This resource — Page Design Basics — provides a very simple overview of how to lay out a Web page.
Students new to using CSS often make a mess of it because they do not grasp the utility of DIVs. By introducing these four regions of a Web page, an instructor can help students understand a basic structure that can be created with four DIVs. Font families, colors, and other design elements can be specified independently for each DIV.
For more information about CSS, see the the HTML and CSS Resources page.
Most journalists do not need to become code jockeys — but it can be quite useful to know the basics of the language of the Web: HTML. It’s not hard at all to learn a few basic tags, and with those few you can have the ability to create and format hyperlinks, fix silly errors in a CMS in the newsroom, and understand the underpinnings of a technology you use every day.
I have updated the HTML and CSS Resources page here, with an eye toward keeping it short and simple.
Why not take a moment to look under the hood and see the engine of the Web? Oh, and I have some links to get you up to speed on HTML5 and CSS3 too.
