Dreamweaver

Angela,

Do you mean why should you bother assigning a colour for 'active' state?

The :active pseudo-class applies while an element is being activated by the user. For example, between the times the user presses the mouse button and releases it.

So this allows web designers to choose a colour that is shown when the user actually clicks a link. More often than not, the colour is only shown for a brief moment, because internet speed means the user is whisked away to the next page. But users can hold their mouse button down, and not release until they are ready to go to the page. The 'active' state colour will be applied during this period.

It can also be useful for someone who has just pressed the 'back' button on their browser. Some browser software highlights the link they clicked on previously in this 'active' colour.

I hope this answers your question. If it doesn't, please elaborate, and I'll help you further.

Kind regards, Rich