Equally tall CSS 'columns'

[ktinkel]

Does anyone know any useful method for controlling the height of all the columns on a web page?

What if you want to have vertical borders (or a panel of color, occasionally) fill all the columns on a web page to the same depth? The only solutions I can find are kludgey at best.

I have been setting height on the DIV for each column. Since pages vary in depth, this means using either inline or internal CSS for that, and it is inelegant and very likely to produce a minorly embarrassing mess with text overrunning one of the columns.

And I have seen one trick on A List Apart (in “Faux Columns (http://www.alistapart.com/articles/fauxcolumns/)” by Dan Cederholm): Use a background image of defined height. Same problems, by and large — have to set the height on a page-by-page basis. Ick.

Are these the only options we have? Seems to be, but figured one of you here might have another idea.

[annc]

Does anyone know any useful method for controlling the height of all the columns on a web page?

What if you want to have vertical borders (or a panel of color, occasionally) fill all the columns on a web page to the same depth? The only solutions I can find are kludgey at best.

I have been setting height on the DIV for each column. Since pages vary in depth, this means using either inline or internal CSS for that, and it is inelegant and very likely to produce a minorly embarrassing mess with text overrunning one of the columns.

And I have seen one trick on A List Apart (in “Faux Columns (http://www.alistapart.com/articles/fauxcolumns/)” by Dan Cederholm): Use a background image of defined height. Same problems, by and large — have to set the height on a page-by-page basis. Ick.

Are these the only options we have? Seems to be, but figured one of you here might have another idea.I tried Dan's solution early last year, and found it difficult to implement. In the end, I just gave up and decided that white backgrounds were good. <g>

[ktinkel]

I tried Dan's solution early last year, and found it difficult to implement. In the end, I just gave up and decided that white backgrounds were good. <g>I prefer white backgrounds for text myself, but like having vertical hairline rules (aka 1px borders) to help define some columns.

I last asked about this before we migrated to the new CompuServe, so thought maybe someone had figured out a better way by now. Guess not, huh?

[annc]

I prefer white backgrounds for text myself, but like having vertical hairline rules (aka 1px borders) to help define some columns.

I last asked about this before we migrated to the new CompuServe, so thought maybe someone had figured out a better way by now. Guess not, huh?Probably not, I'd say. I'm sure that if someone had come up with a nifty way of doing it, it would be on A List Apart. ;-)

[ktinkel]

Probably not, I'd say. I'm sure that if someone had come up with a nifty way of doing it, it would be on A List Apart. ;-)Yep. My thought exactly. Oh, well.

[Ian Petersen]

Does anyone know any useful method for controlling the height of all the columns on a web page?


Use tables? ;-)

Seriously, it's tricky (to say the least) using only structural html/css. Making sure your floated boxes are always enclosed by their parents helps a lot, but it's not 100 % reliable. This is a nice method (if you can live with the kludges):

http://www.positioniseverything.net/easyclearing.html

Otherwise, wait for CSS 3 ...

[ktinkel]

Use tables? ;-)Gasp! I cannot believe you said that! <g>

Seriously, it's tricky (to say the least) using only structural html/css. Making sure your floated boxes are always enclosed by their parents helps a lot, but it's not 100 % reliable. …

Otherwise, wait for CSS 3 ...Oh, well. I don’t like the kludges much. As for CSS 3, do you think it will be out and supported by, oh, let’s say, 2010?

Nice seeing you here!

[Ian Petersen]

Gasp! I cannot believe you said that! <g>

Well, sometimes life's too short ... After all, if it's really important that the two columns are the same height, is it that much worse to use a simple table with two cells opposed to a forest of extraneous DIVs, SPANs and associated CSS kludges all in the name of semantic purity? I would usually say yes and design around it, but sometimes I could be tempted ... <g>

Oh, well. I don’t like the kludges much. As for CSS 3, do you think it will be out and supported by, oh, let’s say, 2010?

To be honest, I haven't really been following CSS 3's development. I understand it's been broken into 'modules' from which browser vendors can choose to support one or more, as long as they support a whole module at a time. Or something like that. I've no idea if or when we're going to see any of it though.

Nice seeing you here!

Well, I do pop in now and again to see if you are all behaving yourselves! I will try to be more active, but I still don't much care for these web forum things. They're getting hard to avoid though, so I may as well get used to it ...

[ktinkel]

Well, sometimes life's too short ... After all, if it's really important that the two columns are the same height, is it that much worse to use a simple table with two cells opposed to a forest of extraneous DIVs, SPANs and associated CSS kludges all in the name of semantic purity? I would usually say yes and design around it, but sometimes I could be tempted ... <g>See it here, folks! Ian can too compromise. Once in a blue moon. If sufficiently tempted … <ggg>

To be honest, I haven't really been following CSS 3's development. I understand it's been broken into 'modules' from which browser vendors can choose to support one or more, as long as they support a whole module at a time.Oh, oh! That doesn’t sound good.

