What is CSS?
CSS is a simple file which controls the visual appearance of a Web page without compromising its structure. Using CSS we can control our font size, font color, link color and many other attributes on our web page. This will make our HTML code much more readable and the page size will be reduced.
Why to use it and how to use it properly
If you don't use CSS on your web pages and you have many tables and content on them, chances are that your HTML file size will be quite big. Fact is that we live in a busy world, and people are not will to wait more than 5 seconds web page to load.
From the other side some web developers implement the CSS on wrong way. They write their CSS in HTML code of the page, like this:
<html>
<head>
<title>My Page</title>
<style>
A
{
font-family: Verdana;
font-size:8pt;
color:black;
text-decoration:none
}
</style >
What is wrong with this technique? Well, imagine that you have site with more than 50 pages. One day, you decide that you want to change font color and colors of the links on your site. You will have to edit ALL the pages on your site, and do to that you will need time, because you place your CSS in your web page.
Better way is to save your visual attributes in separate, external CSS file, and to link that file with your page like this:
<html>
<head>
<title>My Page</title>
<link href="myStyle.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css">
Using this technique, you can change the look of your site within minutes, regardless of the number of pages, because your visual attributes are saved in ONE external CSS file. Edit that file, and you are done.
Benefits
Which are the benefits of using CSS? List is quite long and I will list here only the most important.
Avoiding standard HTML commands like:
<font color="#0000ff"><font size=2>Product</font></font></font>
will help us to reduce file size, but that is not the only benefit. Using CSS word product in this example will be moved more close on the top of the document. Search engine will pick up more content and less code.
Imagine that you have 3 columns table on your page. When you see the code, you will notice that first come code for your table, and after that it come your content. Positioning your 3 columns using CSS instead of standard inline elements:
<table width="90%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">
<tr>
<td width="381" height="150" valign="top" bgcolor="FFEDD4">
My Product
</td>
<td height="150" valign="top" bgcolor="FFEDD4">
When CSS is used, your code might look like this:
<div id="leftcontent">
My Product
</div>
Again your code is much more clear, and your content is moved on the top of your document, making your HTML page search engine friendly, and reducing your file size.
Content is one of the most important factors in Search Engine Optimization, and you will benefit with removing the unnecessary code in your HTML and create search engine friendly web page.
Validate it
Browser war is far behind us. Reality is that most of the people today use Internet Explorer, but you should try to be on safe side and ensure that your CSS code is valid. Not all browsers interpret the CSS on same way. You can validate your CSS here: http://jigsaw.w3.org/css-validator/
About The Author
Zoran Makrevski is founder and CEO of http://jigsaw.w3.org/css-validator/.
Since 1998 has focused on E-Commerce and attempts to bring more traffic to the customer sites bring him in the SEO industry, and he is running his own company today.
Search Engine Positioning Firm
http://jigsaw.w3.org/css-validator/
I am just a learner who likes to delve in... Read More
Your ObjectiveYour small business needs an appealing and professional website... Read More
When web content gets discussed on webmaster bulletin boards, the... Read More
In about the Time it takes to Watch a Reality... Read More
What do you mean, you don't have a website for... Read More
Many small businesses have the misconception that their business can... Read More
Are you, like many other website owners, frustrated at the... Read More
They might not be wearing a mask and carrying a... Read More
Just starting out, you can start with a simple informational... Read More
Are you aware that 90% of the websites on the... Read More
It is an undeniable fact that not everybody is keen... Read More
Internet Marketing is not a miracle marketing strategy ? competition... Read More
The evolution of web development parallels the model of technology... Read More
I talk with so many people who have small businesses... Read More
There is an ongoing debate about web copy. Some say... Read More
Rosalind wants to share her inspirational poetry with a wider... Read More
No matter what browser you may want to use, you... Read More
1. Address your targeted audience on your business site. Example:... Read More
Fantastico is a 3rd-party cPanel add-on and can be purchased... Read More
Even though the Internet has been around for a long... Read More
You've decided to create a website to market your products... Read More
1) Word of Mouth The single most powerful form of... Read More
An interesting eCommerce success factor that isn't precisely overlooked, but... Read More
Getting a Targeted Visitor to a website is a waste... Read More
Recently I was reviewing the keyword specific conversion rate data... Read More
I am just a learner who likes to delve in... Read More
Your business website is a critical aspect of being able... Read More
So what do you do if need to get a... Read More
Web sites are not just places to sell things; they... Read More
Building a website and getting it online is easy. Driving... Read More
In this day and age most businesses consider having their... Read More
That's right. Your method, behavior and strategy you are now... Read More
A website provides invaluable advantages for businesses who have one.7... Read More
Recently I was reviewing the keyword specific conversion rate data... Read More
So you've decided to start an online work at home... Read More
Losing website sales and traffic is sometimes simply a case... Read More
1. Many people are not getting good or complete advice.... Read More
Internet Marketing is not a miracle marketing strategy ? competition... Read More
Go to any internet marketing forum you want these days... Read More
Here's something you may never have thought of before:If I... Read More
You have seen those web pages where they have the... Read More
Is Your Web Site an Expense or an Investment?Why don't... Read More
You want to give your site's visitors a way to... Read More
Simply ensuring your website is accessible to screen reader users... Read More
Having an eye catching website is great, but are you... Read More
How many Web Sites did you stumble over telling you... Read More
If your company own one or more stores, you might... Read More
The popular search engine Google indexes over 8 billion websites.... Read More
A lot has changed in the way sites are optimized... Read More
A website is like an information flow, with you as... Read More
Web Development |