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HTML HTML Basics Going Further with HTML Going Further with HTML Review

What are the differences between root-relative, relative and absolute paths? Please list examples.

Hi everyone! I am having a hard time with understanding the differences between root-relative, relative and absolute paths. What are examples of each one and how do you differentiate between each file path? I still do not understand the difference between absolute paths and root-relative paths. Which website or article has an in-depth, clear explanation (with contexts) of each file path.

Also, I am not sure what going up a directory means when writing a file path in HTML. Can someone explain to me the process and why we need to write "../" when we go up a directory? Is this an example of a root-relative file path?

Thanks in advance for your time and review of my questions. I deeply appreciate your patience.

1 Answer

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,269 Points

The phrase "going up" means traversing to the parent directory of the current one. Here's some examples:

  • "img/sky.jpg" :point_left: relative path
  • "../photos/star.jpg" :point_left: relative path that "goes up" a folder and then down into another
  • "/js/app.js" :point_left: root-relative path (starts with /)
  • "http:‍//www‍.ebay‍.com" :point_left: absolute path (full URL)