<dir>: The Directory element (obsolete)

Deprecated

This feature is no longer recommended. Though some browsers might still support it, it may have already been removed from the relevant web standards, may be in the process of being dropped, or may only be kept for compatibility purposes. Avoid using it, and update existing code if possible; see the compatibility table at the bottom of this page to guide your decision. Be aware that this feature may cease to work at any time.

The obsolete HTML Directory element (<dir>) is used as a container for a directory of files and/or folders, potentially with styles and icons applied by the user agent. Do not use this obsolete element; instead, you should use the <ul> element for lists, including lists of files.

Usage note: Do not use this element. Though present in early HTML specifications, it has been deprecated in HTML 4, and has since been removed entirely. No major browsers support this element.

DOM interface

This element implements the HTMLDirectoryElement interface.

Attributes

Like all other HTML elements, this element supports the global attributes.

compact
This Boolean attribute hints that the list should be rendered in a compact style. The interpretation of this attribute depends on the user agent and it doesn't work in all browsers.
Usage note: Do not use this attribute, as it has been deprecated: the <dir> element should be styled using CSS. To give a similar effect as that achieved with the compact attribute, the CSS property line-height can be used with a value of 80%.

Browser compatibility

BCD tables only load in the browser

See also

  • Other list-related HTML Elements: <ol>, <ul>, <li>, and <menu>;
  • CSS properties that may be specially useful to style the <dir> element:
    • The list-style property, useful to choose the way the ordinal is displayed.
    • CSS counters, useful to handle complex nested lists.
    • The line-height property, useful to simulate the deprecated compact attribute.
    • The margin property, useful to control the indent of the list.