What is CSS or Cascading Style Sheets?
Web developers first developed CSS (or Cascading Style Sheets) in 1997 as a means to identify the feel and look of their Web pages. It was aimed to let the web developers split the content and design so the HTML could carry out more of the task that it was initially based on, the markup of content, without worrying about the design and layout.
It was in the year 2000 when CSS finally gained its popularity. This was the time when Web browsers started utilizing more than just the fundamental aspects of CSS. Nowadays, however, all modern Web browsers support all of CSS level 1, a big chunk of CSS level 2 and several features of the 3rd CSS level.
There are some designers who do not use CSS when doing Web development and design, but their number has significantly decreased in the past years. For this reason, it is important for a web developer or designer – or those who wish to become one – to gain knowledge about the basics of CSS in pretty much the same way that they know about HTML.
Cascading Style Sheets are significant tools for Web developers. The style sheets are used in coming up with good layout technical specifications. In addition to this, a style sheet is also useful because it is one way of communicating with the Web browser in terms of how the document is to be rendered so that people can view it properly.
Imagine water hitting rocks in a waterfall and you will get an idea of what the cascade in CSS is all about. When water hits the rocks in a river or waterfall, only the rocks that are in the bottom will absolutely affect the water flow. This is also how it works with Web style sheet cascade,
For each Web page, there is always one dedicated style sheet. And this is true even for those that were not styled by the designer. There are always user agent style sheets or default style sheets that show up in a page, especially if there are no specific instructions given. However, if the designer chooses a design, it is always important to give instructions as to which style should be prioritized.
Aside from helping web developers and designers come up with highly stylized Web pages, CSS is also useful for styling one's XML and XHTML markup. It is likewise utilized by Web developers in defining the way Web pages are provided to come out when viewed by people in other forms of media, like how it should appear when used for a slide show projector.
CSS is a very important Web development and design tool because it helps designers come up with specific tones and moods for the site they are creating. Although it is a little bit more difficult than HTML, it is still the best option for Web designers to choose if they want to come up with a style or Web site look that their clients will like.