I know at some point it was very important to use websafe colors, especially in backgrounds of graphics, etc but is this still the case with the coding on newer browsers like IE7 and FF3?

websafe colors is history dude

You'd be surprised how many tutorials I still see referencing "websafe colors" like a design would implode without them. I was just reading one the other day which is what prompted me to ask. I've been tweaking ways around them for so long its not even funny, but I really never liked any of the colors you could use.

What makes you say they are history now? I haven't heard or read anything that would suggest that the colours that you choose are now unimportant. Some browsers don't represent certain colours well and that would seem all the more reason to use websafe colours.

I would agree. I try to stick to the "Websafe" colors whenever I can just to make sure my website is more universally viewable and looks the same no matter what browser is utilized.

Chris

Using the hex is always the easiest option.

we live in 2008 not in 2001 when websafe colors were trendy
even if you use websafe colors it depends on the monitor of the user how the site looks, it will never look the same

All colors have a hexidecimal code. Not all of them are websafe and should you open the average random purple in Photoshop you can often see just how far off the suggested "websafe" color would be. If you know how hex codes are coded you can further see just how far a perfect shade of purple and the "websafe" shade would be.

I normally stay away from using hex codes for color and instead tile a tiny slice of the actual color anywhere I can. Its a bit more coding, but it makes the color what I want without too much issue even on dialup.

And a websafe color can only effect how the color is viewed which is the easiest part of a design. Your design may look right, but if its still scrambled who cares?

What are websafe colors. I am hearing about them for the first time.