On Sat, 24 Jan 2004 16:28:53 -0500, salty_dogs <sa********@hotmail.com>
wrote:
i have a site that works well in ie6 for the pc. but i've also seen it
(don't have a mac) with ie for mac and safari. both of these browsers
produce different and unwanted results.
the biggest problem is this:
i wanted a particular look for the text, so i used images instead of html
text. instead of using a different image for each state, i use a
'background' image. depending on the link state, they change their
position
and anything outside the div is hidden. (overflow:hidden.) the idea (and
its
not mine) is that instead of loading a separate image for each state, the
background image is all that is needed, it just changes position and the
part outside the div is hidden.
if anyone cares to look... www.momeara.com comments are welcome. please
consider this if you respond... html/css is new for me and i suspect that
its kind of hackered coding.
I'm viewing the site as intended in IE 6 on a PC, and also with Opera.
Oh man oh man... what a mess...
I'm taking into account you're new at this. It's not too late to save you.
Cue the "Accessibility Eye For The Javascript Guy" theme music...
1) You are using an image for text. Now, ok, it's a graphics site, and
there is a lower likelihood that someone with images turned off is going
to have much value with your site. But one big problem is that the text is
awfully small, and in IE you can't resize the image to be larger. So
there's a big readability issue there. Also, when the search spiders come
to your site, what text will they have to catalog your site? Using images
for text is simply A Bad Idea.
2) Images sometimes fail to load. When they do, what have you provided?
With background images, there's nothing. When images are content - as text
is - you really have to provide some sort of meaningful alt text. Which
means you need to put them in the HTML as images. Putting content in a
background is using the background-image property to do something it's not
intended to do, and that is also A Bad Idea.
3) When I click on a link, a new window pops up (which makes a lot of
users run away by itself) and there's no address bar or anything anymore.
Why do you need to do this? I liked my address bar... Seriously, popups
and removing browser features - say it with me - A Bad Idea.
Take a look in comp.infosystems.
www.authoring.html for my rant in the
"different pages for different screen resolutions" thread. It's too long
to repost here. Try Google if your server doesn't have it.
I can tell you're a quite good artist. Visually, on IE on a PC, your
design is attractive and displays your work well. But you're getting your
results by working against how many browsers work - browsers which follow
the specifications far more closely than IE on a PC. Would you do your
sketches on wax paper with tempera? Of course not, that would be pushing
against the way the materials of your art are designed to work. That's
essentially why these design errors are negatively affecting your site.
These structures you've sketched - they are built on a foundation, that's
why they are standing and habitable. Sadly, your javascript, which is best
compared to the wallpaper or utilities in the building, has taken
preference over the solid structure of good HTML. If an architect chose to
ignore the basics, the house would come tumbling down - as you're seeing
in other browsers. It comes off like a master electrician tried to build a
house - sure the wiring is sound, but what good is that when the roof
caves in?
As someone else said in the thread I cited, in web page design the user
dictates the size of the canvas. Plus a lot of other parameters - most of
which your design takes for granted will be the same as on your computer.
You need to understand that your problems with the way the page is being
rendered lie at a more basic level than simple positioning.
Hate to break it to you, but in my opinion the design needs to be
re-thought. By focusing so hard on this stylized design effect with so
little real knowledge of HTML and CSS (by the way, I recommend htmldog.com
as a good starting point in learning how this stuff should work), you've
put the cart before the horse. Try to do as much without images as you
can. Use background images only for stuff that isn't content on the page.
Then apply the script to a page that will work across platforms and
browsers.
Maybe I'm wrong, maybe some genius can suggest something that will make it
work. I hope so. In the meantime - is it possible to come up with an
alternate plan that uses no javascript at all?
Be prepared to lose the effect if what you'll get in return is a more
functional page. And it may be possible to make it happen in the way you
like, but that has to be added to a page design that works.
Start with the basics, don't bite off more than you can chew. Simple is
better, less is more.