Guide Note

CSS is a term that stands for cascading style sheets. It is a kind of coding language that is most often used in conjunction with HTML to make web pages. While HTML denotes specific elements within a web page such as a table or an image, CSS is responsible for styles that will be used across several web pages, potentially across an entire web site. These elements can are typically relating to fonts, colors, sizing, and various other aspects relating to layout and presentation. CSS is useful for creating templates that can be easily distibuted, implemented, and changed. If, for example, a site were to be visually redesigned, making changes to the CSS documents would be a much easier way to implement the new design than editing every individual page on the site.

Fast Facts

1. CSS has existed in other forms since the 1970s
2. Developed by W3C
3. Supported by most major internet Browsers

CSS is certainly useful to web designers, but people who aren't prefessionals in the site creation industry can use it too. CSS can be applied to personal sites such as blogs or homesites, allowing for a consistent look across pages and postings. Users of some social networks, notable MySpace, can customize the appearance of their profiles using basic CSS. If you would like more information on this please see our step-by-step guide, How to Customize Your MySpace Profile.