My Latest developerWorks Article is Live: ECMA-262, 5th Edition

ECMA-262, 5th Edition. The standard published under the dry title ECMA-262, 5th Edition hereafter referred to as ES5, is the latest version of the ECMAScript specification. ECMAScript is the standard upon which JavaScript—the single most important language on the web today—is built. Because the language also serves as the basis for Adobe ActionScript in addition […]

How To Make a Web Site the Modern Way. Part 14: Formatting, Shorthand, Resets and Organization

We continue with our examination of CSS with some real basics- formatting, writing rules, organization and the like. Nothing groundbreaking, but the basics are important in any endeavor, so here they are. Formatting During development I format my CSS with selectors on one line and then each property on its own line. The declarations are […]

HTML5: What You Should Be Using Right Now

Continuing our examination of HTML5, this time we’ll take a slightly deeper look at the state of HTML5 support in browsers. We’ll step through several major features, examine the technical hurdles in place, identify the level of browser support and finally provide some recommendations on whether or not to pull the trigger with that shiny […]

How To Make a Web Site the Modern Way. Part 13: The Cascade/CSS Specificity

One of the most important things in CSS is understanding the way rules are inherited and applied in the browser. This is one of those things that many developers “get” intuitively but don’t necessarily understand at a granular level. There’s actually an algorithm, so if you’re stumped, you can actually count it out. It works […]

How To Make a Web Site the Modern Way. Part 12: Cascading Style Sheets

After a long break, I’m finally back with the long-awaited CSS portion of this little series. In this article I’ll go over some core concepts. Next post I’ll outline one poorly understood, but vital part of CSS. More posts full (yes, full) of tips, tricks and best practices will follow. Core concepts CSS is a […]