Using CSS with Tables   

Tables are currently the most common method of laying out/structuring a web page. Although the use of tables for this purpose is considered, by many, to be a misuse, it is by far the easiest way of organising web page content.

Most purists would say their use is now obsolete and you should switch to Cascading Style sheets for website /web page layout. However personally I still prefer tables for the basic outline structure in what is called a "minimal table layout".

In the minimal table approach the outline structure is created using a table, and positioning within the table is done using cascading style sheet elements. This is the approach I currently use, and probably will continue to use over the next few years.

Not only can you use CSS for the element layout they can also be used to control the table itself, like table width or background colour. This way, just by making a change in the external CSS control file you can change the tables for all web pages, and with it the appearance/layout of the entire website.

One of the other advantages of continuing to use tables for page layout is that the pages are still easy to edit with most web page editors, whereas if you use CSS themselves for positioning then you will need a compatible editor.

Tables have been the mainstay of web page layout for many years and will continue to be over the next few years. However when combined with Cascading style sheets they can become very flexible and powerful, as well as simple to use.

To see how easy it is to do see < http://www.build-your-website.co.uk/css/Web-Page-Layout-Using-Tables-CSS.htm> ;Web Page Layout Using Tables and CSS

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CSS Content? Using tables within the content of your page is a major no-no, the whole intent and purpose of CSS is to control the style of your page elements, this is done using an external stylesheet.

An external Stylesheet? External stylesheets give you the control of your whole website from one single file rather than trying to edit your whole websites CSS using global search and replace or by opening each page individually.

If you are new to this HTML malarkey then welcome, you have just embarked upon a new learning curve that does not take too long to master. Before the invention of CSS everything within a webpage used to be designed using tables.

Indeed there are still a lot of html editors out there that still use tables to format a pages content, one strong word of advice, get rid of that software and start again. Tables are not extinct within webpages but they should only be used for the purpose of presenting data.

Beginning CSS? I am not going to use this article to give you a whole list of tags and how to apply them, that information would be too easily ignored. There are thousands of well rounded websites available on the net today that can walk you through the first stages of CSS, the one I would recommend would be: W3Schools CSS intro this is a perfect place to start learning CSS, in the interests of parity and fairness I will also recommend What can be achieved using CSS .