On 13 Sep 2002 at 9:21, Tre Pryor wrote:

> Hi all,
> I've looking for some experts' opinions concerning CSS layout vs. Table
> layout vs. a combination of the two. I'm working with a client to redesign
> an existing site. It's not in a database, so basically all the pages will
> need to be touched. 8^)

OK, you struck fear in everyone by asking for an expert.

Almost all the modern browsers support CSS1 and to an extent CSS2.  As 
Timothy pointed, old versions of netscape refuse to die.  

I am convinced the only people that upgrade browsers, are designers.  Almost 
everyone else waits until they get a new computer or upgrade an operating 
system. You have a lot of people surfing the net from work on machines that 
are relatively old.  They are not free to upgrade because the computer is not 
theirs.  You also have a small group of folk that won't switch.

All that said, you have to ask yourself if every client that views the site is 
important.  If it is, then you need to test using several platforms and browsers.

My own feelings are that I use CSS strictly to format text and use tables to 
control layout, this works for us. Our boss wants everyone to be able to use 
our sites. 

Occasionally Netscape 4.x fonts won't show up the same that they will in I.E. 
but who cares?  If someone is using and old Netscape, this should indicate to 
them they need to change since many of the sites they visit are looking weird. 
The site is still usable to them.

OK so how do you do this CSS thing?   I recommend two things, one is getting 
a copy of Topstyle at http://www.bradsoft.com and trying that out.  It is the 
best CSS editor.    The built in validator is much easier to work with than the 
W3C validator.  It will at least get you in the ballpark.

The other is finding a basic CSS file on someone's site and "borrowing" it to 
learn from.  Be sure to include variations of fonts so everyone is covered like: 
"Comic Sans MS", Verdana, Arial, Helvetica; and use fonts in point sizes of 
10 or larger.  That way everyone should be able to see your site.  Mac's 
display fonts usually a lot smaller than the same font in a PC.

Paul Wilson
webguroo(at)tampabay.rr.com

• Web Designer Courses
• Off the Shelf Training Courses

HWG hwg-style mailing list archives, maintained by Webmasters @ IWA