What Can CSS Do?

Cascading stylesheets (CSS) is a lot more than simply a method for changing the look of text in your documentation. It can certainly be used to modify text in all kinds of ways (e.g., size, font type, color), but it can do a whole lot more, including changing the presentation and behavior of the following elements.

  • Element sizing (e.g. put a maximum width on images)
  • Element positioning (e.g., specify that a text box should display to the left of the regular flow of content)
  • Link attributes (e.g., add page numbering for links in print-based output)
  • Cursor manipulation
  • And much more

One of the best ways to truly appreciate the power of CSS is to visit http://www.csszengarden.com. This website contains text and links that let you apply different CSS files to the content. Each time you select a different CSS file, the look and feel of the page changes dramatically.