John - I think Rick hit the mark with his comments. I would only add that
Usability isn't so much of a skill - as an understanding of user experience
- based on study and experience.
CSS vs Tables is not an issue of Usability - But perhaps Accessibility. And
in my opinion - if you correctly code your pages - Tables shouldn't affect
Accessibility either. (Unless we are talking about SEO accessibility, then
that is a different discussion all together... But still a minor point in
my view.)
I layout my pages in CSS. But I use tables for all my tabular/columned data.
That is what they were designed for - and they have specific tags to assist
Accessibility. (table head, table body, caption, etc)
When it comes to forms - Personally - I generally use tables there as well -
although depending on the length of the form - I could use CSS. (Again, I
personally find CSS a pain for 2 column data in a form though - and avoid
the headache if possible - but that probably speaks to my css knowledge...)
I believe - for forms you should technically be using Label tags for your
inputs rather than columns and table data cells.
>From w3.org:
<LABEL for="firstname">First name:
<INPUT type="text" id="firstname" tabindex="1">
</LABEL>
And through your CSS you can modify how it lays out...
To make your Boss happy - just make sure you use text equivalents and
descriptions for all your labels, form elements and images. (Names, Alts,
Captions, etc.)
It's good coding practice and something I know everyone who posts to house
of fusion does on every page they code. *Cough* *Cough* Right Everyone?
*cough*
- Nick
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