A

For information about scripting the <A> element, see the Scripting the <A> element topic.

The Anchor element is the essence of HTML. It is marked text that is the start and/or destination of a hypertext link. Anchor elements are defined by the <A> element. The <A> element accepts several attributes, but either the NAME or HREF attribute is required.

Attributes of the <A> element :

HREF
If the HREF attribute is present, the text between the opening and closing anchor elements becomes a hypertext link. If the link is selected by readers, they are moved to the document or location specified by the value of the attribute.

Example :

See <A HREF="http://subnet.virtual-pc.com/~le387818/">The HTMLib site</A> for updated info on the HTMLib.

In this example, selecting "The HTMLib" takes the reader to a document located at http://subnet.virtual-pc.com/~le387818/ (which is the HTMLib web site)

With the HREF attribute, the form HREF="#identifier" can refer to another anchor in the same document.

Example :

The <A HREF="document.html#glossary">glossary</A> defines terms used in the document.

In this example, selecting "glossary" takes the reader to another anchor (i.e. <A NAME="glossary">Glossary</A>) in the document document.html. The NAME attribute is described below. If the anchor is in another document and the HREF attribute provides a partial URL, the new document will be resolved from either the present document, or from any specified base address.

Several other forms of the HREF attribute are permitted by browsers. They are as follows :

<A HREF="http://...">: Makes a link to another document located on a World Wide Web server.
<A HREF="ftp://...">: Makes a link to an ftp site. Within an HTML document, normally a connection to an anonymous ftp site would be made. Recent browsers allows connection to private ftp sites. The Anchor would take the form ftp://jdoe@your.com. The browser would then prompt the user for a password.
<A HREF="gopher://...">: Makes a link to a gopher server.
<A HREF="mailto:...">: Activating such a link would bring up the browsers mailing dialog (or application associated with internet mail) allowing the user to send mail messages to the author of the document, or whoever's address follows the mailto attribute. NCSA Mosaic supports use of the TITLE attribute for a mailto link. It allows the author to specify the subject of the mail message that will be sent. Netscape allows specification of the subject line by using the following syntax:
<A HREF="mailto:cmlehunt@swan.ac.uk?subject=The HTMLib is fantastic">link text</A>. Note that for Internet Explorer the above syntax example will only work with certain mail applications. Notably, the Internet mail add-on for Internet Explorer doesn't support this method.
<A HREF="news:...">: Makes a link to a newsgroup. Care should be taken in using such links because the author can not know what newsgroups are carried by the local news server of the user.
<A HREF="newsrc:...">: Makes a link to a specific newsrc file.
<A HREF="nntp://...">: Can be used to specify a different news server to that which the user may normally use. This is useful if you want to link to a newsgroup that the users local news server may not carry (see above).
<A HREF="telnet://...">: Activating such a link would initiate a telnet session (using an external application) to the machine specified after the telnet:// label.
<A HREF="wais://...">: Makes a link that connects to a specified WAIS index server.
<A HREF="view-source:...">: This Netscape specific HREF attribute value forces the Netscape 'View Source' function, opening up the standard source viewing window with the document specified in the value. The URL to the document must be fully qualified. Also note that this is an undocumented feature, whose support may possibly change without notice.

NAME
If present, the NAME attribute allows the anchor to be the target of a link. The value of the NAME attribute is an identifier for the anchor. Identifiers are arbitrary strings but must be unique within the HTML document. Also, note that they are case sensitive within HTML documents and can not contain spaces.

Example of use:

<A NAME="coffee">Coffee</A> is an example of... An example of this is <A HREF="#coffee">coffee</A>.

Another document can then make a reference explicitly to this anchor by putting the identifier after the address, separated by a hash character :

<A HREF="drinks.html#coffee">

TITLE
The TITLE attribute is for informational purposes only (unless used with a mailto: attribute). If present, the Title attribute should provide the title of the document whose address is given by the HREF attribute. When it was introduced, it was anticipated that perhaps browsers would display the contents of the TITLE attribute when the user focuses on the link (like a ToolTip), however, browser vendors haven't yet implemented this.

REL
The REL attribute gives the relationship(s) described by the hypertext link from the anchor to the target. The value should be a comma-separated list of relationship values. Values and their semantics will be registered by the HTML registration authority. The default relationship if none other is given is void. The REL attribute is only used when the HREF attribute is present. (See also <LINK REL="...">)

REV
The REV attribute is the same as the REL attribute, but the semantics of the link type are in the reverse direction. A link from A to B with REL="X" expresses the same relationship as a link from B to A with REV="X". An anchor may have both REL and REV attributes. (See also <LINK REV="...">)

URN
If present, the URN attribute specifies a uniform resource name (URN) for a target document. The format of URNs is still under discussion (since 1994) by various working groups of the Internet Engineering Task Force.

METHODS
The METHODS attributes of anchors and links provide information about the functions that the user may perform on an object. These are more accurately given by the HTTP protocol when it is used, but it may, for similar reasons as for the TITLE attribute, be useful to include the information in advance in the link. For example, the HTML user agent may chose a different rendering as a function of the methods allowed; for example, something that is searchable may get a different link appearance. The value of the METHODS attribute should be a comma separated list of HTTP methods supported by the object for public use.

TARGET
Browser windows can now have names associated with them. Links in any window can refer to another window by name. When the link is activated, the document referenced will appear in that named window. If the window is not already open, the browser will open and name a new window for you. Such an action is only supported by frames capable browsers (i.e. Netscape and Internet Explorer.)

The syntax for the targeted windows is:

<A HREF="url.html" TARGET="window_name">Link text</A>

The TARGET attribute can accept the following values :

window_name: The name of any window specified by a <FRAME> element, or by using the window.open scripting method. If a window_name is used which does not correlate to a previously defined window, then a new window is created and NAMEd according the the window name used in the TARGET attribute. This new window can then be referenced using it's new name.
_self: Using this reserved keyword value, would cause any form feedback page to be loaded into the window that currently contains the form.
_parent: Using this reserved keyword value, would cause any form feedback page to be loaded into the window that is the parent of the window currently containing the form. i.e. if the form's window is part of a framed document, it would load into the window controlled by the <FRAMESET> element definitions that control the form's current window.
_top: Using the reserved keyword value would cause the form feedback page to be loaded into the topmost window, clearing any currently existing framed windows.
_blank: Using tis reserved keyword value would cause the form feedback page to be loaded into a newly created window. Using this value is the same as using TARGET="window_name" where the window_name used is not a previously defined window. NOTE : Unlike using the window_name using a previously undefined window name, using _blank will not name the new window for future use.