RE: CSS equivalent to the NOBR tag?

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Braden N. McDaniel [mailto:braden@shadow.net]
> Sent: Sunday, September 27, 1998 4:32 PM
> To: Andrew n marshall
> Cc: W3C HTML Mailing List
> Subject: RE: CSS equivalent to the NOBR tag?
    . . .
> I'm not sure if this is true or not. I believe the entities defined for HTML
> are first defined for SGML. If that's the case, then they may also be
> available to XML. I don't know enough about XML at this point to say with
> certainty.

While they are defined in the form of SGML's DTDs, they are not implicit to
every SGML application.  Still that doesn't answer the question about XML.
Although, I would guess from the minimalist intents behind XML, they are not
included in all XML aplications by default.

> I don't think I agree with this. Generally, when you don't want something to
> wrap, it is because the data has some intrinsic property that demands
> continuity. If the characters in use do not reflect this conceptual demand
> for continuity, then I think there is an error in the content analogous to a
> misspelling.
>
> Remember that style sheets are *just suggestions*. The content should not be
> disrupted, with or without the style sheet applied. If text breaks disrupt
> the content, then that is a red flag that style sheets are *not* the place
> to control this sort of thing.

I am not talking about intrinsic properties of the data.  In the examples I
mentioned originally (proper names, titles, and hyperlinks) there are no
>>general<< problems with adding a line break between words.  Is only
>>specific<< 'problems' with regards to certain layouts.

I recognize that style sheets are only suggestions.  My point is there is no
way to even describe this suggestion in CSS.

> Your point about search engines, etc. has some validity, but if software is
> deficient it should be amended. I don't think the solution is to hose our
> content to accommodate buggy software.

Agreed.  But given the state of some parsers....

> > The other HTML element whose layout cannot be defined without
> > this is <CODE>.
>
> I don't understand--CODE is not defined in any HTML specification as
> preserving whitespace.

Then that is my misunderstanding.  Even so, I found a possible alternative
problem for this particular situation: the xml:space attribute.


Andrew n marshall
  student - artist - programmer
    "Everyone a mentor, Everyone a pupil"

Received on Sunday, 27 September 1998 20:04:27 UTC