Dynamic HTML script (or DHTML script) is not exactly a new version of HTML, but more of a new approach of looking at and controlling the standard HTML codes and commands. When talking of DHTML, the qualities of standard HTML have to be considered, especially that when a page is loaded from the server, it will stay the same until it’s requested again. DHTML gives you more precision with the HTML elements and allows you to change them at will, without reloading the whole page. This means that DHTML alters the way the page looks or operates while it’s being viewed, but it doesn’t generate a custom page every time it’s loaded from the server. DHTML code consists of the following separate technologies – Document Object Model (DOM), Scripts, CSS and XHTML. DHTML script allows webmasters to present their content in ways that are hard to achieve by other means. In a nutshell: the used scripting languages are modifying the DOM and style. For example, DHTML code gives the webmaster the option to:
1. Put animated text and images on the webpage, with the ability for those elements to be interactive and move across the page with predefined parameters or upon user action.
2. Embedding scripts that can show up-to-date data like news, stock quotes, etc.
DHTML Scripts Explained
When the Web was in its first developing stages, most websites were static, which means that their pages weren’t interactive and didn’t change when visited. As websites began to get more sophisticated in the way content was organized and presented, so the need to build pages that respond and vary according to the user became a necessity. That’s why DHTML code started to be utilized by webmasters. There isn’t a record of when DHTML script was used for the first time, but generally speaking, its popularity became apparent when Version 4 browsers were released. An obstacle that’s often encountered by web designers is that it’s challenging to implement newest standards because the majority of users aren’t early adopters and don’t upgrade their browsers to the latest version immediately when it comes out. This fact hindered the quick and mass use of DHTML script. Its mass adoption began to get some momentum when the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) approved a set of standards for its use. This allowed web designers to write standardized scripts which were supported by every browser. Dynamic styles are the main feature of the DHTML code. Utilizing CSS, it’s possible to quickly alter the looks and formatting of segments in a document without adding or removing elements. This is useful in keeping a small document size and the scripts efficient.