This Site Used Valid HTML, Then Drupal Got To It

By Xenoveritas, 20 February, 2009
Topics
xenoveritas.org

IE has never supported XHTML. I suppose IE 8 might, but I haven't checked yet.

Keep in mind that IE will render something if you send it XHTML but label it HTML - the only problem with that is that if you use a valid XHTML DOCTYPE, IE will enter quirks mode. If you use an HTML DOCTYPE, then, well, it's not really XHTML, is it?

This page is valid HTML 4.01 Strict!

...Or, rather, it was valid HTML 4.01 Strict.

Then Drupal got to it, and decided to make it invalid HTML/XHTML Nonstandard Random Useless Crap.

Namely, Drupal has decided to do the "Fake Empty Element" dance. That's where valid HTML tags, like "<link>," are turned into invalid HTML tags like "<link/>."

Such a tag would be valid XML and therefore (might) be valid XHTML.

But this page doesn't use XHTML for a few very simple reasons:

  1. Internet Explorer doesn't support XHTML.
  2. XHTML doesn't offer anything more than HTML does.

So by changing every empty HMTL tag into an empty XML tag, Drupal has taken what used to be valid HTML and translated it into invalid HTML.

Thanks a bunch.