CSS vs Tables Survey

Discussion in 'HTML & Website Design' started by Hades, Jan 29, 2009.

  1. #1
    Hey Guys,

    I am writing an essay on why CSS is better then Tables, and stuff like that, so if you can please post with what you prefer to use, weather it's Tables or CSS (if you're a developer only please).

    Thanks,
    Nick
     
    Hades, Jan 29, 2009 IP
  2. drhowarddrfine

    drhowarddrfine Peon

    Messages:
    5,428
    Likes Received:
    95
    Best Answers:
    7
    Trophy Points:
    0
    #2
    Google for "Why tables for layout is stupid" and "The web is ruined and I ruined it."
     
    drhowarddrfine, Jan 29, 2009 IP
  3. Hades

    Hades Well-Known Member

    Messages:
    1,873
    Likes Received:
    67
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    150
    #3
    I needed a survey for it. But nvm...
     
    Hades, Jan 29, 2009 IP
  4. swalian

    swalian Banned

    Messages:
    175
    Likes Received:
    3
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    #4
    We was use table and change to css since our client request it.
    But we still use table for some project specially for oscommerce, zencart, joomla 1.0 .
     
    swalian, Jan 29, 2009 IP
  5. innovati

    innovati Peon

    Messages:
    948
    Likes Received:
    63
    Best Answers:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    0
    #5
    I use Tables for.....Tables, and I use CSS for cascading stylesheets.

    Even if you design the layout with tables (which is nasty) you still should be using CSS for the styles.

    Tables aren't good because of the following reasons:

    -with CSS layout, you can switch a column from one side of a site of 400 pages, to the other side of the page simply by changing one word in a CSS file. But, if you do it with tables instead, you'd have to go edit 400 HTML pages and move the cells around just to do the same thing.

    - with CSS the user has the ability to use client-side CSS stylesheets, like on mobile browsers, where they render the pages using custom offline CSS files instead of your styles. There are a few downloadable themes like this for Gmail and other popular sites. with table, you can't do that.

    - different stylesheets for different purposes. With CSS you can target the layout for whatever media the site will be viewed on. Many news sites have different stylesheets for printing their articles, that load the content differently. Tables would still let you do this to some degree is paired with Stylesheets, but it's so limiting!
     
    innovati, Jan 29, 2009 IP
  6. normalfx

    normalfx Peon

    Messages:
    111
    Likes Received:
    1
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    #6
    CSS layout is more easy and less complicated than table layout for me to debug in Firebug and I think it's good for SEO as well.
     
    normalfx, Jan 29, 2009 IP
  7. justinlorder

    justinlorder Peon

    Messages:
    4,160
    Likes Received:
    61
    Best Answers:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    #7
    In most of cases, I never use table for layout .
    I prefer css layout/tableless layout .
    css/div layout is reusable , clear , faster and easy to manipulate .
    That is the major advantages of css layout .
     
    justinlorder, Jan 29, 2009 IP
  8. mmerlinn

    mmerlinn Prominent Member

    Messages:
    3,197
    Likes Received:
    819
    Best Answers:
    7
    Trophy Points:
    320
    #8
    Don't use tables for layout EVER. They WERE a CLUMSY workaround before CSS. Since CSS became available PROFESSIONALS have migrated away from table layout.

    Use tables for TABLES ONLY. That is what they were designed for and what they do best.

    For an example of a website that does NOT use tables for layout but does use tables on every page, see my website in the link in my sig. That is what tables are designed for and NOTHING ELSE. I don't use CSS on any of those pages and I should. When I can find the time to reprogram the program that makes the pages I will add CSS to control the markup within my tables.

    That site has over 4000 pages and grows larger every day. And google keeps reindexing every page within days of a new version being uploaded. Typical google searches put those pages in the top 10 of google searches 95% of the time.
     
    mmerlinn, Jan 30, 2009 IP