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Re: Mathematica will be a new feature of HTML6

  • To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
  • Subject: [mg115390] Re: Mathematica will be a new feature of HTML6
  • From: AES <siegman at stanford.edu>
  • Date: Mon, 10 Jan 2011 02:35:14 -0500 (EST)
  • References: <igbnfr$hfh$1@smc.vnet.net>

> On Sat, Jan 8, 2011 at 3:41 AM, a boy <AvvBoy at gmail.com> wrote:
> > I guess Mathematica will be a standard mathematic script language of HTML 
> > 6. A snippet of HTML6 maybe like this:

> > <html>
> > <body>
> > <script language=mathematica
> > Plot[Sin[x],{x,0,2Pi}]
> > </script>
> > </body>
> > </html>

I'm going somewhat beyond my technical depth here, but I have _never_ 
understood why HTML did not contain Plain TeX as one of its capabilities 
or standard formats from the very beginning, so that an input like

<html>
<body>
<tex>
--- any ordinary Plain TeX input ---
</tex>
</body>
</html>

would have produced the corresponding typeset output with the displayed 
HTML page.  

>From its early stages, HTML could handle (i.e., process and properly 
display the outputs from) image inputs in several different image 
formats (.jpg, .gif, etc).  Why couldn't it have done the same with TeX 
inputs, or TeX input files in .src format? -- especially given the small 
size, simplicity, superb quality, and totally free availability of the 
TeX program.

This is especially given the scientific and technical locations at which 
it was developed, the scientific and technical purposes for which it was 
developed, and the scientific and technical people by whom was first 
developed (they must have all known and routinely used TeX).  

Was HTML really invented so advertisers could throw endless 
advertisement, full of Flash animations at us, on every page of output 
as well as in pop-ups and pop-unders -- and still not be able to display 
even the simplest display equation?  The word "travesty" seems 
appropriate here.

If this capability at last becomes available (finally!!) in HTML6, even 
with coding like

<html>
<body>
<script  language=tex>
--- any ordinary Plain TeX input ---
</script>
</body>
</html>

that will be great -- but very long overdue -- and _very_ much more 
important and useful than making Mathematica available in HTML6, 
although I have no objections at all to seeing that happen also


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