As you can see, the hash characters were removed and everything stayed put! Happy as a clam at this point, but what about those lines???
I found out that I was barking up the wrong tree. I tried everything and every code I could think of to put in the areas of the code that controls the rows. I eventually found out that it was NOT the rows at all, but something quite different but looked identical...
It turns out that EVERY cell has a border on the bottom (or top, which ever it was.) I have not even considered the cells because collectively, they look like rows when next to each other and with each having a border, it made long horizontal lines.
After being stumped with this for so long on the FOURTH day working on this, I finally found in a forum somewhere that browsers automatically add such things where you don't want them!
As soon as I learned this, I put the code in the first five cells at the top and looked...
BINGO!
Resolution! I did it to the rest and got the above. Note there is still a perimeter line all the way around the table, putting a line through Hawaii and Alaska. Now, when I took out all the borders, it crushed everything northward, getting worse the further south on the map. I knew what was causing.
I compensated for this by adding a pixel to the height of every cell. Both doing this and taking out the perimeter borders brought about the following final verdict...
Everything where it belongs and all lines gone now, note that I added "bubbles" to the states that were too small to accommodate text. I added pointers to each as you can see in New England and Hawaii.
I decided to go one step further ... I would get Canada back into the picture...
You have definitely accomplished what you set out with this motivational lesson.
Brilliant job.
I'm grateful you shared this. Obstacles will eventually cross our paths along this IM journey; your story serves as an inspiration (as you meant it) to push ahead and work our way through.
Thank you so much.
In a perfect world where we start out with a good deal of money, we can just assign the idea or task and have it done, but here we are as you said having to wear many hats until we reach a certain knowledge and experience level.
I like having to learn in the rough as you have shown in your tutorial, knowledge seems to stick better in my brain that way.
Thank you for taking the time to share your journey and the lesson that goes along with it, I appreciate you. :)