HTML a tag

Example

A link to 1000sourcecodes.com:

<a href="http://www.1000sourcecodes.com">Visit 1000sourcecodes.com!</a>

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Definition and Usage

The <a> tag defines an anchor. An anchor can be used in two ways:

1. To create a link to another document, by using the href attribute
2. To create a bookmark inside a document, by using the name attribute

The a element is usually referred to as a link or a hyperlink.
The most important attribute of the a element is the href attribute, which indicates the link’s destination.
By default, links will appear as follows in all browsers:

• An unvisited link is underlined and blue
• A visited link is underlined and purple
• An active link is underlined and red

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Browser Support

The <a> tag is supported in all major browsers.

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Differences Between HTML and XHTML

NONE

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Tips and Notes

Tip: Use CSS to style links!

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Optional Attributes

DTD indicates in which DTD the attribute is allowed. S=Strict, T=Transitional, and F=Frameset.

Attribute	Value	Description	DTD
charset	char_encoding	Specifies the character encoding of the target URL	STF
coords	coordinates	Used with the shape attribute to specify the size, shape, and placement of a link in an object or img element	STF
href	URL	Specifies the target URL of the link	STF
hreflang	language_code	Specifies the language of the document in the target URL	STF
name	section_name	Defines an anchor (use this attribute to create a bookmark in a document)	STF
rel	alternate stylesheet start next prev contents index glossary copyright chapter section subsection appendix help bookmark	Specifies the relationship between the current document and the target URL	STF
rev	alternate stylesheet start next prev contents index glossary copyright chapter section subsection appendix help bookmark	Specifies the relationship between the target URL and the current document	STF
shape	rect rectangle circ circle poly polygon	Defines the shape of a link	STF
target	_blank _parent _self _top framename	Specifies where to open the target URL	TF
type	mime_type	Specifies the MIME type of the target URL	STF

Standard Attributes

id, class, title, style, dir, lang, xml:lang, tabindex, accesskey

Event Attributes

onfocus, onblur, onclick, ondblclick, onmousedown, onmouseup, onmouseover, onmousemove, onmouseout, onkeypress, onkeydown, onkeyup