Old Web VS New Web

before i begin sorry if this message is in this room its just that i couldn't find any "general / all round - i need to message someone out there for help" room..so if this is wrong room please forgive me for making the error....( i posted this in www-collaboration@w3.org before this room then someone recommended i post it here - so someone is actually listening-which makes me feel a bit better)


To whom ever may take the time to read this long question/explanation


I am almost 22 years old and i have been working (tinkering) with the web since I was younger (14,15,16???) basically since Hotdog(one of the first HTML editor came out)

I have come to know HTML (or the old web as i now call it) basically off the back of my hand and could code it in my sleep.

People say that I am good at building website (althou from a developers point of view i am never happy with any of my work as there is so many ways to produce a website  in and never enough time or money to do it in.)

The point im getting at in this message is, all my time(week days and week ends, i virtually eat, sleep and drink web) - I have put into web(from Flash, ASP, JS, etc) and become (or at least hope so) good at web - the one thing that I adore / love beyond anything even probably more then my mother(god forbid she ever hears that).

I received an email the other day - from someone that will remain anonymous - who said that my website does not meet the W3 standards (validator.w3.org i think the link is)


After doing some research in this subject  - I have come to find out that basically all i know about the web no longer exists or is so different for what is was. (sure IE and NS displays it fine...but I want that something more...that "im doing a good job/meeting a standard" kinda feeling in your gut ) 

I have come to find that the new web is using CSS to layout information and images - and that tables are now not being used - im feeling very lost and very upset over this (not because of change - dont get me wrong i love change so long as I have some really good examples as to how to change to the new way)

Are tables really not being used any more? the reason why i ask is because when working with database items you do not know how long something is when returned and if you use CSS with absolute positioning it appears (only from my research, i haven't done it  in practice) it will over lap and that is no good =(

Do not get me wrong with my next sent but I dislike the examples that the W3C give out - they are terrible in my opinion, they are so scientific and lack any real world scenarios. I lik the W3C and I am glad that they exist and that people are making the web technology easier - I just wish they would give proper tutorials instead of just throwing a whole heap of specifications at us and then expecting me to follow without teaching me - like i said please do not take my previous statement the wrong way as insulting its just my insignificant opinion, and yes i have looked around the web for tutorials - they they dont really get into the guts of each topic, sadly. 

also this XML and XSLT - is really confusing is XSLT the same as CSS?(from my research im sure it isn't - I wish i had working examples (that was how i originally learnt the web - with hotdog - and fiddling around with the code then ripping appart other peoples code when i had a web connection))

I asked some of the other web developers I know (2 others) but they were not much help they say why bother most people have IE and if it works in that then it work - me being a stubborn taurus wont settle for that as i know - how do i put this into word -there has to be a personal responsibility to product good web pages, if you do not your work/effort is not worth while - I WANT to produce them to good standards and say "hey I did a good job"! plus being in australia you are not exactly surrounded by web developers (which is a good and bad thing).

Does any one have any working examples?
Does anyone else feel as lost as me?

Could someone please help me (an person who feels like an old time geezer)?

I could tell you a whole heap of other stuff if you are still reading this far down but I wont.

Thank you heaps
Gavin
Abyss