I had just joined X after been learning Python syntax for a while from a code learning site and I kept coming over (I still do) some people there who claim that HTML is a programming language! That was a new one to me! What makes them say that?
Would you call HTML a programming language?
In my opinion, absolutely yes.
It is not turing complete — but it is a specialized language for programming the most ubiquitous computer interface there is.
HTML is not very powerful if not used in conjunction with other programming languages which interface with other parts of an operating system, but all the work in HTML is programming if you ask me.
Please don't say that! HTML is not a programming language. If we consider HTML is a programming language, then Markdown is programming language too?
Does Markdown have a {script} element? If it does, then ...
So let's rename HTML -> HTPL (Hyper Text Programming Language lol)
The creators of HTML are much more wise than you.
Ok, but then we have to state that ASCII is a programming language too. With ASCII, you can tell the computer to do some lyrics, and we learned that anything that tells a computer do do something is a programming language. Ok, ASCII is not very powerful. It contains 256 commands and each can just prints out one character, no loops, no conditionals.
Finally, it comes out, Shakespere was a programmer. I really like the codes he wrote. You should definitively check out The Art of Code, which adds a lot of interesting aspects to this discussion.
I like your answer
Most people here just think that Imperative programming is the only way of writing a program )
Short answer: No!
Long answer: HTML (short for Hyper Text Markup Language) is used to structure a webpage which is not same as programming a software. To program a software, we need to add logic to it and HTML does not have ability to add logic. To add logic to webpages we use a wonderful language JavaScript. So.... HTML is not a programming language.
Depends on your definition of programming. I think programming is telling a computer what to do / how to do something.
Totally my point 😁 You cannot tell a computer to do something using HTML.
That's not what i meant. I think writing html is telling the computer (to be exact the browser that runs on that computer) what layout the page has and what components should be rendered and also how those components should function (with tag attributes like min, max, step, type and so on). But i know that this debate will be never settled.
We clearly aren't on same page then. And I agree that this debate would never settle.
For the time being, let's agree HTML is not a programming language 🤝
Let's just agree that if you think a programming language needs algorithms and logic then html is not a programming language. But if you think prorgamming is telling a computer what to do, then it is.
No, HTML (HyperText Markup Language) is not a programming language. It is a markup language used for structuring content on the web. HTML provides a way to organize and display information through tags that define the structure of a document. While it enables the creation of web pages and interfaces, it lacks the capabilities of a programming language, such as variables, logic, and control flow. HTML focuses on presenting information rather than executing computational tasks, distinguishing it from languages like JavaScript or Python.
it does not mean that that it looses its status of programming language, html is just declarative, and not Turing complete.
Yes, Declarative programming is quite questioning term. But the key word is questioning not "clearly not a programming"
There are no special "exams" for programming langs, where they show what they can do, and based on this, get status of PL.
SQL is also a part of Declarative programming paradigm, its used only for queries (because its query language), but we still can call it programming
Some dialects of SQL, such as PostgreSQL, are Turing complete, and thus very clearly programming.
Declarative programming doesn't mean 'can't express logic'. In SQL you can express 'show this or that based on some criteria calculated at runtime'. In HTML you can't.
What? I didn
t say that in declarative programming you cant express logicYes, in SQL you can calculate values and use logic, in HTML - no
I absolutely agree with the statement, but how is it related to the main question?
There is no strict definition where programming language should contain logic and variables.
If you redefine a programming language to mean 'a language that doesn't need to allow expressing conditional logic', then you can say anything is a programming language. Emojis are a programming language because they instruct the computer to draw pictures.
The reality is that every programming language must have a way to express conditional logic based on criteria calculated at (its) runtime. This criterion classifies things like XSLT as programming languages (correctly) and HTML as not programming languages (also correctly).
Well... This is an age old question. Being objective it's not, as the name states (hyper text markup language). But it's debatable if it is or not. I don't really care, and neither should anyone really. It does not matter what we call it, it does what it does quite well, and that's the important part.
Ever since I learned C++ several years ago, I have been aware that HTML is not a programming language (I associate HTML with web pages), it is a markup language (it even says so in the name). Thank you for pointing that out. Despite this, I have not understood how anyone can call HTML a programming language, and I got very surprised when I first came over some who called it that on X. Has there always been someone who has claimed that HTML is a programming language or is it a more recent claim?
I think it's as old as the language
I always learn HTML is a mark-up language, not a programming language 😄
2 cents: AFAIK HTML is not! it's just a markup language. We may say it is primarily focused on presentation and structure of content, but nothing far from that :)
HTML is a computer language and not a programming language. Specifically it is a DSL (Domain Specific Language) and under that it is a markup language.
Programming languages are generally expected to be "turing complete" which is much well defined idea. However this is not a hard rule because some folks put SQL under the programming language category where some of its flavors are not turing complete.
Despite the ambiguity of the definition of the word "programming language" I do not think any one would mistake HTML for a programming language.
Wrong example, absolutely wrong
html can be compared to profession where an engineer makes car using ready modules
Why are you focusing on impact in development and complexity of an lang to find out if it is a programming language? Yes, HTML is just for page construction, SQL is for querying data, you cant do much with that.
But what do you call *shame *? "Programing language" is not a privilege, baggage, or a honorary status, its about science and definitions.
And by definition the thing you described called "imperative programming"(it also can be referred to other paradigms such as OOP).
in a nutshell, Imperative programming is a common way of programming for most people here.
Following this paradigm, your code should consists of commands, loops, statements, procedures, and with this set you change your global state (manipulating variables), and then your give a result
Now, lets talk about Declarative programming
Declarative programing is a way of writing a program when you focus only on result, but not an algorithm.
