Meta-Element
The meta element (non-specific or false often referred to as a meta -tag) is used in HTML or XHTML documents to specify metadata. It is recorded as an empty element inside the head element.
Generally
The metadata is in the head section of an HTML document, so in the head element, noted.
There are various metadata schemas, developed partly by institutions or bodies (eg Dublin Core), but also partly grown wild species such as entries of the generator software (for example, manufacturer and version ). Very few of these meta information to be interpreted by user agents (eg browsers or search robots ). Compliance by the user agent is dependent as with all HTML elements of the skills and the configuration thereof.
Metadata is to primarily improve the searchability of the World Wide Web or a single website. In addition, metadata can be special instructions for controlling the search robots of search engines record. Once considered metadata as a secret weapon to be at a search engine listings as high as possible. The metadata has therefore abused long to specify misleading keywords ( see keyword stuffing). Meanwhile, the search engines place more emphasis on the actual text content of a web page to the reader in the browser perceives and ignore meta tags as far as possible or can no longer incorporate them in the ranking of the page.
On the Web, there are countless " meta tag generators ", but work with mostly outdated or inflexible sets of meta- information and are therefore suitable only for a few applications.
Examples
The following code examples use XML - compatible syntax - in the case of HTML 4.01, the element may not be closed with a slash on the other hand.
Page Description
< meta name = "description " content = " Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consetetur sadipscing elitr. " / >
Tags
Author
Instructions for web crawlers
Alternatively you can:
Be used or omitted entirely the code.
Equivalent to HTTP header data
Meta elements can contain information (such as a Web browser ) are also transmitted in the header of the HTTP communication from server to client. The data may be read prior to the generation of the HTTP response from the server and installed in the headers. Is information in the HTTP header included, this is preferable to a possibly different indication in a meta element of the client.
Forwarding by "refresh"
To when a page to another URL forwarding ( engl. forwarding), the refresh- value can be used. About the content attribute can also be set to a time before the forwarding takes place, for example, the user nor to point out the reason for the forwarding:
Other Information
- Geographic information - see geo-tag