AMP Is What HTML Should Have Been

Google's AMP project speeds up the web by, among other things, prohibiting HTML and CSS features that impede performance or hurt UX.

For example, images should have their width and height set so that the page doesn't re-layout when they're loaded. It's irritating when the text you're trying to read moves away, and it also causes flicker, making the web page look bad. As another example, AMP allows only CSS filters that can be GPU-accelerated.

HTML is too permissive. It supports many features that result in a poor UX. Those features should be deprecated. For example, img tags without a width and height. The spec should be updated to consider such tags invalid, and HTML validators and browsers should flag them.

Doing the optimal thing from a UX perspective should be the path of least resistance. Only then will most web sites or apps improve their UX. You can publish all the best practices guides you want, but not everyone will read or follow them, either because of schedule or because their company culture doesn't care about a great user experience. Or because the individual programmer writing the code isn't passionate about a great user experience. There's no shortage of such engineers and managers and product managers, even at some of the best tech companies.

To improve the baseline UX for all web sites, the choice that leads to the best UX should be the path of least resistance. Deprecate and flag everything that isn't.