Chapter 11. Table Layout

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Tables are unique, compared to the rest of document layout. As of CSS2.1, tables alone possess the unique ability to associate element sizes with other elements—all the cells in a row have the same height, for example, no matter how much or how little content each individual cell might contain. The same is true for the widths of cells that share a column. There is no other situation in layout where elements from different parts of the document tree influence each others' sizing and layout in so direct a way.

As we'll see, this uniqueness is purchased at the expense of a great many behaviors and rules that apply to tables, and only tables. In the course of the chapter, we'll look at how tables are visually assembled, two different ways to draw cell borders, and the mechanisms that drive the height and width of tables and their internal elements.