Just read this blog post over at Learning jQuery. It is a tip on how to avoid ’style flashing’ on large and complex pages. Read it. Read it to get the explanation as to why just CSS cannot solve this problem. If you have been unfortunate enough to work with me, especially in a JS/design roll you will have heard me bitching about CSS in jQuery. I do not like when this is done. CSS is way better at CSS then jQuery. The benefits of apply the style is this global manner are huge.
- Speed of CSS
- <linked> files get cached
- Your Javacript will be simpler, smaller, faster
- If you are working with a team a designer can work on it without causing conflicts
And this does not just apply to jQuery either, any framework or script can (and should) utilize this technique. Keep in mind this is not a cure all for progressive enhancement. You still cannot go all willy nilly AJAX without an already working base system. Thanks for the great tip.