Frames and Tables

[jesstp]

Hi,

I am creating a homepage with a CV on it and have heard that I shouldn't use frames or tables and should do all formatting through CSS.

Is that true?

Also, as Im listing different types of block information should I be using <br> after the information or would that we silly?

Thanks in advance

[webdoctor]

I shouldn't use frames or tables and should do all formatting through CSS.

frames aren't very search engine friendly - if someone gets referred to one of the frames without its parent frame they may not be able to navigate.

tables aren't great in terms of accessibility - see this page for more info (Guideline 5 talks about tables)
[w3.org...]

basically frames and tables are rather 1990s :-) using CSS is often better, and if you learn how to do CSS it's a useful skill

[David Becker]

I use both tables and css on my site, and have validated at priority 3 WAI-AAA with W3C. The trick is identifying each table with a summary within the code...

table summary="table for listing my favorite things".

This allows the readers for the blind and disabled to identify what the table's purpose is. When css is used on site, a few tables dress things up in a formal website, and do not clutter the "readers" with a bunch of messy code.

With blocks of text, the <blockquote></blockquote> tag will separate your differet points, without need of <br>. Using <br> is always allowable, but I think <blockquote>makes code cleaner when you can use it.

[g1smd]

Frames or Tables? Wrong answer...

You should construct your page using headings, paragraphs, and lists, with tables used only for data that is truly tabular in nature, not for page layout.

Once you have the semantic markup in place, styling the entire page using an external CSS file becomes so very much more easier.

[jeremymack]

use CSS! its easy to learn once you understand its premise

only use tables for data stuff (i.e. spreadsheets, calendars etc.)

and its not <br>, its <br />.

you should get used to the new standards :)

[g1smd]

The <br /> notation applies only in XHTML documents.

For HTML, using <br> is absolutely correct.