HTML Encoding Schemes: Reduction of Markup Language-Based Overhead

The HTML and XML languages have a language basedoverhead. This quantitative study proposed severalencoding methods for the contents of HTML and XMLfiles. The files were parsed for similar words andsubsequently encoded with shorter characterrepresentations. A Web server and Web client weredeveloped to test the hypothesis that the encoding ofHTML and XML files using these methods prior totransmission by the server and decoding prior torendering by the client would might produce areduction in overall transmission time when comparedwith files that were not encoded. Presence of Zipcompression and conversion to Binary using HuffmanCompression were also considered. The resultssuggested that while there was a reduction in thesize of the files after encoding, no reduction intransmission time was conclusively found. The datasuggest that there is an endemic cause, and furtherexperimentation is suggested to determine find thesource.

Theodore Larson is a professor of Technology and Statistics atthe University of North Texas. He is currently working on theside to produce lifelike games. He lives in Denton, TX with hiswife and children.