Joined: 14 Jul 2003 Posts: 1734 Location: Bangor, Maine
Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2005 3:41 pm Post subject:
By forcing the case to be the same, it makes validation easier. Less checking you have to do to ensure that something is valid.
As to the validation itself, there are many levels, and you can pick what you want. I always validate to XHTML Transitional, since XHTML Strict is too picky for me.
My biggest complaint with most of the CSS stuff out there, is people try and rely too much on CSS hacks to make the site look good on all browsers... when you can design a simple, clean CSS driven site that looks good on all browsers, fully validates and doesn't use any hacks. My drop ship site (link in sig) is an example. It looks the same in all browsers, fully validates and uses no hacks. The CSS for it is extremely simple... yet I keep finding dozens of sites showing how to apply hacks to make things work... they aren't needed. _________________ Eric D. Burdo
My drop ship site (link in sig) is an example. It looks the same in all browsers, fully validates and uses no hacks. The CSS for it is extremely simple...
I like the crisp look of your site, but what intrigued me was the way you seem to be using PHP files (including query string) as the external CSS file.
Maybe I live a sheltered life, but I can't remember seeing this before. What's the thinking behind it?
Cheers,
Charlie. _________________ "Before I speak, I have something important to say."
- Groucho Marx
Joined: 14 Jul 2003 Posts: 1734 Location: Bangor, Maine
Posted: Tue Mar 15, 2005 12:24 pm Post subject:
SHHH! It's a secret!
Actually, I use a content management system called TextPattern. That is how they link the CSS dynamically. In theory, you can have a PHP page produce a proper CSS sheet. And even have it do smart things before returning the completed CSS. You just have to return the proper headers in the PHP script. _________________ Eric D. Burdo
TXP does that by default. Everything is database driven, and you have a simple interface. You past your CSS into one "window", and it gets stored in a table. Then it is called at the proper spot in your HTML.
Spiders can read the CSS (and so can people) just like a static CSS file. One nice advantage is that you can offer custom CSS sheets for people, so they can customize the look. Instead of using JavaScript to switch the CSS, you just make a few changes in the PHP and reload the page. _________________ Eric D. Burdo
Spiders can read the CSS (and so can people) just like a static CSS file.
I tried this with your site yesterday and couldn't get to the source of the PHP file. I just tried it again and the downloads worked (they crashed yesterday).
It looks as though one PHP file is being used to create two different external style sheets (for size and colour) by passing a different query. Is this right?
include './config.php';
$nolog = 1;
include $txpcfg['txpath'].'/publish.php';
$s = gps('s');
$n = gps('n');
output_css($s,$n);
?>
The header() portion is the important bit. The rest just pulls the CSS from the table... using TXP's code. A regular MySQL Select statement would work. _________________ Eric D. Burdo
The config.php file just contains the information to access the MySQL database (password, DB name, username, server, etc).
I am not sure how s and n work. I do know they are variables and take in values from the CSS Link in the page... but that is the extent of my knowledge there.
BTW, TXP is fully open source. The above link is for the repository where the source code sits, freely viewable. TXP's main website is: http://www.textpattern.com/ _________________ Eric D. Burdo
Thanks. I think that's dampened my curiosity, somewhat.
Any idea how they are building the path for the second include? Surely that must be in the config include, too. The source of that second include?
Quote:
I am not sure how s and n work. I do know they are variables and take in values from the CSS Link in the page... but that is the extent of my knowledge there.
Blimey - this is beginning to remind me of SBI...
Am I the only person on this earth that cares how these things actually do what they do?
Cheers,
Charlie. _________________ "Before I speak, I have something important to say."
- Groucho Marx
Joined: 14 Jul 2003 Posts: 1734 Location: Bangor, Maine
Posted: Fri Mar 18, 2005 3:05 pm Post subject:
I don't care as much anymore... as long as it works. I kept finding myself digging to much into the technical aspect, and I never created content... so I finally had to break myself of that mindset. I started using a CMS for my sites. While I don't generate as much content as I should be at this point, I generate more now than I did... _________________ Eric D. Burdo
Joined: 09 Nov 2003 Posts: 86 Location: Langley, BC, Canada
Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2005 2:17 am Post subject:
Eric,
Thanks very much for pointing out TXP. From my brief look, it looks like it does a lot of what I've been looking for in a CMS - at a price I can't argue with
Do you write all your content yourself or do you hire some of it out? I'm intrigued by the various security levels that can be granted to authors and I'm wondering if you've had any experience - good or bad - with letting writers upload their own content.
Joined: 14 Jul 2003 Posts: 1734 Location: Bangor, Maine
Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2005 3:29 am Post subject:
I am in the process of hiring out some of my content. When I do, I don't give the writers access to my site. I have them email me the content and I publish it myself.
I have heard on the TXP forums that having logins for people (with different permissions) works very well. Currently, I just have two. Me and my wife, both have full permissions.
TXP is hitting RC3 right now... so if you don't mind waiting a bit, that should become v 1.0 and it has a LOT of nice new features. Although installing RC1 and then upgrading is pretty easy, and would give you a chance to play with the system some. _________________ Eric D. Burdo
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Actually, I use a content management system called TextPattern. That is how they link the CSS dynamically. In theory, you can have a PHP page produce a proper CSS sheet. And even have it do smart things before returning the completed CSS. You just have to return the proper headers in the PHP script.
