What is CSS?
54
What is CSS?
CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheet. It is a type of language used primarily to format the presentation of a web site, forum or other type of Internet-based address. It is a type of markup language and works hand-in-hand with HTML or XHTML to display a given site. It basically divides the document's contents with the document's style. This way you do not need to waste web page space explaining how the viewer should see it. This makes the loading of a web site much simpler, faster and easier for each browser than it is with just reading HTML itself.
CSS Code Example: Setting a Background Image
<style type="text/css">
body {background-image:url('paper.gif')}
</style>What does CSS do?
When you code a single web page, you have to do two primary things: You have to add the design and you have to content. Once you have the design, then you fill in the content. Normally, with HTML, you simply do both on the same page which can lead to tone long web page document. Now, with CSS, you create a single CSS document that each HTML page refers to for its display style. So, those HTML pages are filled with strictly content instead of both aspects.
CSS utilizes a hierarchy of design concepts read from top to bottom. A single web page refers to this CSS document then displays its contents in the format designated by it. Depending on the type of page being shown, CSS can be changed in ways from page to page based on how you link to it and how you code it into the HTML coding. In some cases, an advanced web user can create their own CSS pages for web sites to use and completely overwrite a web site's style sheet.
How can CSS help you?
CSS makes things easier for every web designer. Imagine being a web page for a second. Not only do you have to display content, you might also have to display how that content is formatted on a given page. If every single page in a 100 page web site has to read the same code per page, does that not take up a lot of space and make it harder to be coded? With a single CSS document uploaded to a web server, those 100 pages all read it, display the content the way it needs to be and saves the actual web page documents from being used for other purposes.
PrintShare it! — Rate it: up down flag this hub
