Is being XHTML compliant a big deal these days?

i wouldn't say its absolutely necessary, since >95% of websites are not XHTML compliant and still work just fine.

However, as a web developer, valid, compliant code is a mark of professionalism. It shows dedication to your work and attention to detail. It's also one step closer to bringing standards to the web, so that we will never have to deal with proprietary browsers ever again.

i could go on and on..but i'm sure others will post the additional advantages of using valid XHTML..
 
Being XHTML 1.0 Strict compliant sure is a big help in making things look the same across the board in regards to browsers. XHTML 1.0 Transitional, unfortunately, is specifically that: you're indicating that you're in the process of transitioning from some lesser form of HTML to XHTML 1.0 Strict. Unless you plan on eventually upgrading to XHTML 1.0 Strict, you should be using HTML 4.01 Strict.

From a web development standpoint, most developers probably only need HTML 4.01 Strict, especially since most web developers have no intention of sending a mime-type other than text/html.

That's the long answer.

Short answer? Yes, being compliant is important. Does it have to be XHTML? No. But you should be compliant regardless of the doctype of your choosing.
 
As long as you can give the proper mime-type you can use any XHTML doctype you wish.

But if you can't send the right mime-type then you should stick with HTML 4.01 Strict.
 
A cautionary tale....

The guy who wrote the requirements for a recent UK govt project I was working on specified that it should be XHTML 1.0 Strict, but also that it had to be built in J2EE/Struts. Now, a word to the wise - *never* promise more than your platform can deliver. The Struts HTML generation methods are in fact *not* XHTML 1.0 Strict compliant....so we were faced with the unfortunate dilemma of a) not deliver what was promised, or b) take the hit on the development time to override the basic Struts methods.
 
Aim for compliancy, but don't make it a requirement. Getting the site viewable in >95% of browsers is the first priority, and it would be great if it was compliant at the same time.
 
Wrong, in my opinion. Form follows function, not the reverse. Get content, get it validated, THEN style the page. Then, you've got a fully compliant page that looks good in every browser. Standards compliance was a sort-of-last-minute benefit in 2000. It's 2004, and times have changed. If you're still designing websites off-the-cuff in the hopes that it'll work most of the time, you're not doing your job correctly or well.
 
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