Weighing in as a UX designer. I appreciate the attempt to encourage people to think about design, but this guide has issues.
What's wrong with the advice:
-Removing horizontal lines decreases readability in the complex examples given
-Vertical lines are very helpful when there are more than three columns
-Serifs have actually been found to be more readable due to their distinct letterforms and can be comprehended more quickly. San-serif fonts are fine too though. Basically, choose a font that has good legibility.
-Don't rely on light gray lines, because they might not be visible on all screens, or in various environments, and likely won't translate to print
-Double horizontal lines for column headers are fine.
-Overall, if you're presenting important information, usability is much more important than minor aesthetics.
Here are some more actual tips for laying out tables:
-Ensure that if a horizontal line needs to be scannable, that it actually has enough padding, or a horizontal separator, be it a dotted line or some other type of visible anchor
-If columns have a lot of information, a table may not be sufficient. Consider aggregating individual rows into a card format.
-Padding is your friend. Also, be consistent with it. A table with too little, but consistent padding looks better than one with more breathing room and inconsistent padding.
-Most information should be aligned left. One exception is currency. That should be aligned right
If the originally submitted guide is admittedly subjective, then it seems like sharing different subjective viewpoints (with reasoning) in HN comments is a great idea. If it's a subjective thing, I'd rather hear from several viewpoints before making decisions about how to handle my own tables.
What's wrong with the advice:
-Removing horizontal lines decreases readability in the complex examples given
-Vertical lines are very helpful when there are more than three columns
-Serifs have actually been found to be more readable due to their distinct letterforms and can be comprehended more quickly. San-serif fonts are fine too though. Basically, choose a font that has good legibility.
-Don't rely on light gray lines, because they might not be visible on all screens, or in various environments, and likely won't translate to print
-Double horizontal lines for column headers are fine.
-Overall, if you're presenting important information, usability is much more important than minor aesthetics.
Here are some more actual tips for laying out tables:
-Ensure that if a horizontal line needs to be scannable, that it actually has enough padding, or a horizontal separator, be it a dotted line or some other type of visible anchor
-If columns have a lot of information, a table may not be sufficient. Consider aggregating individual rows into a card format.
-Padding is your friend. Also, be consistent with it. A table with too little, but consistent padding looks better than one with more breathing room and inconsistent padding.
-Most information should be aligned left. One exception is currency. That should be aligned right