Adapting to Web Standards: CSS and Ajax for Big Sites

Adapting to Web Standards: CSS and Ajax for Big Sites

by Christopher Schmitt, Kimberly Blessing, Rob Cherny, Meryl K. Evans, Kevin Lawver, Mark Trammell
Released December 2007
Publisher(s): New Riders
ISBN: 9780321549785

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Book description

After learning the language of design, how does one effectively use standards-based technologies to create visually strong Web sites? The full-color Adapting to Web Standards: CSS and Ajax for Big Sites gives developers a peek into the process of the best designers in the world through the work of high profile, real-world Web sites that made them famous. The book focuses on deconstructing these top-tier large-scale sites with particular attention given to deconstructing CSS.

Table of contents

  1. Copyright
  2. Acknowledgements
  3. About the Authors
  4. 1. Constructing Standards-Based Web Sites
    1. Introduction
      1. What Are Web Standards?
        1. Basic Benefits of Web Standards
      2. Web User Interfaces
      3. User Interface Planning
        1. Web Site Planning Today
          1. The Keys to Web Standards
          2. Software Architecture Patterns
        2. A New Approach: UI Architecture Plans
    2. 1. Coding the Front End
      1. Where To Start
      2. Document Structure: Markup Language Choices
        1. HTML vs. XHTML
          1. Pros and Cons of HTML vs. XHTML
          2. Transitional vs. Strict Flavors
        2. DOCTYPE Switching and Browser Rendering Modes
          1. DOCTYPE Presence
          2. Determining the Browser Rendering Mode
          3. Oops, the Wrong Rendering Mode Broke the Page
          4. Legacy Markup and DOCTYPE Switching
          5. The Boxes Were Measured All Wrong
          6. The Table Gap
        3. To Validate or Not To Validate Markup
        4. Content and Structure: Design to Execution
          1. Taking Inventory and Templates
          2. Naming Conventions for IDs and Layout Blocks
          3. IDs Names Are Unique in a Document
          4. Semantic Markup To Give Meaning
          5. POSH, or Plain Old Semantic HTML
          6. Markup Wrap Up
    3. 2. Presenting Cascading Style Sheets
      1. How Many CSS Files?
        1. CSS File and Linking Strategies
          1. Site Section and Directory-Based CSS Files
          2. Merging Multiple CSS files
          3. Conditional Comments for CSS and Internet Explorer
          4. Conventions for Files and Selector Case
      2. Microformats for Conventions, Meaning, and Utility
        1. Microformats and POSH
          1. Pulling Information from a Page with Microformats
      3. Too Much Class
        1. Classic Classitis
        2. Curing Classitis
          1. Two Classes for the Price of One
      4. CSS File Content Structure
      5. Alternative Media CSS
        1. A Print Style Sheet Example
      6. Presentation Set Free
    4. 3. Integrating the Behavior Layer
      1. Modern Ajax Methods
        1. Modern, Progressive, and Unobtrusive Scripting
      2. JavaScript Requirements: File and Function Inventory
        1. Bad Script, Bad
          1. Better Scripts
        2. Unobtrusive Improvements
          1. External Files and Dynamic Hookups
          2. No Proprietary Code
        3. Pop-Up Windows
          1. Adding Event Handlers and Scripting with Class
        4. Dynamic Elements and innerHTML
      3. JavaScript Behavior with CSS and Presentation
        1. Large Sites and Support for Multiple OnLoads
      4. Custom Scripts vs. Frameworks
        1. Example of jQuery Framework Code
        2. Frameworks Make Ajax Easy
        3. Frameworks in a Nutshell
    5. 4. Developing Web Software Applications
      1. Web Apps Stuck in the Past
        1. Software Quality and Inventory Analysis
          1. Web Application Development Problems
          2. Evaluation Criteria
          3. Can Applications Be Updated?
      2. Guidelines, Rules, and Web Standards
        1. Rules To Code By
        2. Better Forms with Modern Markup
        3. Server-Side Frameworks and Template Tools
          1. Simple Steps to Better Server-Side Scripts
          2. The Problem
          3. Beware Server-Generated Code
      3. Microsoft ASP.NET Framework
        1. ASP.NET Data Output
        2. ASP.NET HTML Controls, Web Controls, and More
          1. Server-Side Collaboration with UI Designers
      4. Content Management
        1. Baseline Content Management
        2. Content Management and Clean Content
        3. Content Management Output and Modules
        4. Content Management Templates
        5. WYSIWYG for Content Authors
          1. Browser-Based Editing
          2. Editor Configuration
        6. Third Parties
      5. How To Approach Web Apps
    6. 5. The Circle of Standards
      1. Organizational Inertia
      2. Introducing the Circle
        1. The Standards Manager
        2. Standards Creation and Documentation
          1. The Full Glass Scenario
          2. The Glass Half Full Scenario
          3. The Empty Glass Scenario
        3. Training and Communication
        4. The Quality Review Process
      3. Setting the Wheel in Motion
        1. Keeping Up Momentum
        2. Conclusion
  5. 2. Case Studies
    1. Practice Doesn’t Make Perfect
      1. Communication
      2. Adaptation
      3. Persistence
      4. Trials and Tribulations
    2. 6. EverythingTori.com
      1. Backstage
        1. Digging into the World of Tori Amos
        2. Putting the Design Process to Work
        3. Building the Wireframes
        4. Designing the Site
        5. Behind the CSS Scenes
      2. Launching the Site
      3. Meet the Designer, Philip Fierlinger
      4. End Song
    3. 7. AOL.com
      1. Setting Your Team Up for Success and Avoiding Failure
        1. What Went Wrong
          1. Rowing Through the Swirl
          2. Communication Is Everything
          3. Battling the Waterfall: Getting Involved Early
          4. Treating Web Development as a Craft
      2. Designing for Performance
        1. Estimating Performance Before You Write a Line of Code
        2. Performance Concerns
        3. Interview: David Artz
        4. Repeatable Steps
      3. System Design and Architecture
        1. The Buddy System
        2. Get the Stubs Out
        3. Thinking About Workflow
      4. Front-End Wizardry
        1. Making Your Markup Sing with DOCTYPE
          1. What Came Before
          2. DOCTYPE Switching
          3. Semantic Markup
        2. CSS Best Practices
          1. CSS Goes First
          2. One Style to Rule Them All
        3. Accessible CSS
          1. The Document
          2. Initial Styles
          3. The Tricky Bit
        4. Performance in the Real World
          1. Caching
          2. Compression
          3. Reducing Objects
      5. Conclusion
  6. Afterword
    1. Inspiration Never Arrives in a Vacuum
  7. A. Targeting Web Browsers
    1. Web Log Analysis
    2. Modern Web Browsers
    3. Alternative Devices
    4. Company Policy
  8. B. Accessibility
    1. Resources
  9. C. Web Site Performance Tips
    1. A Performance Experiment
      1. The Basic Setup
      2. Merging Files and Moving Scripts
    2. HTTP Compression
  10. D. CSS Selectors Reference
    1. Selectors
  11. Reinventing Yahoo!
    1. An Interview with Jimmy Byrum

Product information

  • Title: Adapting to Web Standards: CSS and Ajax for Big Sites
  • Author(s): Christopher Schmitt, Kimberly Blessing, Rob Cherny, Meryl K. Evans, Kevin Lawver, Mark Trammell
  • Release date: December 2007
  • Publisher(s): New Riders
  • ISBN: 9780321549785