Web Authoring Tips

The first rule of web authoring is

Use W3's¹ HTML and CSS validators to check your code.

Subsection B of the first rule is

Your page should be accessible to users of text-based clients.

If it's not, then you need to reconsider your layout. Even complex pages using CSS, if done correctly, are pleasant to view in Lynx. And if it's accessible to users of Lynx, then it is likely also accessible to users of older, graphical, browsers. It is much easier, unfortunately, to write code that is presentable with only SomeBrowser SomeVersionNumber at SomeScreenResolution than to write valid code that is accessible to at least eighty percent of your audience. Do not assume that everyone has the latest version of Internet Explorer or Netscape. And, please do not assume that your users, or even your friends, are willing to change their screen resolution for you, because they're not.

1 The World Wide Web Consortium

Content

The second rule of web authoring is

Form fits function.

When learning (X)HTML, do not worry about how you want your pages to look, yet. Think first about the nature of the information you are providing. Use the P tag for paragraphs, the UL and OL for lists, and TABLE for tabular data. Use headings (H1, H2, Hn...), etc. HTML tags are functional (vs. decorative). To reiterate,

HTML is a structured language.

Navigation

• Every pages on your web site should link back to your home page, and, with the exception of the home page, link back to its parent page.
• Use subdirectories to organize files of the same type (e.g. css/, images/, sounds/) and to organize your site into sections (e.g. articles/, news/, etc.).
• Make use of named anchors on large pages and/or pages with multiple sections so that your readers can skip to the section they want to read.
• Avoid using image maps as they make your pages less accessible.
• Avoid using frames for the same reason. There is always a Better^TM solution.

Presentation

The third rule of web authoring is

Use Cascading Style Sheets, or CSS, to make your pages look the way you want.

• Document the fonts and colors you are using at the beginning of your filename.css file in order to limit your palette and keep your site looking consistent.
• However, take care to make use of XHTML tags whenever possible. Using <SPAN CLASS="classname">your text here</SPAN> indiscriminately is a Very Bad Idea^TM.
• Avoid the use of inline styles, or, generally, any kind of formatting within the BODY of an HTML document. But do use classes when they are appropriate. Furthermore, limit the use of embedded stylesheets to page specific presentation. Rule of thumb: If it is reusable, then place it in your filename.css file.
• Name classes after their function, not how they make something look (E.g. .footnote is much better than .small).
• Avoid using tables for layout. Tables are for tabular data.
• Use relative units whenever possible (e.g. padding: 1%;). Using absolute units can make CSS-enhanced pages inaccessible to many users.
• Do not use   and <br />, and other 'tricks,' to make your page look the way you want it to look.

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