HTML tables to css conversion

[dog]

I've got to write the backend for a site designed by somebody else, and his/her layout is full of tables, spacer images, etc.

Is there a way in Dreamweaver or some other IDE to perform some kind of conversion to css without having to do it manually? (Laziness is a virtue)

 

[cybershark]

Yes in Dreamweaver there is. Convert tables to layers.
But I would advise not doing it that way.
It'll probably take you longer in the long term doing that because Dreamweaver is bound to generate a lot of unnecessary code.

 

[dog]

You're right cybershark, it created a lot of roobish.

 

[sparklehorse]

You're better off doing it manually. CSS will take care of most of the small spacers and whatnot itself. Start with the basic layout of the site with each segment in a different div and adjust from there.

 

[dog]

Ya, that's what I've done.

*To all site designers: please use div tags/css rather than tables for layout, ya bastards.

 

[spiderz]

CSS rulez!
Changing from tables to css drops about 1/4 of space on a template.

 

[ettubrute]

CSS is nice, but... What do you people do when you want a resizeable screen/content page? I'm normally using JavaScript, but not all browsers have it turned on, and then it messes up everything! In such a case, tables are useful!

 

[James]

CSS is nice, but... What do you people do when you want a resizeable screen/content page? I'm normally using JavaScript, but not all browsers have it turned on, and then it messes up everything! In such a case, tables are useful!

CSS supports liquid layouts, they just tricky and often un-nessesary

here some examples
100% Liquid
Comination of Liquid and fixed

 

[ettubrute]

Thanks James. Will study those a bit... and post new questions when necessary!

 

[sparklehorse]

more to read here
http://www.glish.com/css/

 

[dog]

css can be a pain across browsers, especially for things like 100% height backgrounds, but wading through millions of tr and td tags is a nightmare too.

 

[sparklehorse]

and try doing this with tables
http://www.csszengarden.com/

 

[Gunny]

Thx James and sparklehorse, I got some cool new ideas.

 

[kilps]

CSS is nice, but... What do you people do when you want a resizeable screen/content page? I'm normally using JavaScript, but not all browsers have it turned on, and then it messes up everything! In such a case, tables are useful!

Not sure what those links say .. but I just say (for example) top:20%; etc instead of top:200px;