Introduction

Topics on This Page

What is this tutorial?
What are my qualifications?
Disclaimer

What is this tutorial?

This tutorial is a course in practical HTML, CSS and XHTML coding. It is (hopefully) suitable for both beginners and intermediate web site designers and coders.

Back in the days of older browsers (version 3 and older), HTML books and classes generally concentrated on coding HTML that worked in IE and Netscape. Many of the techniques that were taught were downright incorrect in terms of the HTML standard. Hardly anyone cared.

With the arrival of HTML 4.0 and CSS, there has been a shift in attitude. Most books and classes now teach "valid" HTML code — HTML code that satisfies the standard. Unfortunately, most of these don't offer much advice about what really works in actual browsers.

This tutorial tries to teach valid HTML while offering a lot of advice about what does and doesn't work in today's and yesterday's browsers.

What are my qualifications?

For several years, I was a TA in a number of HTML classes offered at ZDU/SmartPlanet. I've learned a lot about which topics are easily learned by most students, and about which topics cause a lot of stumbling blocks. By having to critique many, many web pages created by these students, I've seen a lot of correct and incorrect code, and I've seen how that code appears in a number of different browsers.

I did a little bit of web page coding back in the early days, using Mosaic and Netscape 2. I didn't get really involved until the days of the version 3 browsers. So I know quite a bit about the foibles of version 3 browsers as well as more recent browsers.

I do have my blind spots. I've never worked with Macs or with Unix/Linux machines, so I'm only aware of a few of the issues that come up with these platforms. I've worked primarily with IE and Netscape. I've used Opera a little, but not enough to know much about special problems with it. I've never used WebTV, and I know very little about the problems that arise with that. So this tutorial concentrates on IE and Netscape versions on the PC.

Disclaimer

I've read a number of books and web sites that deal with HTML and CSS. I've seen a lot of errors in both the books and the web sites: you should never accept all of the information in any book or web site at face value.

I'm sure my site is no different. I've tried to be as accurate as possible, but I'm sure there are errors.