Tables & html Vs. CSS - help!?

[*Lorna*]

Having learnt (what little I know) about building websites from the net itself I've hit a brick wall I keep reading that these Cascading Style Sheets will help load pages quicker and are easier to update, but I'm wondering if they will be necessary for what I'm doing...

This is my homepage at the moment http://www.bustymagroo.co.uk/ and the header/links will be on every other page also. So far, on previous website efforts, I have always wrote out all my html and used tables, which I'm quite content to continue doing - unless CSS will significantly reduce loading times?

If it would be better with CSS does anyone have some dummy guides for it?

Any and all advice greatly appreciated!

[D3mon]

Here's a startup tutorial for CSS: http://www.w3schools.com/css/

For now, you should avoid using one big table for your whole page. In some browsers, this can cause the page to stay blank for a few seconds before showing it. Most readers will move on to another site if they don't see some interesting textual content in the first few seconds

Remember, the ultimate goal for CSS is to seperate style from content. have all your styles in your style sheet and all your content in your .htm/.asp/php files. Try not to add styles into your content - this way when you want to redesign later on, you'll only need to change the style sheet.

Once you get the hang of CSS, you'll most likely drop using tables for layout in preference to CSS methods.

[gohankid77]

I've never used tables for layout (except in my high school "Web Page Design" class last year which taught the students to use things like FONT elements or an excessive use of frames). I was already learning CSS by that time and I knew even more when I first heard that tables for layout was bad. Now I can (usually) implement a simple Web page using CSS only. Thanks to W3Schools' CSS Tutorial which got me started.

Just my 2 useless cents. :P

[*Lorna*]

Thanks for the replies guys It definitely seems that this CSS is the way to go and am away to submerge myself in the pages of W3Schools' CSS Tutorial. I'm sure I'll be fine once I get my head around it...

[Vik]

I totally feel your pain with what your going through Lorna.

I wanted to stay far away from CSS because the thought of having to totally change my way of doing designs was not very appealing. I gave CSS a chance and realized just how versatile I can make my websites now. It is much easier to create (I don't really memorize any of the tags or anything, I just have about 3 CSS books) and are better organized. I like to look at www.csszengarden.com for a pick me up when I don't think CSS is worth doing, it always reminds me that it really is the best way to go for many sites.