When HTML was introduced in the early 1990s, the only semblance of interactivity it gave the user was the hyperlink — with a single click you could leap to any other page on the fledgling web. While hypertext certainly changed our perspective of self-contained linear text documents, all you could do really was jump around.

In 1995, HTML 2.0 introduced forms and suddenly the web became interactive. Forms enabled e-commerce, adding profit-motive fuel to the fire of self-expression, and incredibly accelerating the growth of the web. The addition of a small number of user interface elements (eight types of ...

Get HTML5 Now: A Step-by-Step Video Tutorial for Getting Started Today now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.

Start your free trial