Member Avatar for ep2002

I'm screening WDers who think they are 3WC & are great in CSS & xhtml.

Since I can't tell if they are or aren't even with the validators (as there are different aspects to validation, not just one), can someone more experienced tell if me this WDer is any good...

http://phpservers.com

Thanks


Michelle

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For screening front-end work there are two separate questions: "Is the markup free of structural errors?" and "Is the code maintainable, accessible and robust in real browsers?" Validators answer the first quickly; they do not prove either of the second two. is right to use them as a filter, and is also right that validation alone is not a stamp of practical quality. Use validation as a fast, objective signal — then follow up with a short hands-on checklist.

  • Quick checklist to apply when reviewing a candidate's page:

    • Confirm a correct doctype and that the document is well-formed for the chosen flavor (HTML vs XHTML).
    • Scan the validator's first few errors — they usually point to the real problem (mismatched tags, stray characters, bad nesting).
    • Verify separation of concerns: presentational rules in external CSS, behavior in unobtrusive JS, minimal inline styles.
    • Check basic accessibility: images have alternative text, form controls have labels, headings form a logical outline.
    • Do a simple performance check: images sized appropriately, no huge inline scripts, assets minified or bundled where reasonable.
    • Manual cross-browser smoke test (desktop modern browsers and at least one legacy target you care about).

  • Short troubleshooting tips (doable in a few minutes):

    • Open the validated source at the first reported error and trace the nearest unclosed/mismatched element.
    • If a page is served as XML but contains HTML-only constructs, treat that as a delivery/headers problem.
    • Replace brittle presentation tags with simple CSS rules such as:
.nowrap { white-space: nowrap; }

and prefer unobtrusive event binding:

document.querySelector('#id').addEventListener('click', function(e){ /* handler */ });

For hiring, ask each applicant to submit one representative page and a short README that lists known validation warnings, the browsers they tested, and one small refactor they would do to improve maintainability. That combination — validator results plus a documented, testable page — separates careful coders from sloppy ones.

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Member Avatar for Rashakil Fol

http://phpservers.com

Invalid XHTML.

Invalid XHTML.

Valid.

Haven't checked CSS.

Validation doesn't matter anyway.

Member Avatar for ep2002

What do you mean validation doesn't matter??? Of course it does LOL

Thanks


Michelle

Member Avatar for Rashakil Fol

Not really. Validation is a tool, but not an end in itself. For example, <nobr> is not valid HTML, but it's the most reliable way of preventing a region of text from having a line break.

But then again, their errors are just from sloppiness - things like writing onMouseOut when XHTML requires onmouseout.

Member Avatar for ep2002

So you are saying he's a sloppy coder?

But validation is also crucial for cross browser compatibility, DLing the page/site fast even on dialup etc.

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