ... </NOFRAMES>:
Only displayed by browsers that don't understand frames.

HEAD ELEMENTS

<TITLE> ... </TITLE>: Surronds the title of the document.
N1.1:<META HTTP_EQUIV="[Content Type]" CONTENT=...>: For simulating HTTP response headers in HTML documents. In Netscape 1.1, used primarily for client pull dynamic documents. In Netscape 2.0 also used for character set info and to specify alternative caches.
<NEXTID>: Identifier of next document in series.
<BASE HREF="URL">: URL of this file.
<LINK REV="***" REL="***" HREF="URL" NAME="***" URN="***" TITLE="***" METHODS="***">: relationship between this page and something else.

HEADINGS

<H#N1.1:ALIGN=LEFT|CENTER|RIGHT> ... </H#>

Header 1

Header 2

Header 3

Header 4

Header 5

Header 6

SEPARATORS

o <P ALIGN=LEFT|CENTER|RIGHT>: Paragraph break (double carriage return), to wit:

o <BR CLEAR=LEFT|RIGHT|ALL>: Line break (single charrage return), to wit:
o N1.1: Using <NOBR> and </NOBR> you can specify that a paragraph like this one shouldn't be broken into different lines. This is rarely useful.

For small phrases like "Figure 1.1", a non-breaking space ( ) is better than <nobr>

o N1.1:<WBR>: Specify where line breaks are acceptable.

o <HRN1.1:SIZE=5N1.1:ALIGN=LEFT|RIGHT|CENTERN1.1:WIDTH=[pixels]N1.1:WIDTH=75%N1.1:NOSHADE> Horizontal Ruled Line:

TABLES

<TABLE BORDER=[pixels]N1.1:CELLSPACING=[pixels]N1.1:CELLPADDING=[pixels]N1.1:WIDTH=[pixels]N1.1:WIDTH=[percent]%> ... </TABLE>:
Encloses a table.
<CAPTION ALIGN=TOP|BOTTOM> ... </CAPTION>:
Encloses the caption.
<TR ALIGN=LEFT|CENTER|RIGHT VALIGN=TOP|MIDDLE|BOTTOM|BASELINE> ... </TR>:
Encloses all the cells in the table's row.
<TH ALIGN=LEFT|CENTER|RIGHT VALIGN=TOP|MIDDLE|BOTTOM|BASELINE NOWRAP COLSPAN=[columns]ROWSPAN=[rows]N1.1:WIDTH=[pixels]N1.1:WIDTH=[percent]%> ... </TH>:
Encloses the data of a single header cell.
<TD ALIGN=LEFT|CENTER|RIGHT VALIGN=TOP|MIDDLE|BOTTOM|BASELINE NOWRAP COLSPAN=[columns]ROWSPAN=[rows]N1.1:WIDTH=[pixels]N1.1:WIDTH=[percent]%>: ... </TD>:
Encloses the data of a single non-header cell.

