html/css coding

Although the latest browsers provide good support for HTML 5 and CSS3 there are still a number of display and behavioural variances that occur with various elements and css styling, particularly with Windows Explorer browsers. Subsequently it is our practice to test coding mark-up in all the popular browsers to ensure reliable visual representation.

Also we endeavour to use only mark-up and styling conventions that have solid cross browser support and are reasonably backward compatible. For backward compatibility checking we use Adobe Browser Lab that provides access to a number of older browsers. However there are limitations as to backward compatibility and our personal preference is to stop at Windows Explorer 9 (service pack 2) and one version back of each of the current version of the other major browsers.

Given newer browsers provide self-update features and earlier browser versions are susceptible to security issues the need for backward compatibility is declining to some degree as more users stay up-to-date to safeguard and maintain their internet security.

our approach to html & css coding practice

Our coders use comments strategically throughout both html and css documents to organise and explain sections. Over the years we have found the practice of stepping in code to provide a visual distinction more a hindrance than a help, particularly on larger documents with a large number of nested elements. Using start and end comments coupled with spacing between sections we feel provides a more efficient code layout to work with and makes the inclusion of programming sections or interspersed programming logic much more manageable.

At all times our goal is to use the least amount of code possible while concurrently organising the code into logical groupings so if need be can be moved within the code structure so as to facilitate assistive technologies while maintaining consistent visual appearances. An example would be that of the main menu where on a main page of the site or section would be near the top of the coding page but placed towards the bottom for subsequent pages so the page's main content is read sooner by screen readers.

javascript and jquery

Jquery just keeps improving over the years and has proven to be a very reliable coding resource for consistency between browsers.

For this reason coupled with Jquery's extensive preconfigured library we prefer to use Jquery where possible as first choice for Javascript functionally.