What is .htc file ?How it works in Internet explorer

Question

I downloaded the .htc file and embedded in css to get the rounded corners in internet explorer 8.But i am wondering how it works

.curved {

-moz-border-radius:10px;

-webkit-border-radius:10px;

behavior:url(border-radius.htc);

}

Answer 1

It's an HTML Component, a means of encapsulating logic on a web page. Behaviors were described in a 1999 w3 CSS working draft but (as far as I know) only Microsoft provided an implementation in IE 5 and today there are better ways of accomplishing the same tasks.

See also: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms531018.aspx

HTCs should only be used as a fallback mechanism (which your example demonstrates). Most of what is possible with them is possible using standard, cross-browser CSS and JavaScript in IE 9 and higher.

As to why it works, my guess is that the behavior manipulates IE-specific functionality such as DHTML filters or VML which can be used to achieve visual results that were ahead of their time (though now deprecated).