# Basic syntax
The next few sections will outline the syntax used by Maud templates.
## Literals `""`
Literal strings use the same syntax as Rust. Wrap them in double quotes, and use a backslash for escapes.
```rust
html! {
"Oatmeal, are you crazy?"
}
```
### Escaping and `PreEscaped`
By default, HTML special characters are escaped automatically. Wrap the string in `(PreEscaped())` to disable this escaping. (See the section on [dynamic content] to learn more about how this works.)
```rust
use maud::PreEscaped;
html! {
"<script>alert(\"XSS\")</script>" // <script>...
(PreEscaped("<script>alert(\"XSS\")</script>")) // <script>...
}
```
[dynamic content]: dynamic-content.md
If the string is long, or contains many special characters, then it may be worth using [raw strings] instead:
```rust
use maud::PreEscaped;
html! {
(PreEscaped(r#"
<script>
alert("Look ma, no backslashes!");
</script>
"#))
}
```
[raw strings]: https://doc.rust-lang.org/reference/tokens.html#raw-string-literals
If you want to add a `<!DOCTYPE html>` declaration to your page, you may use the `maud::DOCTYPE` constant instead of writing it out by hand:
```rust
use maud::DOCTYPE;
html! {
(DOCTYPE) // <!DOCTYPE html>
}
```
## Elements `p`
Write an element using curly braces: `p { ... }`.
Terminate a void element using a semicolon: `br;`. Note that the result will be rendered with HTML syntax – `<br>` not `<br />`.
```rust
html! {
h1 { "Poem" }
p {
"Rock, you are a rock."
br;
"Gray, you are gray,"
br;
"Like a rock, which you are."
br;
"Rock."
}
}
```
Maud also supports ending a void element with a slash: `br /`. This syntax is [deprecated][#96] and should not be used in new code.
[#96]: https://github.com/lambda-fairy/maud/pull/96
Before version 0.18, Maud allowed the curly braces to be omitted. This syntax was [removed][#137] and now causes an error instead.
[#137]: https://github.com/lambda-fairy/maud/pull/137
## Non-empty attributes `id="yay"`
```rust
html! {
ul {
li {
a href="about:blank" { "Apple Bloom" }
}
li class="lower-middle" {
"Sweetie Belle"
}
li dir="rtl" {
"Scootaloo "
small { "(also a chicken)" }
}
}
}
```
Add attributes using the syntax: `attr="value"`. You can attach any number of attributes to an element. The values must be quoted: they are parsed as string literals.
## Empty attributes `checked?` `disabled?[foo]`
Declare an empty attribute using a `?` suffix: `checked?`.
```rust
html! {
form {
input type="checkbox" name="cupcakes" checked?;
" "
label for="cupcakes" { "Do you like cupcakes?" }
}
}
```
To toggle an attribute based on a boolean flag, use a `?[]` suffix instead: `checked?[foo]`. This will check the value of `foo` at runtime, inserting the attribute only if `foo` equals `true`.
```rust
let allow_editing = true;
html! {
p contenteditable?[allow_editing] {
"Edit me, I "
em { "dare" }
" you."
}
}
```
## Classes and IDs `.foo` `#bar`
Add classes and IDs to an element using `.foo` and `#bar` syntax. The tag will default to `div` if an element begins with a class or ID. You can chain multiple classes and IDs together, and mix and match them with other attributes:
```rust
html! {
.container#main {
input.big.scary.bright-red type="button" value="Launch Party Cannon";
}
}
```
To toggle a class based on a boolean flag, use a `[]` suffix: `.foo[is_foo]`. This will check the value of `is_foo` at runtime, inserting that class value `foo` in the class attribute only if `is_foo` is `true`.
```rust
let cuteness = 95;
html! {
p.cute[cuteness > 50] { "Squee!" }
}
```