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This isn’t the kind of code quality you should launch with
Joe Clark | Sep 22 2007
You shouldn’t have launched the site with HTML this bad. Among other things, a does not take an attribute called ref, comments are delimited by strictly defined and easy-to-get-right characters, you have tons of empty h2 class=”title” elements, you don’t have a print stylesheet (thanks for burning through our expensive coloured ink), you’re styling inside elements, you’ve got so many classes on some divs it’s clear somebody doesn’t understand the cascade, and by God you’re actually still using tables for layout. And you have the temerity to label this nonsense XHTML Strict. No wonder the thing breaks in IE6; the site’s HTML is broken. 43 Folders: The Failed Redesign of September ’07. Think you can fix the problems using your 43 Folders system? That I’d like to see. 5 Comments
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 I’m just relieved that theSubmitted by Merlin Mann on September 22, 2007 - 5:44pm.
I’m just relieved that the server stayed up long enough for you to find this much not to like. :-) Thanks for taking the time to comment, Joe. I can’t promise you we’ll fix everything you don’t care for, but it’s thoughtful (and enthusiastic) input that I’m happy to pass along. »
 Not really about my opinion, you knowSubmitted by joeclark on September 23, 2007 - 5:36am.
It isn’t a question of what I do or don’t like. It’s a question of valid HTML, a yes/no proposition. There isn’t anybody in the field of Web standards who would support this kind of code, or let it out of the house like this. Your dismissal is breezy and fun to read. It’s just great! But it won’t fix your site. Addressing everything I’ve listed, and more, will. »
 Take it up with the Drupal Project, not MerlinSubmitted by mathowie on September 24, 2007 - 5:42pm.
Joe, I too was kind of surprised when another friend launched a great looking site in Drupal. I viewed source trying to figure out what CMS the thing was built with and was shocked to see tables still be used in 2007 for layout. But then I realized it was Drupal and really, Drupal is the one to blame here. It’s a pretty thorny and extensive CMS with code everywhere in little modules. Stuff like the HTML used to build each page usually isn’t touched by site authors or even designers. It’d be nice if the Drupal team could move into the present with their default layouts that everyone builds upon, but I wouldn’t blame any drupal users for the app’s shortcomings. »
 Don't blame DrupalSubmitted by gabriel on November 18, 2007 - 10:04am.
Drupal is a kick-ass content management system with an excellent template engine that allows you to completely structure the underlying HTML of your site however you want, so you've got control of the code's output; Drupal is not the one at fault here. Garland, for example, has perfectly valid HTML (I'm using ?q=blog here because the homepage's markup has been taken over with user-contributed content and isn't a trustworthy example of its code's quality) and uses well-structured markup, so you can't blame Drupal for producing invalid code. I'll admit that sometimes some modules can get a bit excessive with assigning »
 Lean On MeSubmitted by wood.tang on September 23, 2007 - 6:03am.
Joe Clark is going to clean up this place like he did Eastside High! “They used to call me Crazy Joe. Well now they can call me Batman!” »
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Inbox ZeroThe original 43 Folders series looking at the skills, tools, and attitude needed to empty your email inbox — and then keep it that way. Don’t miss the free video of Merlin’s Inbox Zero presentation. Making Time3-part series on attention management for artists and makers. Read Bad Correspondence, The Job You Think You Have, and One Clear Line. |
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