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CSS How To

Css How To, Style Sheet, External Css, Internal Css, Inline Css, Cascading Order, Style, Link, Head, Property, Value, Unit, Browser, Formatting, Text Editor, Mystyle.css, Style Attribute, Multiple Style Sheets

A browser will format an HTML document based on the information found in a style sheet when it reads one (CSS How To).


Three Ways to Insert CSS

There are three ways of inserting a style sheet:

  • External CSS
  • Internal CSS
  • Inline CSS

External CSS

An external style sheet allows you to alter one file to alter the appearance of a complete website!

A link to the external style sheet file must appear inside the head section of every HTML page, inside the <link> element.

Example

External styles are defined within the <link> element, inside the <head> section of an HTML page:

				
					<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="mystyle.css">
</head>
<body>

<h1>This is a heading</h1>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>

<script>class RocketElementorAnimation{constructor(){this.deviceMode=document.createElement("span"),this.deviceMode.id="elementor-device-mode",this.deviceMode.setAttribute("class","elementor-screen-only"),document.body.appendChild(this.deviceMode)}_detectAnimations(){let t=getComputedStyle(this.deviceMode,":after").content.replace(/"/g,"");this.animationSettingKeys=this._listAnimationSettingsKeys(t),document.querySelectorAll(".elementor-invisible[data-settings]").forEach(t=>{const e=t.getBoundingClientRect();if(e.bottom>=0&&e.top<=window.innerHeight)try{this._animateElement(t)}catch(t){}})}_animateElement(t){const e=JSON.parse(t.dataset.settings),i=e._animation_delay||e.animation_delay||0,n=e[this.animationSettingKeys.find(t=>e[t])];if("none"===n)return void t.classList.remove("elementor-invisible");t.classList.remove(n),this.currentAnimation&&t.classList.remove(this.currentAnimation),this.currentAnimation=n;let s=setTimeout(()=>{t.classList.remove("elementor-invisible"),t.classList.add("animated",n),this._removeAnimationSettings(t,e)},i);window.addEventListener("rocket-startLoading",function(){clearTimeout(s)})}_listAnimationSettingsKeys(t="mobile"){const e=[""];switch(t){case"mobile":e.unshift("_mobile");case"tablet":e.unshift("_tablet");case"desktop":e.unshift("_desktop")}const i=[];return["animation","_animation"].forEach(t=>{e.forEach(e=>{i.push(t+e)})}),i}_removeAnimationSettings(t,e){this._listAnimationSettingsKeys().forEach(t=>delete e[t]),t.dataset.settings=JSON.stringify(e)}static run(){const t=new RocketElementorAnimation;requestAnimationFrame(t._detectAnimations.bind(t))}}document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded",RocketElementorAnimation.run);</script></body>
</html>
				
			

Any text editor can be used to create an external style sheet, which needs to be saved with a.css extension.

None of the HTML tags should be present in the external.css file.

This is the appearance of the “mystyle.css” file:

"mystyle.css"

				
					body {
  background-color: lightblue;
}

h1 {
  color: navy;
  margin-left: 20px;
}
				
			

Note: Do not add a space between the property value (20) and the unit (px):

Incorrect (space): margin-left: 20 px;

Correct (no space): margin-left: 20px;

Internal CSS

If there is only one HTML page with a distinct style, an internal style sheet might be used.

Within the head part of the <style> element, the internal style is defined.

Example

Internal styles are defined within the <style> element, inside the <head> section of an HTML page:

				
					<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<style>
body {
  background-color: linen;
}

h1 {
  color: red;
  margin-left: 40px;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>

<h1>This is a title</h1>
<p>This is a sentence.</p>

</body>
</html>

				
			

Inline CSS

Applying a distinct style to a single element can be done with an inline style.

Add the style attribute to the appropriate element to apply inline styles. Any CSS property can be contained in the style attribute.

Example

Inline styles are defined within the “style” attribute of the relevant element:

				
					<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>

<h1 style="color:blue;text-align:center;">This is a heading</h1>
<p style="color:red;">This is a paragraph.</p>

</body>
</html>
				
			

Advice: By combining presentation and text, an inline style forfeits many of the benefits of a style sheet. Use this technique with caution.

Multiple Style Sheets

The value from the most recent style sheet read will be applied if several properties have been defined for the same selector (element) in separate style sheets. 

Assume that an external style sheet has the following style for the <h1> element:

				
					h1 {
  color: navy;
}
				
			

Then, assume that an internal style sheet also has the following style for the <h1> element:

				
					h1 {
  color: orange;   
}
				
			

Example

If the internal style is defined after the link to the external style sheet, the <h1> elements will be “orange”:

				
					<head>
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="mystyle.css">
<style>
h1 {
  color: orange;
}
</style>
</head>
				
			

Example

However, if the internal style is defined before the link to the external style sheet, the <h1> elements will be “navy”:

				
					<head>
<style>
h1 {
  color: orange;
}
</style>
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="mystyle.css">
</head>
				
			

Cascading Order

When an HTML element has multiple defined styles, which one will be used?

According to the following guidelines, all of the styles on a page will “cascade” into a new “virtual” style sheet, with number one having the highest priority:

Style that is inline (inside an HTML element)

Style sheets, both internal and external (in the head section)

default browser

Hence, an inline style takes precedence over both internal and external styles as well as browser defaults.

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CSS How-To: Mastering the Art of Styling Your Web Pages

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) are the essential tool for styling and formatting the appearance of your web pages. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced web developer, understanding the various CSS techniques and best practices is crucial for creating visually appealing and responsive websites.

In this blog section, we’ll dive into the fundamentals of CSS and explore the different ways you can apply styles to your web content.

External CSS: Separating your styles from your HTML structure is a best practice. You can create an external CSS file (e.g., mystyle.css) and link it to your HTML document using the “ element within the “ section.

Internal CSS: If you prefer to keep your styles within the same HTML file, you can use the `

CSS How-To: Mastering the Art of Styling Your Web Pages

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) are the essential tools for styling and formatting the appearance of your web pages. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced web developer, understanding the various CSS techniques can greatly enhance your ability to create visually appealing and responsive websites.

In this blog post, we’ll explore the different ways to apply CSS to your HTML elements, from external style sheets to inline styles. We’ll also dive into the cascading order of CSS rules and how to effectively manage multiple style sheets.

External CSS: Linking an External Style Sheet

To use an external CSS file, you’ll need to create a new file with a .css extension (e.g., mystyle.css) and then link it to your HTML document using thetag within the section.

Internal CSS: Embedding Styles in the HTML Document

Alternatively, you can include your CSS rules directly within the

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