More about it
Yes, declarative programming languages are not Turing complete, so some people are struggling to call it "programming"(also me)
But its still programming
So the most correct thing you can tell about HTML is that it is not imperative programming language
But ....
It can be treated like declarative programming language
(I know about last two letters in HTML (Markup language))
Nope.
I'd ask yourself if Markdown is a programming language. I'm aware that the features, capacities, and intended use cases are wildly different, but at the end of the day, Markdown and HTML are both "markup" languages, and thus HTML is not a programming language.
Really spicy take: It doesn't really matter. It's a fun question to be pedantic about, and I'll happily argue over whether it is one or not just for the lulz.
But most people seem to be arguing for all the wrong reasons, and this just shouldn't be a matter of "are HTML people worth less than C people or not", because they're both valuable skills; and the same applies for discussions about other languages like CSS.
And the elitist attitude of some people really just spoils the fun of the discussion for me, honestly.
I would say that HTML is not a programming language because. it is a markup. It is also only possible to get full potential with CSS combined and both are different in the sense of syntaxes and code structure. and you can not make an entire webpag with it alone like with Python if you use Flask and other frameworks. so in short HTML is not a programming language but a side tool that helps in the process of making a website/webpage.
The fact this is a conversation is frightning in a sense.
Perhaps if you understand the role of these languages, everything will be easier.
Is a Word document a programming language?
Yes, it can be treated like that.
Word document has XML structure under the hood
And XML can be treated as a programming lang in a "Declarative programing" paradigm
xml - extendible markup lang
(I just dont want arguments like "it`s markup lang, just read the defenition")
No, HTML is not a programming language for 3 reasons:
1.It does not allow for the use of variables
2.It does not allow for the use of conditional statements
3.It does not provide any iterative looping structures
It's a markup language. In fact, that is the technology's name: HyperText Markup Language. That self-identified fact alone should settle the debate.
Definitely not. It is widely believed among novice developers that HTML is a programming language, but this is not the case
Read about Declarative programming, and may be you will finally reach a level of "novice dev"
While HTML is not a programming language, it is a crucial component for creating and organizing the content on web pages. So, no.
and well asked question. For your first post
no!
Hypertext Markup Language did create a big hype in the Y2K era. However, HTML is no were close to any programming language and will never be in the future!
As per my opinion no because it's just the structure language which contains the content and you know it cannot be used as for logical way.
Unfortunately Not, I believe that HTML is a method of providing structure, and the processing is done by Javascript, a programming language.
In my opinion it' not. HTML it is amazing, but it works as markup language. HTML is necessary for web life and it's very important, but HTML it is a markup language as xml as well.
Obviously not! HTML is scripting language!
I think HTML is not programming language.
If HTML is not a programming language, because it is a markup language, then JavaScript is not a programming language, because it is a scripting language, and the USA is not a country, because it is a union of states. Features are mutually exclusive and any subject can only be one thing or another at the same time.
It's a language, and the purpose of the language is to be used when you program a website. And in the end, it constitutes a great part of the resulting website.
Then it's not very impressive or useful on its own, so no need to mention it in a resume regardless of whether it's treated as a programming language or not.
So, i would say that people who just say "No", "Absolutely no" or "Did you see that three is Markup Language in HTML", are absolutely mistaking. They just need dive deeper in computer science.
The fact that HTML is a part of Declarative programing(yes PROGRAMING) paradigm (Like CSS, SQL, XML etc.). In a nutshell, declarative programming is a way of programming when you tell computer what kind result you want to get, and don't think much about algorithm itself. So Yes, HTML's programming language status is quite questioning, but only because it's not Turing complete.
And arguments like "it`s markup lang, look at two last letters in HTML" or "we cant create algorithms with that" are just stupid.
"it`s markup lang, look at two last letters in HTML" - it does not deprive it of programing lang status
"we cant create algorithms with that" - OF COURSE, BEACUSE IT IS DECLARATIVE PROGRAMMING, and most of languages of that paradigm are not Turing complete.
In my opinion, we don't need to give straight and "ONLY POSSIBLE" answer, in different cases we can treat HTML differently.
Btw, Declarative programming is also doubted to be "programming", it's mentioned on wikipedia. Doubted, but it's still programming )
When you say "HTML", are you including CSS and JavaScript?
Ah yes, the question (after the one about burrito being a sandwich) that has sparked long debates. In my opinion, HTML is a programming language. It's the foundation of websites and many other online tools. It's like the tortilla of a burrito. Without it, you have a mess. Thanks for posting this @anitaolsen! :)
You are very welcome! 😀
Yes!
It's quite confusing knowing that HTML is not a programming language
HTML should be defined as a light programing
It has no logic however it passes instructions to the computer.
Somehow in my opinion this is logic.
HTML is not a programming language. It's a markup language used to structure content on the web. Unlike programming languages, HTML doesn't have variables, loops, or conditional statements. It defines the structure and presentation of web content.
HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) is not considered a programming language; it is a markup language used for structuring content on the web. HTML provides a way to organize and format the elements on a webpage but lacks the ability to perform complex computations or logical operations. For tasks requiring programming, additional languages like JavaScript are typically employed. If you are seeking an affordable web designer in Chicago to enhance your website, consider exploring local design services that align with your budget and requirements.
No. It's on the same boat as JSON, XML, YAML.
They are not a programming language, neither HTML (unless you consider that odd programming language named HTML).
Html probably not but now a days css is.
Woah, that was a new one. English is probably a programming language as well!
yes and better than php
mY Teacher used to say HTML is a markup language so I just agreed his words... cos I don't wanna break his Heart.. ;) 😄
Hahah 😄 But it is a markup language, it even says that it it's name: HyperText Markup Language (HTML).
Weak argument. At least say why you think a markup language is not a programming language