Tables

[izwar]

Im gnna be starting to design my first site in photoshop, and the only basic way i know to get layout how i want is using tables which most ppl do i know, but i does using CSS have a great advantage over tables and i have no idea how to use CSS for layout or even css for anything for that matter.

[deronsizemore]

I would recommend you use div's instead of tables, but it's all personal preference. In the end, the visitor doesn't care if you used talbes, divs, spans, whatever as long as the information is there that they are searching for. For me, I don't think I could build a site in tables again (and I never was that good at it to begin with). I have found that the way my mind thinks about layouts, etc, CSS is perfect for me. I find liquid layouts a little more difficult, but that's just because I normally design fixed width and have little practice for liquid layouts. I think once you get into XHTML/CSS you'll not ever want to go back to tables.

[izwar]

i dont even know how to use or konw wut DIV tags are or how to use CSS for layout, where can i learn this

[deronsizemore]

I learned from visiting sitepoint.com and just through trial and error. My first attempt at CSS layout was terrible, but I learned a lot. Scrapped that design and started a new one.

Another way to learn is to simply tear apart someone elses code. View the Source and view the CSS and see how they did what they did. And if all else fails just post your problem here or any other forum for that matter and ask for help.

http://www.w3schools.com/ is also another good outlet for beginners.

[AmbulanceBlues]

I wanted to make sure I mastered the basics before I started building sites so I bought a SitePoint published book called <I>Build your Own Web Site The Right Way Using HTML & CSS</I> By Ian Lloyd. It's a well written, straight forward book. Lloyd is big into web standards and I've got to think that can only help with SEO later.

[deronsizemore]

Yeah the SitePoint books are pretty good beginner books. Two others that are good are Bulletproof Web Design by Dan Cederholm, and CSS Mastery by Andy Budd and Cameron Moll.