Unique CSS file and template

Hi,

I'm an expert in Xhtml and CSS.

I'm trying to understand Dolphin template. It seems to much complicated.

1- Why there is more than 20 css file in template repertory ? Only one good writen is better: you can user abbreviation, repetition, cascade etc... and have a very small like less than 10Ko Css file use on all page in cache... Website is more faster : less ligns codes to read for navigators...

2- I think there is to muche file in the template. In Joomla there is only one file "index.php" with position php inside.

3- The template by default is too heavy 750 Kb !!!!! Ha lu ci nant ! Je n'ai jamais vu ça en 9 ans de webmastering : it had to be light

thanks for your reponse...

Were you asking a question or making comments? I'm having trouble understanding your objective....

You have to understand that Dolphin breaks many of the traditional rules of css, php, xml and so on in incorporating them together.  Multiple css files are used to break apart the layouts of specific pages.  All pages will call general.css first, but if another .css file is written to take over that item then it defers to the later file for the final output. 

Now, could it load faster with just one .css file?  Yes and no.  Dolphin is a social networking script and in order to maintain it's stability and make it work it requires these multiple files.  Don't believe me?  Go check out these sites with firebug and you will see they all use multiple .css files:

myspace.com

facebook.com

plentyoffish.com

hi5.com

Should I keep going?  If your an expert in .css then why are you asking us such a basic question?

Hum, The code of CSs files show that the coders are not habile with it...

I will make my own template with only one css file and reduce the 200/250Ko global of all CSS in one of 15/20Ko

My experience show me that a site can be faster X4/5 only with less photos and CSS file corectly code.

My goal is to make a home page of Dolphin at 140Ko maxi and not 550 , and after several calcul, I can do that :

1- Recode all CSS files of the default template

2- Optimize the scripts of the template

3- Make my own graphism optimized

4- Make my own layout to make my template Search Engine Friendly

5- Make this template 100% Xhtml CSS (there are big big errors on the codage, balises, tables etc...)

Maybe I will distribute this work on Expertezzz...

so, do it and let us see your best job.

cheerr!!

Four hours of Work and...

Dolphin is a social networking script and in order to maintain it's stability and make it work it requires these multiple files

no, no, and no.

Stability of design is only made by a good CSS writing. More css files, more problems, patch, hacks (for IE5 or 7, Safari etc...).

unique solution is to have all style in the same file good writtent without any conflict. And it's the same thing for all in webdesigning

My new CSS file for All dolphin is 3Ko

The final will be 15/20Ko

25 files with 250Ko is an abberation... Majority of web professinnal hasn't have the super server of Facebook or google !!!

And the primordial experience of user in a website is rapidity... A website too slow = bad experience = I will not come back here

Your wrong here... Dolphin calls multiple column widths for multiple pages... Now, for example http://mydatery.com/brandy has a full page width 1st column and the 2nd & 3rd columns floating over top of it with margin-left:-px; to pull margin one items back to the left with a float left in place.  But no other page on the site uses a full width 1st column with additional columns on it, therefore to place .page_column .column_first {width:200%; overflow:visible;} into the general.css file would create a huge issue in knocking every other page on the site out of line.  Therefore, it's easier and much better to create a profile_view.css file to handle this command and allow the other pages to be called by the from the general.css file so all will resolve properly.  Keep in mind, this trick requires about 20 other adjustments to the css of the profile_view.css file in order to work on just the profile_view.css page. 

Now, you could theoretically do this in one .css file if you wanted to create a page_column .column_first1 also, then go dig into the php files and create the correlating code in php and an SQL command to carry it all out.  But in the end, your simply digging deeper and deeper into this and ignoring the reason for creating multiple css pages is to reduce the number of SQL's ran on the server at any given time. 

Now you've posted that you pulled this off in 4 hours, but your not showing the work for it to be verified or not as being successful.  I did note, you called it at 4 hours and 235816 bytes which translates into 235,816 bytes or 235KB, a ways from the 15-20KB you claimed you would do this in. 

One last thing, I can create a dophin home page below 1KB, it's easy... Just take everything off the home page and let them see your site name & login box.  Doesn't mean it will be a nice page but it will be under 1KB. 

hi, JoshParker , don't just say nothing, do something,  show us your work

have you modificated your dolphin?

.

go modificate it. and show us the result

Ok, ok.

The Dolphin system template is wonderful, so keep yours, and I'll do mine

No doubt reducing the amount of css styles does improve performance but the performance is not significant. If majority of your users are dial up users then it make sense to reduce the number of css files and css styles but this days almost 80% of users are using broadband . Anyway breaking up css into different files is actually a smart css tactic :) which is commonly use by css gurus.

Ok I see your point of view. But if you want to really have your own template. That would be very hard to change the default template...

Yes u can do a lot of unwanted  css cleaning up in those css files when creating your custom template and this will improve a little bid of performance.That is what i normally do . It is always best to get views from people who has wide knowledge rather than getting views from people who loves to backup this software today and condemn the software later or go missing :)

I love this software, but one day, there will have to give a job to a professionnal of Xhtml and CSS. Php coders think it's a game, but definitively not

JUST SHOW US YOUR BEST WORK , modificate it now