Definition:
Web standards is a general term for the formal specifications and rules surrounding building web pages. Web standards are formulated and maintained by the W3C. There are standards for:
- HTML - including XHTML, HTML 4, and HTML 5 (which is still being written)
- CSS - including CSS 1, CSS 2, and CSS 3 (which is still being written)
- XML - and many related specifications like RSS, XSLT, XPath, and XML Schemas
Designers that choose to use web standards can create pages that display more consistently in most web browsers.
