Modern Layouts: Getting Out of Our Ruts

In the early years of the web, there was a lot of variation and experimentation with where to put content on a web page. Then, it seems, we all settled into a handful of patterns and stayed there for over a decade. It wasn’t until the arrival of responsive design that new ideas for page layout started appearing. Now with new CSS properties for layout landing in browsers, we are about to see a bigger renaissance in layout design patterns. How can we better use the space inside the glass rectangle? What layout innovations could help users better find and focus on what they want? Take a walk through where we’ve been, where we might be going, and how we can better design for the true medium at hand. This talk features practical examples of what's newly possible, along with access to a code repo for you to play with later.

Live demo: http://labs.thewebahead.net/thelayoutsahead/
Code repo: https://github.com/jensimmons/thelayoutsahead

Presented at:

2015
An Event Apart, Seattle
An Event Apart, San Diego
An Event Apart, DC
An Event Apart, Chicago
An Event Apart, Austin
An Event Apart, San Francisco
Future of Web Design, San Francisco
Future of Web Design, New York
Ampersand, Brighton
Responsive Field Day, Portland
HOW Interactive, Boston
Push Conference, Munich
SFHTML5 Meetup, San Francisco
UIE Virtual Seminar, online
Responsive Web Design Summit, online

2014
Generate, New York
Blend Conf, Charlotte
CSS Dev Conf, New Orleans, Winner of Best Conference Presentation

Response to this talk: https://storify.com/jensimmons/

Interested in having me present this talk at your conference or company? Ping me at http://thewebahead.net/contact. Video available on request, for your consideration.

I am also creating a one- or two-day workshop version. Ask me about it.

Transcript

1. MODERN LAYOUTS
   Getting Out of Our Ruts
   THE WEB AHEAD
   thewebahead.net
   JEN SIMMONS
   @jensimmons
   

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13. The most prominent result from the new eyetracking studies is not actually new.
    We simply confirmed for the umpteenth time that banner blindness is real.
    —Jakob Nielsen, August 20, 2007, Banner Blindness: Old and New Findings
    

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18. A
    C
    B
    A C
    B
    A
    C
    B
    A
    C
    B
    

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47. The medium shapes
    the medium.
    

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48. ?
    

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49. There’s a world of
    Graphic Design
    older than the web.
    

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56. vogue.com
    

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69. Layout should
    serve the content.
    

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70. MAGAZINES
    

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71. 1.
    

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76. CSS Shapes
    

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77. Jeremy Keith
    
    Jeremy Keith lives in
    Brighton, England where he
    makes websites with the
    splendid design agency
    Clearleft.
    

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78. img {
    float: left;
    margin-right: 2em;
    margin-bottom: 0.5em;
    }
    

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79. img {
    float: left;
    margin-right: 2em;
    margin-bottom: 0.5em;
    shape-outside: circle();
    }
    

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80. Working Draft Last Call
    Candidate

    Recommendation
    Proposed

    Recommendation Recommendation
    CSS Shapes, Level 1
    March 20, 2014
    w3.org/TR/css-shapes-1
    

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84. shape-outside: circle();
    shape-outside: ellipse();
    shape-outside: border-box;
    shape-outside: inset(0px round

    120px) border-box;
    shape-outside: url(http://

    example.com/image.jpg);
    shape-margin: 30px;
    

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85. labs.thewebahead.net
    

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86. github.com/jensimmons/thelayoutsahead
    

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87. img {
    width: 50%;
    float: left;
    margin-right: 30px;
    margin-bottom: 30px;
    shape-outside:
    ellipse(50% 50%);
    }
    

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88. img {
    width: 50%;
    float: left;
    margin-right: 30px;
    margin-bottom: 30px;
    border-radius: 100px;
    }
    

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89. img {
    width: 50%;
    float: left;
    margin-right: 30px;
    margin-bottom: 30px;
    border-radius: 100px;
    shape-outside:border-box;
    shape-margin: 30px;
    }
    

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91. img {
    width: 60%;
    float: left;
    margin-right: 30px;
    margin-bottom: 30px;
    shape-outside:
    polygon(50% 0,
    100% 50%,
    50% 100%,
    0 50%);
    }
    

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99. Shapes Level 1 — NOW!
    shape-outside: foo();
    Shapes Level 2 — Later
    shape-inside: foo();
    

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101. Vote for CSS Shapes!
     https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/
     show_bug.cgi?id=1040714
     https://wpdev.uservoice.com/forums/257854-internet-
     explorer-platform/suggestions/6263716-shapes
     

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102. 2.
     

