The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has announced the publication of Modularization of XHTML as a W3C Recommendation. The recommendation "defines a method for separating XHTML 1.0 into a collection of modules, each enabling a group of familiar and related HTML functionalities, such as lists, forms, tables, and images. This gives product and specification developers standard building blocks for creating content, and standard methods for specifying which blocks are used. Modules provide the means for both subsetting and extending XHTML, which make it suitable for use on many types of devices, large or small. Modularization of XHTML gives content developers the ability to choose modules, either alone or in combination with others, which are all components of the XHTML family, ensuring interoperability. The abstract modules are implemented in the specification using the XML Document Type Definition language, but an implementation using XML Schemas is expected. This is the third Recommendation the W3C HTML Working Group has produced in the past 15 months, building from XHTML 1.0 in January 2000, and XHTML Basic in December 2000. A W3C 'Recommendation' indicates that a specification is stable, contributes to Web interoperability, and has been reviewed by the W3C Membership, who are in favor of supporting its adoption by academic, industry, and research communities."

Abstract: "This Recommendation specifies an abstract modularization of XHTML and an implementation of the abstraction using XML Document Type Definitions (DTDs). This modularization provides a means for subsetting and extending XHTML, a feature needed for extending XHTML's reach onto emerging platforms."

Bibliographic information: Modularization of XHTML. W3C Recommendation. 10-April-2001. Version URL: http://www.w3.org/TR/2001/REC-xhtml-modularization-20010410. Latest version URL: http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml-modularization. Edited by Murray Altheim (Sun Microsystems), Frank Boumphrey (HTML Writers Guild), Sam Dooley (IBM), Shane McCarron ((Applied Testing and Technology), Sebastian Schnitzenbaumer (Mozquito Technologies AG), and Ted Wugofski (Openwave - formerly Gateway). Available also in PDF, Postscript, .ZIP archive, HTML document in a single file. [cache]