CSS Zen Garden
Encyclopedia
The CSS Zen Garden is a World Wide Web
development
resource. The goal of the site is to showcase what is possible with CSS
-based design. Style sheets contributed by graphic design
ers from around the world are used to change the visual presentation of a single HTML
file, producing hundreds of different designs. Aside from reference to an external CSS file, the HTML markup itself never changes. All visual differences are the result of the CSS (and supporting imagery). The site has been translated into multiple languages.
When it launched in May 2003, it contained only five designs.
In February 2005, The Zen of CSS Design
(Peachpit Press) was published by CSS Zen Garden creator Dave Shea
and web designer Molly Holzschlag. The book is based on 36 designs featured at the Zen Garden site.
CSS Zen Garden has inspired similar sites in other languages.
"The Garden" itself was inspired, according to Shea, by an experiment by Chris Casciano called "Daily CSS Fun", and a CSS-related contest from HotBot
.
The CSS Zen Garden website is not currently being actively developed and was last updated in April, 2008.
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
development
Web development
Web development is a broad term for the work involved in developing a web site for the Internet or an intranet . This can include web design, web content development, client liaison, client-side/server-side scripting, web server and network security configuration, and e-commerce development...
resource. The goal of the site is to showcase what is possible with CSS
Cascading Style Sheets
Cascading Style Sheets is a style sheet language used to describe the presentation semantics of a document written in a markup language...
-based design. Style sheets contributed by graphic design
Graphic design
Graphic design is a creative process – most often involving a client and a designer and usually completed in conjunction with producers of form – undertaken in order to convey a specific message to a targeted audience...
ers from around the world are used to change the visual presentation of a single HTML
HTML
HyperText Markup Language is the predominant markup language for web pages. HTML elements are the basic building-blocks of webpages....
file, producing hundreds of different designs. Aside from reference to an external CSS file, the HTML markup itself never changes. All visual differences are the result of the CSS (and supporting imagery). The site has been translated into multiple languages.
When it launched in May 2003, it contained only five designs.
In February 2005, The Zen of CSS Design
The Zen of CSS Design
The Zen of CSS Design: Visual Enlightenment for the Web is a book by web designers Dave Shea and Molly E. Holzschlag, published in 2005. The book is based on 36 designs featured at the CSS Zen Garden resource, an online showcase of CSS-based design...
(Peachpit Press) was published by CSS Zen Garden creator Dave Shea
Dave Shea
Dave Shea is an Canadian web designer and co-author of The Zen of CSS Design: Visual Enlightenment for the Web.He is known for his work in web-standard development—from his design community project CSS Zen Garden to his active contributions at the Web Standards Project...
and web designer Molly Holzschlag. The book is based on 36 designs featured at the Zen Garden site.
CSS Zen Garden has inspired similar sites in other languages.
"The Garden" itself was inspired, according to Shea, by an experiment by Chris Casciano called "Daily CSS Fun", and a CSS-related contest from HotBot
HotBot
HotBot is a web search engine launched in May 1996 by Wired Magazine. It is currently owned by Lycos. HotBot became a popular tool with search results served by the Inktomi database and directory results provided originally by LookSmart and then the Open Directory Project since mid-1999...
.
The CSS Zen Garden website is not currently being actively developed and was last updated in April, 2008.
External links
- CSS Zen Garden 'All Designs' List (Access to hundreds of archived designs submitted to the site)
- Mezzoblue (Creator Dave Shea's weblog on web design issues)