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Formatting Your Text (CSS)

The new SMU template uses global Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) to automatically format the appearance of text and other elements on the page. You do not need to apply any formatting to your text, other than what is specified below.

What is a Cascading Style Sheet?
A Cascading Style Sheet is a separate document that contains a definition list of "styles" for text, images, tables, and other elements. The SMU template contains a line of code that automatically pulls in these styles and applies them to your pages.

What does this mean for me?
This means that you should NOT apply any font faces, sizes, or colors to your text. If you follow that simple rule, your text will automatically conform to the SMU style, because the style sheet takes care of everything behind the scenes.

What kinds of things CAN I do to my page?
Generally, the only styling that you should apply to text are the Heading tags (H1 through H4), bold, and italics. In FrontPage, you can use the Bold and Italics buttons, or choose the Headings from the style menu at the top left of your screen (see illustration at right). More information on Headings.

What if I use Dreamweaver?
Important: While working in Dreamweaver, your text may not display with the proper font, color, and size. This is because the SMU style sheet resides in a different directory than your pages. Don't despair -- just leave it alone. The style sheet will automatically format it when it has been posted to the Web. Learn to be less concerned with how text looks in your Dreamweaver layout, and more concerned with your content and structure. See the Dreamweaver section for more details.