The XHTML Conspiracy

So I had always had the impression that XHTML was the replacement for HTML, and that anything new really ought to be in XHTML. However, I have recently become enlightened:

• XHTML is only really useful when parsed as XML, which only occurs when it is served with its proper MIME type of application/xhtml+xml. IE still does not support this, as it does not yet truly support XHTML. When served as text/html, all major browsers will basically parse it as HTML.

• When parsed as XML, standards-compliant browsers will not attempt to render the document at all if it does not validate.

• XHTML is not forward-compatible - XHTML 1.1 pages will need to be rewritten to validate as XHTML 2.0.

• The W3C is now continuing development of HTML 5 parallel to XHTML development.

As a result, I have been converting my site, including this blog, back to HTML 4.01 Strict.

References: Beware of XHTML