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The problem with HTML is that it's not a stable format. Will a browser in 2028 be able to render those pages correctly ? What about 2038 ? If the content needs

by Aaargh20318 8y ago

The problem with HTML is that it's not a stable format. Will a browser in 2028 be able to render those pages correctly ? What about 2038 ? If the content needs to be available for a longer time PDF/A would be a much better choice than HTML.

detaro 8y ago
What HTML + CSS from 1998 doesn't render usefully anymore?
- xeromal 8y ago
  Marquee
  - detaro 8y ago
    Is actually still supported by many browsers, and never was actually part of a HTML spec (it's only mentioned in HTML5, and marked as deprecated there). Even where it isn't, the contents likely are still visible (same with blink, which is is supported in fewer browsers as far as I know, and also never was in an HTML spec)
- Aaargh20318 8y ago
  What HTML + CSS from 1998 renders in exactly the same way (pixel perfect copy) on a modern browser as it did on a browser in 1998 ?
  - detaro 8y ago
    Notice how I specified "renders usefully". Few documents have to be pixel perfect, even fairly old HTML had tools to make individual parts where it might be more important pixel perfect, and given the higher level of standardization and standards compliance nowadays this would likely be better for documents created today.
thewarpaint 8y ago
Your browser should be completely able to render the first webpage ever created, from the early 1990s: http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html
masklinn 8y ago
> The problem with HTML is that it's not a stable format. Not a stable format as in still gets updated? Very few formats are stable by that yardstick, and PDF certainly is not one: https://www.iso.org/standard/63534.html https://www.iso.org/standard/63534.html > Will a browser in 2028 be able to render those pages correctly ? Correctly as in "in a way which can be consumed", most certainly. A modern browser can consume and render 20 years old websites just fine. > If the content needs to be available for a longer time PDF/A would be a much better choice than HTML. It really is not. PDF is a very complex format and an absolute bear to manipulate and extract data from.
- Aaargh20318 8y ago
  Notice how I specified PDF/A, not PDF, which is a specific (and thus stable) version of PDF with some other requirements like embedding the fonts, specifically meant for archiving purposes. The whole point of PDF/A is that it’s a stable format.
reaperducer 8y ago
Will a browser in 2028 be able to render those pages correctly? Why not? Modern browsers can still render pages from the 1990's.
- Aaargh20318 8y ago
  With a pixel-by-pixel identical result as back in the 90’s ?
  - Jaruzel 8y ago
    None of the current browsers in 2018 even render the same URI in the same way. Depending on your OS, Browser, and screen DPI, the page will be subtlety different. However none of that actually prevents you from reading the page content. Which is what this is all about. Pixel perfect rendering is just not that important.

detaro 8y ago

What HTML + CSS from 1998 doesn't render usefully anymore?

xeromal 8y ago
Marquee
- detaro 8y ago
  Is actually still supported by many browsers, and never was actually part of a HTML spec (it's only mentioned in HTML5, and marked as deprecated there). Even where it isn't, the contents likely are still visible (same with blink, which is is supported in fewer browsers as far as I know, and also never was in an HTML spec)
Aaargh20318 8y ago
What HTML + CSS from 1998 renders in exactly the same way (pixel perfect copy) on a modern browser as it did on a browser in 1998 ?
- detaro 8y ago
  Notice how I specified "renders usefully". Few documents have to be pixel perfect, even fairly old HTML had tools to make individual parts where it might be more important pixel perfect, and given the higher level of standardization and standards compliance nowadays this would likely be better for documents created today.

thewarpaint 8y ago

Your browser should be completely able to render the first webpage ever created, from the early 1990s: http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html

masklinn 8y ago

> The problem with HTML is that it's not a stable format. Not a stable format as in still gets updated? Very few formats are stable by that yardstick, and PDF certainly is not one: https://www.iso.org/standard/63534.html https://www.iso.org/standard/63534.html > Will a browser in 2028 be able to render those pages correctly ? Correctly as in "in a way which can be consumed", most certainly. A modern browser can consume and render 20 years old websites just fine. > If the content needs to be available for a longer time PDF/A would be a much better choice than HTML. It really is not. PDF is a very complex format and an absolute bear to manipulate and extract data from.

Aaargh20318 8y ago
Notice how I specified PDF/A, not PDF, which is a specific (and thus stable) version of PDF with some other requirements like embedding the fonts, specifically meant for archiving purposes. The whole point of PDF/A is that it’s a stable format.

reaperducer 8y ago

Will a browser in 2028 be able to render those pages correctly? Why not? Modern browsers can still render pages from the 1990's.

Aaargh20318 8y ago
With a pixel-by-pixel identical result as back in the 90’s ?
- Jaruzel 8y ago
  None of the current browsers in 2018 even render the same URI in the same way. Depending on your OS, Browser, and screen DPI, the page will be subtlety different. However none of that actually prevents you from reading the page content. Which is what this is all about. Pixel perfect rendering is just not that important.