[compute] RE: [Sigia-l] Web Standards and I.A.s

[Tom Trottier]

On Friday, April 09, 2004 at 9:39,
 <PTrebukov at SpencerStuart.com> wrote:

>   Tom,
> 
>     I absolutely agree. You can put all classes in one file and write
> everything in the way convenient for you as IA.
>     No questions about this. 
>     There is another problem here. Styles (CSS) are not about content or
> IA. Styles are about presentation. One of the main 
>     goal of CSS is: Separate content from presentation. CSS syntax and
> techniques were designed to help designers and developers
>     to separate content from presentation, not to connect content to
> presentation.
>     It's not a question can you use styles for AI needs or not. You can.
> Question is how it will affect your project and your work.
>     Just couple of examples:
>       --- You probably will have to create and enforce naming convention
> so names of your classes will be recognizable (e.g. ai-myclass1).

Yes.
>       --- Coding rules should be developed for CSS coding as well as for
> HTML coding.

Rules or guidelines.

>       --- Spec for each page should include section dedicated to IA
> needs so developers will use your classes no matter what (I'm sure

each page? I would envision a CSS style for every piece of metadata in 
a single common style sheet.

The data presentation, web interfaces, and so on need to reflect the 
users' needs and expectations and the business flow, as well as the 
data's meaning in the database. It involves much more than CSS since 
inputs are expected and programming is needed.

CSS styles for particular metadata can serve as a useful standard 
presentation base that would help identify for the user what kind of 
data is displayed, but I would expect many overrrides for particular 
presentations of data based on space, use, and other considerations.

>           you familiar with section of Christopher Schmitt's book where
> selectors described. And you know that class is just one of 7 possible 
>           selectors and class is the only one type of selectors which
> make sense for you as AI).

There are actually 8 selectors. IE just supports 7.

>       --- How to check proper usage of your classes? Class "Person"
> should be used only for elements related to person info.
>           What about other places where red border required? It's very
> easy to use your classes improperly.

Yep.It's easy enough for developers to create and apply their own 
styles for new purposes.

>           You have to check this during the development and during the
> testing, so it's not only technical problem. It's also 
>           an organizational problem.

CSS is a tool for developers. I wouldn't constrain style overrides 
much, but I do think names are important and should be used correctly.

>       --- What about maintenance? Six month later graphic designer will
> change border color on the page #339, so technically
>           for this page you class is not necessary anymore. But
> developer must not remove your class from HTML codes, 
>           developer must use techniques to override your class. Is it
> technical problem? In most of cases not at all.
>           But it's could be serious organizational problem.

That's why we have version control. It can be useful for CSS as well as 
PHP, C, C++, ...
 
>      And much more. Probably it's a good topic for another discussion,
> but how it's related to Information Architecture? 

Presentation of data is more "peripheral" to IA concerns. Styles can 
provide a common view for users and developers.

tOM

------- Quidquid latine dictum sit altum viditur -------
   ,__@	tOM Trottier +1 613 231-6115
 _-\_<,		758 Albert St.,Ottawa ON Canada K1R 7V8
(*)/'(*)		N45.412 W75.714
<a href="http://Abacurial.com">Abacurial Information Architecture</a>
---------------
I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too 
much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it.
-Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826)