HTML The Definitive Guide (87 page)

8.7.1.1 More compact definition lists

The

tag supports has the compact attribute, advising the browser to make the list presentation as small as possible. Few browsers, if any, honor this attribute, and it has been deprecated in HTML

4.0.

8.7.1.2 The class, dir, id, lang, style, title, and event attributes
The many other attributes for the

tag should be quite familiar by now. The style and class attributes, of course, let you control the display style; the id and title tag attributes let you uniquely label its contents; the dir and lang attributes let you specify its native language; and the many on-event attributes let you react to user-initiated mouse and keyboard actions on the contents.

Not all are implemented by the currently popular browsers for this tag or for many others.
Section

3.5.1.1 in
Chapter 3
Section 3.5.1.2
in
Chapter 3
Section 4.1.1.4
in Chapter 4
Section 4.1.1.5 in

Chapter 4
Section 9.1.1 in
Chapter 9
Section 9.2.4
in Chapter 9
Section 13.3.3
in Chapter 13

8.7.2 The

Tag

This

tag defines the term component of a definition list. It is valid only when used within a definition

list preceding the term or item, before the

tag and the term's definition or explanation.

Function:

Define a definition list term

Attributes:

CLASS ONKEYUP

DIR ONMOUSEDOWN

ID ONMOUSEMOVE

LANG ONMOUSEOUT

ONCLICK ONMOUSEOVER

ONDBLCLICK ONMOUSEUP

ONKEYDOWN STYLE

ONKEYPRESS TITLE

End tag:

; always omitted

Contains:

text

Used in:

dl_content

Traditionally, the definition term that follows the

tag is short and sweet - a word or few.

Technically, it can be any length. If long, the browser may exercise the option of extending the item beyond the display window, or wrap it onto the next line where the definition begins.

Since the end of the

tag immediately precedes the start of the matching

tag, it is unambiguous and so not required.

8.7.2.1 Formatting text with

In practice, browsers are either too lenient or too dumb to enforce the HTML rules, so some tricky HTML authors misuse the

tag to shift the left margin right and left, respectively, for fancy text displays. (Remember, tab characters and leading spaces don't usually work with regular text.) We don't condone violating the HTML standard and caution you once again about tricked-up documents.

Use style sheets instead.

8.7.2.2 The class, dir, id, lang, style, title, and event attributes
The

tag supports the standard HTML 4.0 tag attributes. The style and class attributes, of course, let you control the display style; the id and title tag attributes let you uniquely label its contents; the dir and lang attributes let you specify its native language; and the many on-event attributes let you react to user-initiated mouse and keyboard actions on the contents. Not all are
implemented by the currently popular browsers for this tag or for many others. [The dir attribute,

3.5.1.1] [The lang attribute, 3.5.1.2]
[The id attribute, 4.1.1.4]
[The title attribute, 4.1.1.5]
[Inline

Styles: The style Attribute, 9.1.1]
[Style Classes, 9.2.4]
[JavaScript Event Handlers, 13.3.3]

8.7.3 The

Tag

The

tag marks the start of the definition portion of an item in a definition list. According to the HTML standard,

belongs only inside a definition

list, immediately following the

tag and term and preceding the definition or explanation.

Function:

Define a definition list term

Attributes:

CLASS ONKEYUP

DIR ONMOUSEDOWN

ID ONMOUSEMOVE

LANG ONMOUSEOUT

ONCLICK ONMOUSEOVER

ONDBLCLICK ONMOUSEUP

ONKEYDOWN STYLE

ONKEYPRESS TITLE

End tag:

; always omitted

Contains:

flow

Used in:

dl_content

The content that follows the

tag may be any HTML construct, including other lists, block text, and multimedia elements. Although treating it otherwise identically as conventional content, browsers typically indent definition list

definitions. And since the start of another term and definition (

) or the required end tag of the definition (

) unambiguously terminates the preceding definition, the

tag is not needed and its absence makes your source text more readable.

8.7.3.1 The class, dir, id, lang, style, title, and event attributes
The

tag supports the standard HTML 4.0 tag attributes. The style and class attributes, of course, let you control the display style; the id and title tag attributes let you uniquely label its contents; the dir and lang attributes let you specify its native language; and the many on-event attributes let you react to user-initiated mouse and keyboard actions on the contents. Not all are
implemented by the currently popular browsers for this tag or for many others. [The dir attribute,

3.5.1.1] [The lang attribute, 3.5.1.2]
[The id attribute, 4.1.1.4]
[The title attribute, 4.1.1.5]
[Inline

Styles: The style Attribute, 9.1.1]
[Style Classes, 9.2.4]
[JavaScript Event Handlers, 13.3.3]

8.6 Menu Lists

8.8 Appropriate List Usage