The DataList control allows you to lay out the items in the control in a variety of ways. You can specify that the control renders items in either flow mode (in <SPAN> elements separated by spaces) or in table mode (in an HTML table). Flow mode is suitable for simple layouts. Table mode gives you more precise control over layout and allows you to use table attributes (such as CellPadding).
To specify flow or table format
[Visual Basic]
DataGrid1.RepeatLayout = RepeatLayout.Flow
Introduction to the DataList Web Control | Specifying List Layout