I particularly like that the first one uses a single table for layout.

If you're reading the page's source, you'll also find this eternal wisdom: "Fact: Chuck Norris hates layout tables!"

Actually, if you check the first one again, it uses CSS, but it has a table layout commented out.

+1 for the second one. That made me laugh (and made me think that if I had something like this for all areas of my life I'd be single, have a 7th grade education and hoping the manager at Burger King returns my call...)

> http://shouldiusetablesforlayout.com/

Why do I still laugh every time I see one of these? I always see it coming...

First, http://www.csszengarden.com << for a reminder of why I might want to use CSS

Second, http://www.nyt.com << reminder of why CSS grids are so beautiful

Then... a table on my site because I can't stand making two-column equal-height float hacks work anymore.

CSS layouts are a fascinating and sometime beautiful execution of technology, but it's not (at least this version) the next step in evolution of layout.