<TABLE BORDER=5 CELLSPACING=10 CELLPADDING=5 WIDTH=75%> <CAPTION ALIGN=BOTTOM> <TR> <TH ALIGN=LEFT VALIGN=TOP COLSPAN=2> </TH> <TH ALIGN=RIGHT VALIGN=BOTTOM> </TH> </TR> <TR> <TD ROWSPAN=2> </TD> <TD ALIGN=RIGHT> </TD> <TD> </TD> </TR> <TR ALIGN=BASELINE NOWRAP> <TD> </TD> <TD WIDTH=50%> </TD> </TR> </TABLE> LISTS UNORDERED <UL N1.1:TYPE=DISC|CIRCLE|SQUARE> <LI N1.1TYPE=DISC|CIRCLE|SQUARE> apples <LI N1.1:TYPE=DISC|CIRCLE|SQUARE> bananas </UL> apples bananas MENU An Unordered List of smaller paragraphs, this is similar to UL but is formatted (if possible) in a more compact manner. <MENU N1.1:TYPE=DISC|CIRCLE|SQUARE> <LI N1.1:TYPE=DISC|CIRCLE|SQUARE> apples <LI N1.1:TYPE=DISC|CIRCLE|SQUARE> bananas </MENU> apples bananas DIR A list of short elements, typically less than 20 characters in length. These may may be arranged in columns across the page, as opposed to one above the other. This is browser dependent. <DIR N1.1:TYPE=DISC|CIRCLE|SQUARE> <LI N1.1:TYPE=DISC|CIRCLE|SQUARE> apples <LI N1.1:TYPE=DISC|CIRCLE|SQUARE> bananas </DIR> apples bananas NUMBERED <OL N1.1:TYPE=A|a|I|i|1 N1.1:START=5> <LI N1.1:TYPE=A|a|I|i|1 N1.1:VALUE=?> oranges <LI N1.1:TYPE=A|a|I|i|1 N1.1:VALUE=?> peaches <LI N1.1:TYPE=A|a|I|i|1 N1.1:VALUE=?> grapes </OL> oranges peaches grapes DEFINITION <DL> <DT> THHGTGG <DD> "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" was originally a BBC radio series which .... <DT> Netrek <DD> Netrek is a networked multiuser game. It is not a simple shoot-em-up game, but .... </DL> THHGTGG "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" was originally a BBC radio series which .... Netrek Netrek is a networked multiuser game. It is not a simple shoot-em-up game, but .... PREFORMATTED TEXT <PRE WIDTH=[Number of Characters]> ... </PRE>, Displayed in proportional width font with white space interpreted as is, and HTML tags are interpreted properly: Preformatted text is great for tables. <LISTING> ... </LISTING> Example listing of computer code: Preformatted text is great for tables. <XMP> ... </XMP> Like "PRE" but HTML tags aren't interpreted (except for </XMP>): Preformatted text is <em>great</em> for tables. <PLAINTEXT> Like "XMP" but applies to the rest of the document; there's no way to get out of it. ALIGNMENT <BLOCKQUOTE> ... </BLOCKQUOTE> Here is a quote from P. Erdos: "A mathematician is a device for turning coffee into theorems." N2.0: <DIV ALIGN=LEFT|CENTER|RIGHT> Align a "division" of a document. </DIV> Align a "division" of a document. N1.1: <CENTER> Some centered text </CENTER> (Don't use this; use the ALIGN=CENTER attribute of <P>, <DIV> or your other favourite tag.) Some centered text <P N1.1:ALIGN=LEFT|CENTER|RIGHT> Another way to align paragraphs </P> Another way to align paragraphs <H4 N1.1:ALIGN=LEFT|CENTER|RIGHT> Headings can also be aligned </H4> Headings can also be aligned REFERENCES <A REV="***" REL="***" HREF="URL" NAME="***" URN="***" TITLE="***" METHODS="***"> ... </A>: Create an anchor or hyperlink to the specified URL. If the URL ends in "#***" then it's a link to the target within that document. <A NAME="***"> ... </A>: Define a target called ***. <IMG SRC="URL" N1.1:LOWSRC="URL" ALIGN=LEFT|RIGHT|TOP|TEXTTOP|MIDDLE|ABSMIDDLE|BASELINE|BOTTOM|ABSBOTTOM N1.1:WIDTH=[pixels] N1.1:HEIGHT=[pixels] N1.1:BORDER=[pixels] N1.1:VSPACE=[pixels] N1.1:HSPACE=[pixels] ISMAP N2.0:USEMAP>: An inlined image. M2.6:<FIG ID=[name] LANG= CLASS= CLEAR=LEFT|RIGHT|ALL|"[number] en"|"[number] pixels" NOFLOW SRC="URL" MD= ALIGN=BLEEDLEFT|LEFT|CENTER|RIGHT|BLEEDRIGHT|JUSTIFY WIDTH=[number] HEIGHT=[number] UNITS=PIXELS|EN IMAGEMAP="URI">: An inlined figure. N2.0:<MAP NAME="[Map Name]"> ... </MAP>: Define a client side image map. N2.0:<AREA SHAPE=RECT COORDS="left,right,top,bottom" HREF="URL" NOHREF>: Define an area within a client-side image map. N1.1:<EMBED SRC="URL" WIDTH=[pixels] HEIGHT=[pixels]>: The EMBED tag allows you to put documents directly into an HTML page. This tag is only recognized by the Windows version of Netscape 1.1. <NOEMBED> ... </NOEMBED>: Displayed only by browsers that don't understand EMBED tags. ADDRESS <ADDRESS> ... </ADDRESS> Martin C. Martin <mcm@cs.cmu.edu> CHARACTER STYLES Logical (Preferred) Emphasized: <EM>Emphasized</EM> Citations: <CITE>Citations</CITE> Variable name: <VAR>Variable name</VAR> Stronger Emphasized: <STRONG>Stronger Emphasized</STRONG> _Subscript: <SUB>Subscript</SUB> ^Superscript: <SUP>Superscript</SUP> Source Code: <CODE>Source Code</CODE> Samples: <SAMP>Samples</SAMP> Keyboard Input: <KBD>Keyboard Input</KBD> Definitions: <DFN>Definitions</DFN> (not implemented in Netscape or Mosaic) N2.0: Big Font: <BIG>Big Font</BIG> N2.0: Small Font: <SMALL>Small Font</SMALL> N1.1: Seven different font sizes to choose from: <FONT SIZE=[optional + or -]# N2.0:COLOR="#[RRGGBB]|[colour name]"> ... </FONT>, where # is between 1 and 7. N1.1: Base Font Size: <BASEFONT size=-2>Base Font Size</BASEFONT> Physical (Discouraged) Italics: <I>Italics</I> Boldface: <B>Boldface</B> Typewriter: <TT>Typewriter</TT> Underline: <U>Underline</U> N1.1: Blink: <blink>Blink</blink> Strike Thru: <strike>Strike Thru</strike> SPECIAL CHARACTERS Any special character can be specified using the form &#?;, where ? is the ASCII number of the character. " " " double quotation mark ¯ ¯ ¯ macron & & & ampersand ° ° ° degree sign < < < less than ± ± ± plus-or-minus sign > > > greather than ² ² ² superscript two     nonbreaking space ³ ³ ³ superscript three ¡ ¡ ¡ inverted exclamation ´ ´ ´ acute accent ¢ ¢ ¢ cent sign µ µ µ micro sign £ £ £ pound sign ¶ ¶ ¶ pilcrow (paragraph sign) ¤ ¤ ¤ general currency sign · · · middle dot ¥ ¥ ¥ yen sign ¸ ¸ ¸ cedilla ¦ ¦ ¦ broken (vertical) bar ¹ ¹ ¹ superscript one § § § section sign º º º ordinal indicator, male ¨ ¨ ¨ umlaut/dieresis » » » angle quote mark, right © © © copyright sign ¼ ¼ ¼ fraction one-quarter ª ª ª ordinal indicator, fem ½ ½ ½ fraction one-half « « « angle quote mark, left ¾ ¾ ¾ fraction three-quarters ¬ ¬ ¬ not sign ¿ ¿ ¿ inverted question mark   soft hyphen × × × multiply sign ® ® ® registered sign ÷ &div; ÷ division sign Characters from foreign alphabets Á: A vowel with an acute accent, &[vowel]acute;, e.g. Á â: A vowel with a circumflex accent, &[vowel]circ;, e.g. â è: A vowel with a grave accent, &[vowel]grave;, e.g. è ÿ: A vowel with a dieresis or umlaut mark over it, &[vowel]uml;, e.g. ÿ å: "a" with a ring, å ç: "c" with cedilla, ç ø: "o" with a slash through it, ø ñ: A letter with a tilde over it, &[a or n or o]tilde;, e.g. ñ æ: ae diphthong (ligature), æ ß: German sz ligature, ß ð: eth, Icelandic, ð Þ: Thorn, Icelandic, Þ Ð: D with a line in the upper left, Ð N2.0: JAVA <APPLET CODEBASE="URL" CODE="URL" NAME="[Name]" WIDTH=[pixels] HEIGHT=[pixels] ALIGN=LEFT|RIGHT|TOP|TEXTTOP|MIDDLE|ABSMIDDLE|BASELINE|BOTTOM|ABSBOTTOM VSPACE=[pixels] HSPACE=[pixels]>: Insert a Java applet into to the current location. <PARAM NAME="[Name]" VALUE="...">: Set the value for a paramter of a Java Applet. N2.0: NETSCAPE LIVESCRIPT <SCRIPT>: Netscape LiveScript, based on the JAVA language, extends and enhances the capabilities of HTML documents. Last Modified on: Sat Apr 19, 1997 This reference appears on the World Wide Web at http://www.frc.ri.cmu.edu/~mcm/tags.html Martin C. Martin, <mm+@cmu.edu>

