RE: inter-area text-flow

> From:	Mjumbe Ukweli [SMTP:mjumbewu@hotmail.com]
> 
> is there any way in CSS to force overflow text from one box into another 
	[DJW:]  
	Not up to CSS2 at least.

> (sort of like newspaper columns)?  perhaps there is and i'm just ignorant
> of 
> it, but if there isn't i think it would be an excellent style enhancer.
	[DJW:]  
	It is such an obvious _want_ that I have to assume that
	it was not done because it complicates the user agent
	too much; I suspect it makes progressive display and
	size calculations difficult.  I cannot believe the CSS 
	designers never thought of it.

	Note, though, that HTML division boundaries are immutable
	to styling (although XSL can presumably move the boundaries
	before styling), so this sort of layout would require a style
	sheet only physical structure element to represent the various
	display boxes.  Your diagram, by using the term DIV, suggests
	a failure to understand the separation of content from 
	presentation that is key to CSS.  (Whilst current presentational
	HTML might use multiple elements at the moment, true structural
	HTML would only have one element.)

	Having boxes that didn't correspond to HTML elements (or at least
	almost correspond) would probably break the box model that underlies
	CSS.

	I can certainly see why such a feature might be very difficult
	to implement.

	(I strongly suspect that the only way of getting good looking
	flowing in this context is to produce a page description in final
	form (i.e. PDF or maybe SVG) using a full desk top publishing 
	system).)


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>

Received on Friday, 16 March 2001 12:00:57 UTC