Hello, my name is Hina In and I reside in the UAE. Currently, I am learning the fundamentals of web design and have a good grasp of HTML5 and CSS3. With these skills, I can create a visually appealing website that will impress audiences. Recently, a senior friend who lives in another city told me on WhatsApp about an easy way to design a website using bootstrap.
He mentioned that it saves time and simplifies the process. However, I lack knowledge about bootstrap and would appreciate if someone could explain it to me and how we can use it for website design.
Bootstrap is a popular framework for creating responsive, mobile-first websites using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. It enables responsive web design by automatically adjusting the layout of web pages based on the device being used.
Additionally, Bootstrap is compatible with most modern web browsers, including Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Opera, Firefox, and Safari. To learn more about Bootstrap, you can visit the following website: https://www.w3schools.com/bootstrap/.
Bootstrap is made up of a collection of files that include a range of ready-made components and classes for creating an adaptive website design.
The classes are split into three main groups: those used to create a grid for an adaptive page layout, those used for styling content (such as text, images, code, tables, and other information), and utility classes for popular auxiliary tasks such as showing and hiding elements and setting background colors and indents.
Bootstrap also includes components such as breadcrumbs, buttons, dropdown lists, modals, forms, navigation menus, pop-up panels, and more. The framework provides many examples to quickly start projects, allowing developers to easily copy and paste code and work more efficiently.
Bootstrap offers responsiveness, cross-browser compatibility, and clear code, making it easy to learn, use, and customize, and its harmonious combination of elements helps websites and pages maintain a consistent style. However, Bootstrap does not support legacy browsers.
Getting started with Bootstrap requires a text editor or IDE, a browser that supports the latest version of Bootstrap, and installation of the framework via the official website, a package manager, or source files.
The main idea behind Bootstrap is to provide a set of pre-designed HTML, CSS, and JavaScript components that you can easily integrate into your website. This means you don't have to start from scratch, writing thousands of lines of code to create a responsive design. Bootstrap takes care of the heavy lifting, so you can focus on the creative aspects of web design.
One of the biggest advantages of Bootstrap is its grid system. It's based on a 12-column layout, which makes it easy to create responsive designs that adapt to different screen sizes and devices. You can use Bootstrap's pre-defined classes to create rows, columns, and containers, and the framework will take care of the rest.
Another great feature of Bootstrap is its extensive collection of UI components. You get access to a wide range of pre-designed elements, such as navigation bars, carousels, alerts, and more. These components are highly customizable, so you can easily tailor them to fit your website's unique style and branding.
Now, let's talk about how you can use Bootstrap for website design. The first step is to include the Bootstrap CSS and JavaScript files in your HTML dоcument. You can do this by linking to a CDN or by downloading the files and hosting them locally.
Once you've included the Bootstrap files, you can start using its components and grid system to create your website's layout and design. For example, you can use Bootstrap's navigation bar component to create a responsive menu that adapts to different screen sizes.
Here's an example of how you might use Bootstrap to create a simple navigation bar:
<nav class="navbar navbar-expand-lg navbar-light bg-light">
<a class="navbar-brand" href="#">My Website</a>
<button class="navbar-toggler" type="button" data-toggle="collapse" data-target="#navbarSupportedContent" aria-controls="navbarSupportedContent" aria-expanded="false" aria-label="Toggle navigation">
<span class="navbar-toggler-icon"></span>
</button>
<div class="collapse navbar-collapse" id="navbarSupportedContent">
<ul class="navbar-nav mr-auto">
<li class="nav-item active">
<a class="nav-link" href="#">Home <span class="sr-only">(current)</span></a>
</li>
<li class="nav-item">
<a class="nav-link" href="#">About</a>
</li>
<li class="nav-item">
<a class="nav-link" href="#">Contact</a>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
</nav>
As you can see, Bootstrap's syntax is very intuitive, and it's easy to get started with. Of course, there's a lot more to learn, but with practice and patience, you'll be creating stunning websites in no time.
Bootstrap is so overused and cliché. Every other website I see uses it, and it's just so... basic. I mean, where's the creativity? Where's the originality? If you want to make a statement with your website, you need to put in the work to design something unique and innovative.
Bootstrap is just a shortcut for lazy designers who can't be bothered to learn the basics. And the responsive design issues that come with using Bootstrap. It's just a mess, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who wants to take their website design seriously.