My Search for the Ultimate Stylesheet

03/01/2016

This page is made up of several files, but it does not
contain a JavaScript file. JavaScript is the programming
language of the Web. Many web pages rely heavily on
JavaScript, and they may upload several files to your
computer. Me, I like to ask before I run a program on your
computer. Seems rude, not to mention presumptuous, just to
barge in and tinker.

I write this blog in a text file and enter HTML tags when I
need them. I generated the cascading stylesheet in the same
text editor. I decided what look and feel I liked by loading
these files into my browser.

A friend who read my last post sent me a link to several
simple css schemes. I say schemes because they consist of
several files. One was 44 files, and the other included 4
JavaScript files, 4 font files, and 132 css files. Neither
had the documentation in the archive. One had the link to
the on-line documentation. I was daunted.

This page has one css file. You can see it at
http://www.dwe-accounting.com/blog/stylesheets/blog.css. It
has several weaknesses:

– It does not address the multitude of differences among browsers and
versions of browsers.
– It may not render well in your mobile phone.
– It won’t impress your friends.

On the other hand, it is just three files. It has the same
look and feel as the other pages at DWE-Accounting.com. It
shows clear navigation around the site. It took no time to
load and render. It does not expose your machine to viral
threats.

Recently, the Amazon daily deal (books for Kindle, sold
cheap) was a book on search engine optimization, or how to
get noticed on the World Wide Web. I bought it. I read it. I
learned about tracking users’ eye movements while they
surfed the Web. I learned that no one really understands
Google’s search algorithms. I decided to Ask Google.

Google in fact has some pretty simple guidance for the web
author. It just comes down to this: Write well. Outline your
work before you write and use heading levels according to
that outline. Have clear titles. Organize your web site well
and name your files and folders simply and related to the
content.

In other words, keep it simple. I’m not chess grand master
Aron Nimzowitsch; I don’t play for complexity.

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