[thelist] how does XHTML/CSS separate content from design mor e than using nested tables and the like?

[Means, Eric D]

>  -----Original Message-----
> From: 	Martin [mailto:martin at members.evolt.org]
> Sent:	Thursday, May 09, 2002 5:08 PM
> To:	thelist at lists.evolt.org
> Subject:	Re: [thelist] how does XHTML/CSS separate content from
design mor e than using nested tables and the like?
>
>
> > It could, but depending on how cross-browser and cross-platform it is,
> > it
> > may not look the same in every browser without incredible amounts of
> > effort.
>
> However, the key question is "how much does that matter?"
>
> For Amazon, probably not that much:
>
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/subst/home/home.html/t/002-7623209-3424838

True enough.  In fact I would argue that for most sites the answer is "not
much", and even for those sites that it does matter, does it matter more
than having an accessible, standard site which will then encourage the
losers^H^H^H^H^H^Hstubborn users still using NN4 to finally upgrade?

> > Sadly, CSS is still somewhat buggy in many cases.
>
> If you're being anal about your precious design, sure. But
> in most cases, as long as the site is recognisably similar, it
> really won't matter.

:shrug:  I didn't say it was a big factor, just that as a web designer you
have to be aware of the fact that CSS/XHTML remove whatever fascist control
you had over your website with tables and image slices.  (Not that I
personally ever designed a site that way, but even so.)  Knowing that CSS
gives your users effective veto power over your design is a good thing,
though it shouldn't stop you from designing right to the edge of the
envelope.

> I've just browsed my site with Lynx, and it makes 100% sense.
> It would do the same in a screen-reader, or on a PDA.
>
> Try that with a hard-coded table layout - you'd need to be über-careful,
> and even then it wouldn't work in many cases.

Again, we're not disagreeing here.  I regularly browse my own site with Lynx
just to double-check that I haven't screwed anything up and that it's 100%
readable.  And I also agree that the site is more readable now than it ever
was with tables, especially since I can let the text flow naturally and
still position things the way I want on-screen.