Re: [WSG] "An Objective Look at Table Based vs. CSS Based Design"

[Mordechai Peller]

Neerav wrote: IMHO while the article has some good points, trying to claim that it is an "objective" article is going to far. I'd say it is subjective in some a parts especially "Some Things Are Just Easier with Tables" which sounds like he's saying its all too hard I can't be bothered ... In a sense, that is what he said, it should be noted that he was writing from the Devil's Advocate. Andy said in a recent interview: "The biggest problem however, is inertia.... Tableless design is a completely new skill with a 6 to 9 month learning curve. As such, it's much easier for most developers to continue building sites the way they have always done." When Andy says "completely new skill" he falls short of the mark. CSS is a completely different skill, requiring a new way of thinking about layout. With tables we needed to bend the rigid, with CSS we need to conform the flexible. Which is an easier task? Well in many cases it depends, but with Web page layout I'd say the latter. I think it was Michelangelo (though it might have been daVinci) who said regarding sculpture, that the statue was already in the stone--he merely removed the excess.