Grid CSS layouts. Tell me the reasons to not use

Question

Since I new with CSS, I just started to work with CSS Grid system. I would like to know if are there any technical issues in use CSS grids? I mean, which are the reasons for you to not use grid?

Thanks

Molina

Answer 1

I've just started using object oriented CSS (OOCSS). I'm really enjoying it because it provides a very basic and minimalistic grid system. It allows you to create relative sized grids by dividing an element into halves, thirds, fourths, or fifths. The divided elements are infinitely nestable.

OOCSS is more of a philosophy than a framework. It's all about how you extend a very basic foundation.

Check out these links:

http://oocss.org/ http://developer.yahoo.net/blogs/theater/archives/2009/03/website_and_webapp_performance.html http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6sAm7CLoCQ

Arquit

Wow, i dont know how i missed this... This is essentially the same why i always try to implement things (albeit on top of a framework usually), but much more methodically and with solid base work already there. +1 to you sir. – Jennie

I was elated when I found this. All I want to do is develop modules for OOCSS until I have a massively modular framework. Talk about rapid prototyping... Thanks! – Arquit

Answer 2

Flexibility

Once you start using the grid, you are stuck with it. Any other issues you might wind up finding you will have to conform to.

In my opinion (and every other designer I've talked to) it is far easier to simply define your own columns and default sizes as classes and apply them as-needed. A custom grid if you will. Then changing the styling is as easy as changing a line or two of CSS, instead of either re-generating the grid system or redesigning the site and sacrificing in order to use the grid.

I'm a fan resets and some minor love from Blueprint (especially the Typography), but that's about it.

Kolyma

So, for you the best approach is to use a custom grid system, right? And in the end, we should use a kind of grid system anyhow, correct? – Molina

@Old: Not completely, and not a custom grid system. I mean give a class based layout structure to it, but it doesn't have to be a "grid" with span-1 through span-12 in it. Sidebar, main, third, etc. Make components and use them. – Kolyma

Answer 3

The only real reason is that they can lead to bloated markup, sometimes you have to do some serious nesting depending on the layout and desired effects+flexibilty.

They also lead to excessive class name lists on elements. However, you can avoid this at least if you move the CSS to semantic classes/ids before deploying... but thats can be alot of extra work. Blueprint is the excpetion here because it has acommand line tool to allow you to apply the rules from its framework classes to semantic selectors.

Overall i generally use them because its alot easier to teach a designer how to use a grid template. That why im not do alot of production art tasks when i go to slice things down. It jsut makes the whole process smoother IMO.

Jennie

Answer 4

If your site has a column layout AND repeatable design patterns throughout the site... then there aren't any reasons not to include a grid. A grid adds: organization, proportion and alignment to your page. So why not keep that consistent? There is no reason.

Just don't Overuse A Grid

Some people say a grid is inflexible? That's not totally true - you can use it where you need it. You can always remove it or adjust. Just don't overuse it.

Heartworm

Answer 5

It depends on the grid system. Most grids have a fixed amount of columns, which restrict you in how you create your layout. For example, they don't allow you to combine 30%/30%/40%, 50%/50%, 25%/75% and whatever other combinations you can think of.

Some grid systems also don't allow nesting. That means you can't use a grid element as a grid for child elements in those grid systems, which makes it a lot more difficult for many layouts to be coded to HTML.

Also, some grid systems use techniques that don't work in older browsers. Before you use a grid system, you should always make sure it supports the browsers you need to support with your project.

There are frameworks out there without such restrictions, though. Cascade Framework, in fact, has a grid system far more flexible than that of any other framework out there and works fine in both IE6-8 and modern browsers alike.

Aggregation

Answer 6

Grids are perfect when you don't have a right triangular design, if it is a right triangle and two angles are on the same row or column (which it is most times) it's easier to split the angles (and use flexbox) and think only of the ones that are on the same row or column at once.

Brister