Re: practicality of user styleshseets

On 2010-10-13 9:34 PM, Felix Miata wrote:
> Problem 1-CSS file compaction: This is the stripping of all forms of
> unnecessary whitespace, including newlines, from CSS files in order
> to minimize server load and maximize download speed. The use of this
> technique seems to be rapidly spreading.

This is the way things should be; the author should ensure that a
minimum of bandwidth is used. This benefits both the user and author.

> It causes tools like Mozilla's Dom Inspector to show every rule on
> one line, a major impediment for any user attempting to isolate an
> offending rule that needs a compensating !important override. Even
> when viewed in an editor or viewer that wraps the long line, the
> lack of whitespace makes navigating and understanding the rulesets
> difficult.

IMO, pretty formatting of source code is the job of the UA. The UA
should permit you to view the source code unaltered and be able to alter
it so that it's properly indented and spaced. Unfortunately, I don't see
that happening anytime soon.

> It would be nice to see an average or more than a dozen or so "}"
> characters per newline character in any CSS source somehow become
> invalid.

That solution isn't backward-compatible.

Received on Thursday, 14 October 2010 05:44:17 UTC