Course Syllabus
In addition to the material presented below, you are invited to take a look at our class overview pages. Here are the topics and tentative reading assignments for each week of the class:
Week One
Topics
- Brush up on CSS validation
- Solve CSS validation problems
- DOCTYPEs and DOCTYPE switching
Reading
- W3C CSS Validator FAQ
- Validation: Does it Matter?, by Owen Briggs
- Picking a Rendering Mode, by Eric Meyer
Week Two
Topics
- Practice and apply principles of specificity and inheritance
- Learn what liquid design is all about
- Apply liquid design principles to (X)HTML markup using CSS
Reading
- Selectors, Chapter 5, CSS2 Specification
- The Cascade, Section 6.4, CSS2 Specification
- What is Liquid Design, by Nick Wilson
- Liquid Design for the Web, by Adrian Roselli
Week Three
Topics
- Learn the use and importance of link-related pseudo-classes
- Practice styling both text and image hyperlinks on an (X)HTML Web page/site
- Create a menu for an (X)HTML Web page/site
Reading
- The link pseudo-classes:
:linkand:visited, Section 5.11.2, CSS2 Specification - The dynamic pseudo-classes:
:hover,:active, and:focus, Section 5.11.3, CSS2 Specification - Project 4, Bringing Hyperlinks to Life, Eric Meyer on CSS, pp. 79-94
- Eric Meyer on Project 4
- Project 5, How to Skin a Menu, Eric Meyer on CSS, pp. 95-116
- Eric Meyer on Project 5
Week Four
Topics
- Explore various media-specific styling techniques
- Consider best approach to print-specific styles
- Create a print stylesheet for your class Web site
Reading
- Media Types, Chapter 7, CSS2 Specification
- Project 6, Styling for Print, Eric Meyer on CSS, pp. 117-141
- Eric Meyer on Project 6
Week Five
Topics
- Learn various CSS methods for two- and three-column layouts
- Apply a two- or three-column layout using CSS
Reading
- Project 9, Multicolumn Layout, Eric Meyer on CSS, pp. 185-210
- Eric Meyer on Project 9
- BlueRobot Layout Reservoir, by (for reference)
- Glish's CSS Techniques, (for reference)
- The Noodle Incident's Little Boxes (for reference)
Week Six
Topics
- Apply concepts learned throughout the course to a Web page
- Select an existing Web page to apply what we have learned in the class. Convert the page using concepts learned during the class. Page must include:
- Valid (X)HTML and CSS
- Consistent styles
- Liquid design
- Hyperlink and menu styles
- Separate print styles
- Multicolumn layout
Reading
- Project 1, Converting an Existing Page, Eric Meyer on CSS, pp. 1-32
- Eric Meyer on Project 1
- Web Page Reconstruction with CSS, by Christopher Schmitt