[Zope3-dev] Re: [ZWeb] nzo: just for inspiration

[Shane Hathaway]

On Sun, 23 Mar 2003, Steve Alexander wrote:
> Using tables in HTML to achieve the goal of manipulating pixels relies 
> on the accident of how a graphical browser chooses to lay out tables.

Just like using wood to build a house relies on the accident that wood is
usually sturdy and lasts a long time.  You might say that reality is
purely a series of accidents.  But then you'd be oversimplifying, wouldn't 
you? :-)  Left-to-right, top-to-bottom table layout was quite intentional.

I agree with your point and don't mean to belittle it.  But I really see
CSS tables as only a minor improvement over the existing standard,
bringing along with them a whole lot of new complexity.  It's a parallel 
to the transition from Zope 2 to Zope 3: if Zope 3 is much better but also 
much more complex, Zope 2 might remain more inviting.

> The HTML standard says 
> http://www.w3.org/TR/1998/REC-html40-19980424/struct/tables.html
> 
> ----
> Tables should not be used purely as a means to layout document content 
> as this may present problems when rendering to non-visual media. 
> Additionally, when used with graphics, these tables may force users to 
> scroll horizontally to view a table designed on a system with a larger 
> display. To minimize these problems, authors should use style sheets to 
> control layout rather than tables.
> ----
> 
> I found that last part about scrolling interesting, considering where
> this discussion started :-)

Well, let's hope we can end overlaps, even though W3C seems to prefer 
overlapping to horizontal scrollbars.

Shane