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108. Working Draft Last Call
     Candidate

     Recommendation
     Proposed

     Recommendation Recommendation
     CSS Exclusions, Level 1
     Jan 15, 2015
     w3.org/TR/css3-exclusions
     

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109. Use Absolute Positioning
     to place an item (or CSS Grid).
     Then add property wrap-flow:
     wrap-flow: both;
     

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111. 3.
     

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118. main {
     transform: 

     rotate(-10deg);
     }
     

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119. h1 {
     transform:

     rotate(-90deg);
     }
     

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120. h1 {
     float: left;
     padding-bottom: 200px;
     transform: 

     rotate(-45deg);
     shape-outside: 

     polygon(nonzero,
     -58px 80.55%, 75.95% -70px,
     89.55% -33.65%, -13.4%
     121.45%);
     }
     

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121. main {
     width: 300px;
     }
     @media (min-width: 500px) {
     main {
     background: red;
     transform: rotate(-10deg); }
     }
     @media (min-width: 700px) {
     main {
     background: green;
     transform: rotate(-20deg); }
     }
     @media (min-width: 900px) {
     main {
     width: 400px;
     background: blue;
     transform: rotate(-30deg); }
     }
     

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122. transform: rotate
     

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123. Working Draft Last Call
     Candidate

     Recommendation
     Proposed

     Recommendation Recommendation
     CSS Transforms, Level 1
     Nov 26, 2013
     w3.org/TR/css-transforms-1
     

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125. 4.
     

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132. Multiple Column
     Layout
     

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135. article {
     max-width: 500px;
     margin: 0 auto;
     }
     

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136. article {
     column-count: 2;
     column-gap: 2em;
     }
     

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138. article {
     // column-count: 2;
     column-width: 200px;
     column-gap: 2em;
     }
     

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141. img {
     width: 100%;
     }
     article {
     column-width: 200px;
     column-gap: 2em;
     column-rule: 

     1px solid #444;
     }
     

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142. Working Draft Last Call
     Candidate

     Recommendation
     Proposed

     Recommendation Recommendation
     CSS Multicolumn Layout
     April 12, 2011
     w3.org/TR/css3-multicol
     

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146. CSS Regions
     

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153. 5.
     

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159. 
     
     
     Grace Hopper
     Grace Murray Hopper (December 9,
     1906 – January 1, 1992) was an American
     computer scientist and United States
     Navy rear admiral. A pioneer in the
     field, she was one of the first
     programmers of the Harvard Mark I
     computer, and invented the first
     compiler for a computer programming
     language...
     
     
     

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160. img {
     float: left;
     margin-right: 2em;
     width: 50%;
     }
     div {
     padding: 2em;
     }
     

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162. img {
     float: left;
     margin-right: 2em;
     // width: 50%;
     height: 100vh;
     }
     div {
     padding: 2em;
     }
     

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164. img {
     float: left;
     margin-right: 2em;
     width: 50vw;
     height: 100vh;
     }
     h1 {
     font-size: 6vw;
     }
     

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166. 
     Full-height “Cover
     Sheets” are the new Splash
     Page
     
     Lorum ipsum article
     content…
     

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167. header {
     border: 20px solid #000;
     background: yellow;
     padding: 3em 6em;
     }
     h1 {
     font-size: 10vw;
     margin-top: 0;
     text-align: center;
     }
     

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168. header {
     border: 20px solid #000;
     background: yellow;
     padding: 3em 6em;
     height: 100vh;
     }
     h1 {
     font-size: 10vw;
     margin-top: 0;
     text-align: center;
     }
     

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172. Viewport Units
     

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173. Anyplace you might use em, rem, %, px
     you can instead use:
     vh viewport height
     vw viewport width
     vmin smaller viewport number
     vmax larger viewport number
     

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174. Working Draft Last Call
     Candidate

     Recommendation
     Proposed

     Recommendation Recommendation
     CSS Values and Units,
     Level 3
     July 30, 2013
     w3.org/TR/css3-values
     

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177. 6.
     

