opinios

although i agree that CSS is da bomb it really isn't standard across all browsers and platforms for people who have a strict design that they need to deal with. i work for an entertainment company here in NYC and our website has to be precisely laid out to the pixel! i'm redesigning my blog using some cool new CSS tricks i have picked up [thanks for the extra help!] but i've been programmed to design and build to the pixel so everytime something is off it makes my blood boil!

like, for instance, UL tags.. i wanted to use an image instead of bullets and get rid of the inline margins.. but the positioning was inconsistent between IE, netscape, and safari on OSX. i ended up having to ditch the entire idea.

from my experience it's best to use the tried and true methods from both worlds: tables for layout and CSS for text formatting and image jazziness.

you've incited a craze in me!! i went through all of your CSS links and have decided that i want to really see what this is all about and maybe how i can apply it at work. admittedly, my boss is a strict html'er but hopefully i can also incite a craze in him. thanks! :)

Yeah thanks matt... I got into work early today (6:45am) to get my wbs and project budget out on time and I've just spent the first hour of my day reading about cool web stuff following all your links.

:)

I like the idea of that scriptless menu, but the bugger don't work in IE, or should I say IE don't work....

Gleek: take a look at Max Design's List-o-matic for some great tips and sample code on dealing with lists.

With regards your problems dealing with pixel-perfect code, yes layouts can get tricky (especially if you want to support IE 5/Win) but the CSS Image Map link above is a perfect example of how it can be done in CSS and be consistent across all browsers. Try doing that with a table. I recommend sticking at it!

Ben: you're welcome!

thanks matt.. i all the css links are really interesting. i talked to my boss today about upping our browser capatability to 5.0 browsers and above so that the next redesign we could do some solid CSS.

a little background on me: i've been doing web programming for about 7 [geez am i that old?] years now. i work for a large media corp in NYC on their website.. i'm so used to programming for pixel perfect designers that i'm having trouble breaking away from that mindset :) but i'm working on bringing in some new technologies at work.

it's nice to find some good lists about what's up and coming in my field. thanks again.

damn you're inciting the inner bulldog to a little activity mr mcg. nice post.

Gleek: Like I said, you can achieve pixel perfect code with CSS, it just takes a bit more effort. But that effort now will save hours of changes later down the track. And it is definitely easier now than it was a few years ago. If only Micro$oft would update IE, then we could really move ahead...

Convince your boss to read Zeldman's Designing With Web Standards, not only does it present the case for standards and moving away from table-based layouts pretty convincingly, it also shows you how to go about it.

Frangipani: I look forward to the result of the unleashing of the bulldog!

I'm not in to much of the htmling at the mo' but the tip that a newer version of Mozilla's Firebird was available has pricked my interest. Onya Matt.