Re: IDs, Classes : could CSS usefully use a third (abstract) concept ?

> 
> 
> On Mar 11, 2005, at 8:22 AM, Ryan Cannon wrote:
> 
> > Also a syntax like @define could allow great interaction with imported 
> > stylesheets. If the format were strict such that the  CSS document  
> > would have to be structured  as
> >
> >  - @definitions
> >  - @imports
> >  - css rules
> >
> >  then perhaps definitions in the originating files could be applied in 
> > the imported files as well, allowing for a very slim way for sites to 
> > achieve different color schemes for each section.
> 
> 
> It is worth noting that this functionality, being client-side, offers 
> abilities that are impossible or highly convoluted server-side. 
> Therefore, @define or similar syntax serves a valuable and practical 
> purpose.
> 
> Some example uses that would be exceedingly difficult server-side:
> 
> 1. An XML-syndicated content provider supplies an accompanying embedded 
> stylesheet that handles layout, sourced from their server and adjusted 
> on occasion to take into account new content styles. The content is 
> included in an XHTML web page on the client, and the author of this 
> webpage would like the syndicated content to match his page's color and 

My impression is that syndication is about the one place in commercial
web technology (although the processing happens outside the web) where
content is more important than styling.  I would hope syndicated 
content would have structural markup and no style sheet.  I might 
expect it to abuse structural markup, but would still not expect it
to be styled.

If the material was styled, I wouldn't expect the syndicator to be 
happy with its being embedded as other than a link or, at a push,
as an object, and I would expect them to be very unhappy about 
the redistributor restyling them.  I would expect a syndicator that
styled their content to require formal approval of any re-styling, which
might then allow them to supply the material pre-styled for the customer.

Received on Saturday, 12 March 2005 10:53:18 UTC