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179. header {
     border: 20px solid #000;
     background: yellow;
     min-height: 100vh;
     padding: 3em 6em;
     }
     h1 {
     font-size: 10vw;
     margin: 0;
     text-align: center;
     }
     

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180. header {
     border: 20px solid #000;
     background: yellow;
     min-height: 100vh;
     }
     h1 {
     font-size: 10vw;
     margin: 0;
     }
     

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181. header {
     border: 20px solid #000;
     background: yellow;
     min-height: 100vh;
     display: flex;
     }
     h1 {
     font-size: 10vw;
     margin: auto;
     }
     

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182. header {
     border: 20px solid #000;
     background: yellow;
     min-height: 100vh;
     display: flex;
     }
     h1 {
     font-size: 10vw;
     margin: auto;
     }
     

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184. header {
     border: 20px solid #000;
     background: yellow;
     min-height: 100vh;
     display: flex;
     align-items: center;
     justify-content: center;
     }
     h1 {
     font-size: 10vw;
     // margin: auto;
     }
     

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185. header {
     border: 20px solid #000;
     background: yellow;
     min-height: 100vh;
     display: flex;
     align-items: flex-end;
     justify-content: flex-end;
     }
     h1 {
     font-size: 10vw;
     margin: 0;
     }
     

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186. Flexbox
     

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187. Working Draft Last Call
     Candidate

     Recommendation
     Proposed

     Recommendation Recommendation
     CSS Flexible Box Layout, Level 1
     May 14, 2015
     w3.org/TR/css-flexbox-1
     

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194. 7.
     

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196. CSS Grid Layout
     

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197. Working Draft Last Call
     Candidate

     Recommendation
     Proposed

     Recommendation Recommendation
     CSS Grid Layout, Level 1
     March 17, 2015
     w3.org/TR/css-grid-1
     

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202. Old School
     Floats
     

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203. Dynamic
     Grids
     

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209. When?
     

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210. When Can I Use This
     in Production?
     (aka on a Real Website)
     

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211. Why Did You Tell Me About 

     All This Stuff 

     I Totally Can’t Use Yet?
     

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212. Do Websites Need To Look
     Exactly The Same in Every
     Browser?
     

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213. DoWebsitesNeedToLook

     ExactlyTheSameinEvery

     Browser.com
     

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215. Progressive
     Enhancement
     

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217. When Can I Use This?
     Later
     Shapes Level 2
     Exclusions
     Grid Layout
     Maybe Never
     Regions
     What Was That 

     You Mumbled?
     Fragmentation
     Figures
     Overflow
     (???…)
     Now
     Shapes Level 1
     Flexbox
     Viewport Units
     5 Years Ago
     Rotation
     Multicolumn Layout
     Dynamic Grids
     (odd numbers of columns, 

     ratio grids)
     

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218. Hardest part is
     changing our thinking,
     not our CSS.
     

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219. Magazines
     and
     The Web
     

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225. Translate.
     Don’t Transfer.
     

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229. (*Totally stolen from Karen McGrane’s incredible talk, Adapting Ourselves to Adaptive Content.)
     

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232. The most
     dangerous phrase
     in the language is
     ‘We’ve always done
     it this way.’ 

     — Grace Hopper
     

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233. One Last Story
     

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238. ?
     

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239. THE WEB AHEAD
     thewebahead.net
     JEN SIMMONS
     @jensimmons
     Thank you!
     Workshops. Consulting. Design.
     Come talk to me.
     

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