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HTML Introduction to HTML and CSS (2016) HTML: The Structural Foundation of Web Pages and Applications Image Tags

Jentry J
Jentry J
1,821 Points

This wasn't covered in the video, doest it matter if you add a closing bracket to self-closing elements?

Just curious if it really matters that it's self-closing, and if I added a closing bracket if it would actually effect the code?

** I will be attempting to try this on my own, but wanted to leave this for any other curious folks.

2 Answers

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,072 Points

If you mean "end tag" then yes, it would be a syntax error.

For example, if you wrote this:

<img src="dog.jpg" alt=""></img>

That's not valid HTML. But browsers generally ignore the spurious end tag, so trying this out may not generate any errors or unexpected rendering effects.

Jentry J
Jentry J
1,821 Points

Thank you, this is pretty much where my brain went! - Thank you Gif

The break take used to just be <br> but with the standards of xhtml they came out with <br /> which basically added a / at the end of any self closing tags such as the line break. Browsers probably still remember how to handle things without the / at the end but it's bad form to do that now a days.

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,072 Points

That's a DOCTYPE issue. If your DOCTYPE is html, then for void tags like "<br>" that form is correct. A slash at the end of the start tag is allowed, but has no meaning. But if the DOCTYPE is XHTML, then only "<br />" is correct.

Adhering to the standards of the declared DOCTYPE is the best practice, mixing them would be "bad form".

Steven, While it is bad form, it still works

<!DOCTYPE xhtml>
<html>
  <head>
    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <title></title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <p>Here is some text</p>
    <p>Here is some more</p>
    <br>
    <p>Oh look more</p>
  </body>
</html>

Still works just as if it was <br />

I know they left it working so people used to html before xhtml wouldn't have a ton of issues and I don't think they ever went back and fixed it. That said other than usin git in examples to show it works I've never used it without the / lol

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,072 Points

I don't think that's actually an xthml DOCTYPE tag, the document was probably being processed as html. Take a look at the W3C valid doctypes list.