Interesting article today from A List Apart. Where did I
hear this
debate recently? Hmmm....
12 Lessons for Those Afraid of CSS and Standards
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/12lessonsCSSandsta
ndards
Lesson No. 1: Everything you know is wrong… sort of
Comparing Tables vs. Semantic Markup
* Linear vs. Hierarchical: Design for the information, not
in spite of it.
* Procedural vs. Functional: Put things where they belong.
* Location-based vs. Contextual: Let the markup describe
what
something is, before you let it describe where something is.
* Defines constraints vs. Defines domains: You don't need
to push
the envelope, because it will change its shape to suit your
needs.
Lesson No. 2: It's not going to look exactly the same
everywhere
unless you're willing to face some grief… and possibly not
even then
Lesson No. 3: You will be forced to choose between the ideal
and the practicable
Lesson No. 4 (with thanks to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry):
Perfection is
not when there's nothing to add, but when there's nothing to
take away
Lesson No. 5: Some sites are steaming heaps of edge cases
Lesson No. 6: Longer lead times are inevitable
The state of CSS rendering technology is at a state that at
best is
comparable to the state of table rendering technology in
early 1998…
so give it time, and test your layouts diligently in the
meantime.
The good news is that the time needed to test and debug your
layouts
is repaid after launch by the reduced time spent on
maintenance,
extensions, and revisions.
Lesson No. 7: Coherent and sensible source order is the best
of Good Things
* A site-wide print stylesheet replaces separate
print-only pages.
* Stylesheets are easier to document, normalize, and
maintain.
* Interspersal of markup and scripting on site templates
decreases.
* Keyboard navigation of the site becomes considerably
less painful.
* When the site is redesigned, there's no need to
rearrange the
content all over again.
Lesson No. 8: Descendant selectors are the beginning and end
of
genuinely powerful CSS rules
When you begin the transition from table-based layout to
standards-friendly production, it's tempting not only to go
crazy with
container elements, but also to stick classes and ids all
over the
place.
Of course, you usually don't need to.
Lesson No. 9: In the real world, stylesheet hacks will get
your
project across the finish line
http://centricl
e.com/ref/css/filters/ (ACK!!!!)
Lesson No. 10: Working around rendering bugs is like playing
Whack-a-Mole
By this, I mean that when a rendering bug in one browser is
worked
around successfully, it often results in the exposure of
another
rendering bug in another browser (or a different version of
the same
browser). When this happens, you can expect to step back and
re-examine your entire ruleset… if not your entire
stylesheet
collection.
Lesson No. 11: When you're drowning in CSS layout problems,
make sure
of the width and height of the water, float without putting
up a
struggle, and get clear of the problems
Lesson No. 12: Background images will make the difference
between the
plain and the tastefully embellished
--
Tom
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