Or maybe Firefox and Safari will adopt all the good modules and carry the day! (Whenever, if ever …)

Well, I do pop in now and again to see if you are all behaving yourselves! I will try to be more active, but I still don't much care for these web forum things. They're getting hard to avoid though, so I may as well get used to it ...Exactly! And with this one, at least, you can visit your old pals!

[Ian Petersen]

Ian can too compromise.

Hey! Compromise is my middle name - especially when muggins here has to do the work!

Oh, oh! That doesn’t sound good.

I think it's quite sensible. A browser can support the 'print' module but not the 'voice' module and still be conformant to the spec. I think the idea is that there is more chance of browsers 'doing it right' (or doing it at all) if they can implement the spec in bite sized chunks rather than the whole thing at once.

Exactly! And with this one, at least, you can visit your old pals!

One thing is visiting, another is actually participating regularly in the threads ... I probably miss 50% of the messages even though I've been here several times today.

[terrie]

>>ian: I probably miss 50% of the messages even though I've been here several times today.

Try this:

1. User CP > Edit Options

2. Scroll down to Thread Display Options

3. Set Thread Display Mode to "Linear - Oldest First"

4. When you come into the forum, click on Get Posts > New Posts

5. Right-click/open new window on the down arrow icon to the left of a thread title which will open the thread in a new window at the first unread post

6. Read/reply (as desired) thread, close window when done

7. Repeat steps 5 & 6 until all threads are read, then click on Get Posts > New Posts to see if there are either any new threads and/or new replies since you last checked


Hope this helps...

Terrie

PS...if it's a long thread and you're not sure which post is being replied to, click on "go to parent message" on the right hand side of a particular post (to the right of the post number).

[ktinkel]

One thing is visiting, another is actually participating regularly in the threads ... I probably miss 50% of the messages even though I've been here several times today.Slightly different advice: In the User Control Panel (CP), choose Hybrid as the thread display option.

Then, when you get to the message display (as Terrie described) you will also get a thread view that helps sort out what follows what and when it was posted.

[annc]

One thing is visiting, another is actually participating regularly in the threads ... I probably miss 50% of the messages even though I've been here several times today.To see the new messages in context (Terrie's method separates them out just by date), remain in Hybrid mode, and select Get Posts > New Posts. You'll get a list of threads that have had messages added since you last visited. Start at the bottom, and select the last thread that interests you. In the thread tree view, you can scroll to see which messages have been posted since you last visited, and you can either read just those or use the far right scroll bar to go down the list.

After reading the earliest thread, go to the next one via Get Posts > New Posts again.

When you reach the top, you can go off an do whatever else you might want to do with your life. Those messages/threads you elected not to read won't come back to haunt you the way they do on CIS.

Note that the cookies expire after a certain length of time, so if you go off to have dinner in the midst of reading the forum, when you come back you will only see those posted since you left.

[ktinkel]

Note that the cookies expire after a certain length of time, so if you go off to have dinner in the midst of reading the forum, when you come back you will only see those posted since you left.Then you can find them by choosing 1 Day (or greater) from the Get Posts drop down. They may or may not be emboldened, but the list is in chronological sequence so it is usually easy to figure out what you did or did not read.

[annc]

Then you can find them by choosing 1 Day (or greater) from the Get Posts drop down. They may or may not be emboldened, but the list is in chronological sequence so it is usually easy to figure out what you did or did not read.Yep, especially if yours is the last post in the last thread you read. <g>

[Ian Petersen]

Thanks. That's pretty much what I am doing. The trouble is if you don't manage to read new messages before the cookie expires. Also I'm reading on two separate machines which doesn't exactly help. <g>

[Ian Petersen]

Yes, I am using hybrid mode.

[Ian Petersen]

Those messages/threads you elected not to read won't come back to haunt you the way they do on CIS.

But I want them to haunt me!

I won't bore you with all the arguments against web-forums - I know you've heard them a 1000 times. But of the few forums I do try to keep up with I seem to prefer those that run PunBB rather than vBulletin. Its simplicity and speed make up for its lack of vBulletin's bells and whistles, IMO.

[annc]

But I want them to haunt me!

I won't bore you with all the arguments against web-forums - I know you've heard them a 1000 times. But of the few forums I do try to keep up with I seem to prefer those that run PunBB rather than vBulletin. Its simplicity and speed make up for its lack of vBulletin's bells and whistles, IMO.Oh, well, you can always subscribe to the threads, or use the 1 Day, 2 Days etc. As long as the messages stay in the threads as they do with hybrid mode, you should be able to read at whatever length of time you like and still get the context.