Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) is a computer language that is used to format text, organize data, create hypertext jumps, or used to transform a "marked" document for use at another computer. These jumps are caused by words which the machine recognizes as a command to move from one place to another when activated. It is a "point-and-click" idea. HTML is used for creating Web pages on the World Wide Web.

It was originally created by Tim Berners-Lee in 1989 based on SGML (Standard Generalized Markup Language). It was created to embed tags that represent the document. Another reason is that big corporations wanted to answer the need to use complex graphics and different forms of multimedia on the Web. These could only be done in codes which the browsers understood exactly what to do.

HTML is a language that has gone through multiple versions and has slowly changed. The number of commands has increased with each version allowing more to be done. The original contained around 30 and today there is at least 80. HTML is a language which simplifies the task of making a web page through putting a series of commands which, when executed can do different things. For example:

Underlined,Blue,BIG PRINT

NOTE: These effects may look different on different browsers. For example, blinking sometimes doesn't work on Microsoft Explorer. Each one of these effects is done by writing small commands. The best part of this language is that almost anyone can use it.

LAST UPDATED ON 8/28/98