Creating Tables

Creating tables in HTML is a degree more complex than anything you've seen so far in this book. Think about how many different types of tables there are. A table can be a 3-by-3 grid with labels across the top, or two side-by-side cells, or a complex Excel spreadsheet that comprises many rows and columns of various sizes. Representing tables in HTML is heavy on tags, and the tags can be hard to keep track of when you get going.

The basic approach with table creation is that you represent tabular data in a linear fashion, specifying what data goes in which table cells using HTML tags. In HTML, tables are created from left to right and top to bottom. You start by creating the upper-left cell, and finish with the bottom-right cell. This will all become clearer when you see some actual table code.