Assignment 6 — Understanding Web Standards and Validating Files

Description:

The assignment for this week will walk you through using the W3C vaildator to ensure that your HTML is valid and conforms to the standard, as well as provides a brief history of the HTML standard.

HTML is based upon a standard put forth by the W3C Consortium. This standard defines the guidelines to which your HTML files should adhere, and different web browser providers ensure that their products support that standard. By following the standard, web sites can ensure that no matter what browser or operating system that a user is using to access the website, that the web site will render correctly and that all users can read their web pages.

To ensure that your web page follows the standard, you can use the W3C validator available at https://validator.w3.org/. You'll be able to either enter the web address for your uploaded website, upload your web page to that site, or cut and paste your HTML code into the validator interface. The validator will tell you if you have any errors in the structure of your HTML.

Some of the items to examine before validating your website is to:

  • Ensure that it has a <!doctype> header that identifies the version of HTML you are using.
  • Ensure that you have an <html> element in which all other content is nested.
  • Ensure that you have included both a <head> and a <body> element.
  • Ensure that you have identified the character encoding information on the <meta> element within the <head> element.
  • Ensure that your <head> element includes a <title> element.
  • Ensure that you have nested all elements correctly within your <body> element. Remember that you have to have the ending element for an embedded element before you can have the closing tag for its parent element.
  • Double-check your attributes. Make sure that you have used quotes appropriately.

The following example shows the minimum structural elements your HTML file must have to validate:

<!doctype html>
<html>
  <head>
     <meta charset="UTF-8">                  
     <title>My web page</title>
  </head>
  <body>
     Your content goes here.
  </body>
</html>

For more information, see Chapter 6 of the Head First HTML and CSS book.

HTML elements:
<!doctype> <head> <meta> <title> <body>
Videos: Understanding Web Standards and Validating Files

Tasks:
  1. Read and complete the exercises from Chapter 6 of the Head First HTML and CSS book.
  2. Create a folder named Chapter6.
  3. In your Chapter6 folder, create your customized versions of the following files.
    • lounge.html
    • directions.html
    • elixirs.html
    • minimum of five images

    Duplicate the folder structure described in the book.

  4. Ensure that all of your links work correctly and display the appropriate file when clicked.
  5. Validate each of the three pages at https://validator.w3.org/. Fix any errors that occur.
  6. Upload the contents of your Chapter6 folder to your website.
  7. Zip your Chapter6 folder and name the file yourName_chapter6.zip.
  8. Submit the zipped file through Blackboard. In the comments section in Blackboard, enter a URL to the files on your website.
Grading criteria:

Your assignment should demonstrate:

  • Using the validator on the three pages you originally created for Assignment 2.
  • Correcting any validation errors that occur in each file.
  • Uploading the files to your website.
Due:

By 10/30

Note: Assignment 7 is also due this week.

Example assignment:

Chapter 6 example