- From: Tab Atkins Jr. via GitHub <sysbot+gh@w3.org>
- Date: Wed, 21 Jun 2017 23:19:37 +0000
- To: public-css-archive@w3.org
Flexbox's main/cross terminology is actually completely distinct from inline/block or row/column - it depends on the flex-direction. The main axis can be inline (it is by default, with `flex-direction:row`) or block (with `flex-direction: column`). Because flexbox is as direction-agnostic as we can be, we had to invent new terms that refer to the directions that a flexbox grows in. The "main/inline vs cross/block" bit is because the justify/align split is arranged in that way - all the justify properties apply to the main or inline axis, depending on the display mode, while all the align properties apply to the cross or block axis. Row/column are indeed synonyms of inline/block, but as you point out, everywhere we use row/column in Align we also put inline/block. It's mostly used as a simple reminder of what block/inline directions are - it's *immediately* clear what directions rows and columns go in, while people who are newer to the logical directions may not have as clear an understanding of what directions "block" and "inline" are. In the flexbox example at the end, it uses only the "main" naming, because that's correct - it aligns along the main axis, which might be either the inline *or* the block axis. (We actually had a serious proposal to use "row" and "column" for the logical axis names, back when we were first deciding on the names, *because* they're clearer and more physically intuitive. But they don't read as well in some circumstances, and in a case like Grid, *selecting* a row position moves you along the *column* axis, so there's a possibility of confusion in cases like that.) --- So, I'm not quite clear what you'd like changed here. -- GitHub Notification of comment by tabatkins Please view or discuss this issue at https://github.com/w3c/csswg-drafts/issues/1372#issuecomment-310231691 using your GitHub account
Received on Wednesday, 21 June 2017 23:19:44 UTC