HTML5 - for non technical folk

TAKEHOME: HTML5 is coming - prepare for it.

With Adobe abandoning mobile Flash development, it looks like the age of HTML5 is upon us.

This is the non-technical version. For a bit more detail, click here

* What it is
  HTML5 is the next step in the evolution of the web. A host of technical changes that should clear the way for really great work.

* What it isn't
  Mostly, HTML5 isn't ready yet!

  It's still being argued over and agreed upon. It'll be ready anywhere between 2013 and 2022, depending on who you ask. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTML5

  It also isn't:
  - Animations
  - Faster Javascript
  - Gorgeous CSS (styling)

  Confused? So is everybody else. And when confusion is out there, snake-oil salesmen are always in the wings, ready to take some poor suckers for a ride. So be careful out there.

* The FUD
  HTML5 is set to become the new Flash, AJAX and Web 2.0 combined. Understandably, people are worried that they'll get left behind. That no one will use their sites. That if they don't get "the HTML5", their businesses will crash and burn. Not likely.

* Why it's good
  If it plays out how folks are intending, it's going to simplify the development of really fantastic web apps. Things like video and audio come baked in. Styling is taken care of by enhanced CSS. Machines will be able to understand the structure of pages more easily.

* When to use it
  At every opportunity :) Seriously though: you'd be wise to start getting things ready as soon as possible.

* When not to use it
  Don't try and do serious Flash-style animations. Also: remember that Flash and HTML are fundamentally different technologies, so trying to make one into the other is not a good strategy.

* How to prepare for it
  Start off small. Build content so it'd just as easily work on iPads, iPhones and regular browsers. Slowly, everything will converge, and you'll be ahead of the curve.

* Links
http://blogs.adobe.com/conversations/2011/11/flash-focus.html
http://www.w3.org/TR/html5-diff/
http://mashable.com/2011/11/11/flash-mobile-dead-adobe/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HTML5
https://developer.mozilla.org/en/HTML/HTML5#Technologies_often_called_part_of_HTML5_that_aren%27t