Forever learning
Sometimes I feel like the CSS spec is just a little bit like the C++ language: too big for any mere mortal to hold in their head.
I recently came across a problem faced by a fellow web designer: their cleared element was just clearing too much. This was a relatively original problem and, moreover, fell into that category of “‘works’ in IE, but not the others”. It turned out, of course, that it’s actually an IE bug, seemingly working because it was caused by one of those ‘non-intuitive’ aspects of CSS.
Eventually, I tracked down the problem, came up with a workaround, and verified it via the spec. All well-and-good: I actually added a tiny percentage of knowledge to my understanding of CSS. No matter how long you’ve been laying out elements, experimenting with floats, and mastering all the various browser hacks, you can still come across a ‘blind-spot’ in your understanding until you really know that spec inside and out. All 405 pages of it.
Taking a little bit of humble-pie, re-reading the documentation, and reinforcing that skill-set is such a useful exercise that it’s become a driving factor behind this site.
Comments
Five Minute Argument said:
Thanks very much for the feedback, Erika. Apologies for the lack of 'features' here — rest assured, they are being worked on, I’m just concentrating on the content right now. Glad to hear you like it!
Mon 26 Jan 2009 14:19
Seastorm Design said:
I am writing this here because I don’t see any other way to offer feedback: I am loving your work. The five minute arguments are elegant and very helpful explanations of little things that can confound a layout. I think this site is exactly what it needs to be. Erika M