<TR>	<TH ALIGN=LEFT VALIGN=TOP COLSPAN=2> </TH>		<TH ALIGN=RIGHT VALIGN=BOTTOM> </TH>	</TR>
<TR>	<TD ROWSPAN=2> </TD>	<TD ALIGN=RIGHT> </TD>	<TD> </TD>	</TR>
<TR ALIGN=BASELINE NOWRAP>	<TD ROWSPAN=2> </TD>	<TD> </TD>	<TD WIDTH=50%> </TD>	</TR>

Quick Reference to HTML tags.

GENERAL

WARNING: NEVER REPLACE ONLY ONE COLOUR

N2.0: FRAMES

HEAD ELEMENTS

HEADINGS

Header 1

Header 2

Header 3

Header 4

Header 5

Header 6

SEPARATORS

TABLES

LISTS

UNORDERED

MENU

DIR

NUMBERED

DEFINITION

PREFORMATTED TEXT

ALIGNMENT

Headings can also be aligned

REFERENCES

ADDRESS <ADDRESS> ... </ADDRESS>

CHARACTER STYLES

SPECIAL CHARACTERS

Characters from foreign alphabets

N2.0: JAVA

N2.0: NETSCAPE LIVESCRIPT

ADDRESS `<ADDRESS>` ... `</ADDRESS>`