The HMTL5 Standard – Where Do Things Stand?

In this article we are going to explore the status of the HTML5 standard. The HTML5 specification from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) can be found at http://dev.w3.org/html5/spec/Overview.html.  A version-control record of all changes to the HTML5 standard are available at:

• http://html5.org/tools/web-apps-tracker
• http://dev.w3.org/cvsweb/html5/

Predictions for the completion of the HTML5 standard vary widely. An article from Vision Mobile, published in June, states that HTML5 completion is not expected before 2014. (http://www.visionmobile.com/rsc/researchreports/HTML5%20and%20what%20it%20means%20for%20the%20mobile%20industry.pdf) 

In May of 2011 W3C announced, “W3C reconfirmed today that, as announced, these specifications are on track to become stable standards in 2014.”

http://www.w3.org/2011/05/html5lc-pr.html.en

Regardless of when the HTML5 standard is completed, developers are taking advantage of the HTML5 features currently available. Contemporary Analysis recently conducted an online survey with web developers about HTML5. The survey was conducted on behalf of appendTo, an HTML5 and JavaScript consulting company. 84 percent of developers indicated they plan to use HTML5 in projects within the next 6 months. From the responses, the survey revealed the top HTML5 features that developers plan on using. Beyond the new HTML5 semantics, the most popular choices were:

• Local data storage
• Multimedia capabilities
• Advanced graphics capabilities
• 3D effects

Other HTML 5 features which developers want are:

• Geolocation
• Interactivity features, such as drag-and-drop

Sources for this article:

• http://html5.tmcnet.com/topics/html5/articles/219994-survey-reveals-majority-web-developers-plan-adopt-key.htm
• http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2011/09/13/5773156.htm
• http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/9/prweb8790873.htm
• http://dev.w3.org/html5/spec/Overview.html  
• http://www.htmlgoodies.com/html5/tutorials/HTML-5-Features-What-Web-Developers-Can-Use-NOW-3880701.htm#fbid=2iWdt7b0a93