HTML5 and the Lost Art of Markup

We obsess over JS, but do we even know the elements we’re using?

HTML is often treated as the bit you rush through before getting to the interesting code. That is a shame, because choosing the right element can improve accessibility, simplify styling and remove the need for a surprising amount of JavaScript.

HTML carries meaning before the visual layer arrives. That meaning helps browsers, assistive technology, search engines and the developer trying to understand the page after the original CSS has moved on.

There is a practical tension underneath this topic: we want enough structure to move confidently, but not so much that the structure becomes the work.

Front-end work has a habit of looking simple from a distance. The browser then introduces real content, small screens, old devices, keyboard navigation and somebody using the product in a way nobody drew in the design file.

There will always be exceptions. The trick is to make them deliberate exceptions rather than habits nobody remembers choosing.