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View Full Version : Definition lists revisited


ronaldb66
05-15-2003, 09:40 AM
Anyone use any definition lists (dl / dt / dd) lately?

I recently had to build a number of pages for an intranet site with technical descriptions; these tend to contain a lot of lists, and a number of times I needed a list not with bullets or numbers or such, but with terms and explanations, stuff like error codes, functions, etc. From a semantical point of view, a definition list seemed the best choice, but I've never been too happy with its "staggered" default appearance.

Trying to remedy this, I tinkered with CSS a bit and ended up with the following:
Floating the definition term (dt) left, giving the definition description (dd) enough left margin for the dt to fit amply next to it, I ended up with the dt's and the dd's nicely lined up horizontally.

It may be kicking in an open door, but I thought I'd mention it... :o

cg9com
05-15-2003, 12:57 PM
Ah yes the good ol' definition lists, can't say i've used them much, but they've been around a while eh?
Would be perfect for a site like dictionary.com (http://www.dictionary.com), but they don't use them! :eek:


<dl>
<dt>Coding Forums</dt>
<dd>Web coding and development forums</dd>
</dl>

liorean
05-15-2003, 05:24 PM
I'm using it in my Tabbed Interface (http://liorean.web-graphics.com/dhtml/tabs/tabs.html) experiment.

ronaldb66
05-16-2003, 07:39 AM
Very nice, and semantically sound! :D