CSS-TRICKS

The journey to create a polyfill for the upcoming CSS <code>random()</code> function that works in all browsers.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/css-random-function-polyfill/">Let’s Use the Emergent CSS random() Function in all the Browsers</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

The journey to create a polyfill for the upcoming CSS random() function that works in all browsers.
Let’s Use the Emergent CSS random() Function in all the Browsers originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

Let’s Use the Emergent CSS random() Function in all the Browsers

Well, that’s a wrap. No, not a flex-wrap, but rather today marks a new day, week, month, season, aaaand new edition of What’s important (#18), bringing you the best content that developers have produced over the last couple of weeks or so.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/whats-important-18/">What’s !important #18: &lt;geolocation&gt;, Syntax ::highlight()ing, named-feature(), and More</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

Well, that’s a wrap. No, not a flex-wrap, but rather today marks a new day, week, month, season, aaaand new edition of What’s important (#18), bringing you the best content that developers have produced over the last couple of weeks or so.
What’s !important #18: <geolocation>, Syntax ::highlight()ing, named-feature(), and More originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

What’s !important #18: <geolocation>, Syntax ::highlight()ing, named-feature(), and More

The general idea is that we create a Document Picture-in-Picture window (DPIP window), and then we put HTML, CSS, and JavaScript into it.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/creating-web-widgets-using-the-document-picture-in-picture-api/">Creating Web Widgets Using the Document Picture-in-Picture API</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

The general idea is that we create a Document Picture-in-Picture window (DPIP window), and then we put HTML, CSS, and JavaScript into it.
Creating Web Widgets Using the Document Picture-in-Picture API originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

Creating Web Widgets Using the Document Picture-in-Picture API

The CSS <code>animation-trigger</code> property allows you to delay the start of a CSS animation until a specific trigger occurs.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/almanac/properties/a/animation-trigger/">animation-trigger</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

The CSS animation-trigger property allows you to delay the start of a CSS animation until a specific trigger occurs.
animation-trigger originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

animation-trigger

Syntax highlighting for code blocks without the complicated markup, spans, classes, and bloated JavaScript, courtesy of Uncle Dave.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/microlighter-syntax-highlighter/">MicroLighter: Syntax Highlighter</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

Syntax highlighting for code blocks without the complicated markup, spans, classes, and bloated JavaScript, courtesy of Uncle Dave.
MicroLighter: Syntax Highlighter originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

MicroLighter: Syntax Highlighter

Seven and half years after blocks arrived in Core, WordPress introduces a way to build blocks without React annd build pipelines. All you need is PHP.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/wordpress-php-block-registration/">WordPress PHP-Only Block Registration</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

Seven and half years after blocks arrived in Core, WordPress introduces a way to build blocks without React annd build pipelines. All you need is PHP.
WordPress PHP-Only Block Registration originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

WordPress PHP-Only Block Registration

A newly resolved proposal would allow us to select classes that are a prefix for variations with a wildcard, like <code>.prefix-*</code>.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/resolved-css-class-prefix-selector/">Resolved: CSS Class Prefix Selector</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

A newly resolved proposal would allow us to select classes that are a prefix for variations with a wildcard, like .prefix-*.
Resolved: CSS Class Prefix Selector originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

Resolved: CSS Class Prefix Selector

Apply a style when someone navigates from one specific page to another. The idea being it'd make the sources for cross-document view transitions declarative in CSS rather than managing that stuff in JavaScript.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/css-navigation-matching-early-days/">CSS Navigation Matching, Early Days</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

Apply a style when someone navigates from one specific page to another. The idea being it'd make the sources for cross-document view transitions declarative in CSS rather than managing that stuff in JavaScript.
CSS Navigation Matching, Early Days originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

CSS Navigation Matching, Early Days

As someone who teaches beginning web development, I find that building a WordPress site makes for a great final project. Hosting those projects has always been a roadblock though.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/wordpress-student-plan/">WordPress.com Student Plan</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

As someone who teaches beginning web development, I find that building a WordPress site makes for a great final project. Hosting those projects has always been a roadblock though.
WordPress.com Student Plan originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

WordPress.com Student Plan

Lea's pushing back on light/dark mode implementations that display three state options for visitors: light, dark, and system.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/dark-mode-toggles-two-states-are-enough/">Dark mode toggles: two states are enough</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

Lea's pushing back on light/dark mode implementations that display three state options for visitors: light, dark, and system.
Dark mode toggles: two states are enough originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

Dark mode toggles: two states are enough

Plus, how to style skeleton UIs, how to enable diagonal scrolling, how images can overflow themselves, and yet, still more. Basically, how to do a lot of really cool (CSS) stuff.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/whats-important-17/">What’s !important #17: Custom Highlight API, CSS Navigation Matching, Fixing text-stroke, and More</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

Plus, how to style skeleton UIs, how to enable diagonal scrolling, how images can overflow themselves, and yet, still more. Basically, how to do a lot of really cool (CSS) stuff.
What’s !important #17: Custom Highlight API, CSS Navigation Matching, Fixing text-stroke, and More originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

What’s !important #17: Custom Highlight API, CSS Navigation Matching, Fixing text-stroke, and More

The warning is correct. And the recommended fixes you've probably seen are wrong. Here's what you can do instead to properly fix the issue.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/blocked-aria-hidden-fix/">Blocked aria-hidden: The Warning is Right, and Every Fix You&#8217;ve Found is Wrong</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

The warning is correct. And the recommended fixes you've probably seen are wrong. Here's what you can do instead to properly fix the issue.
Blocked aria-hidden: The Warning is Right, and Every Fix You’ve Found is Wrong originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

Blocked aria-hidden: The Warning is Right, and Every Fix You’ve Found is Wrong

Border images are an overlooked feature. One neat fact is that border image slices can run across entire borders on an element, and animating it creates beautiful effects.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/animating-css-border-image/">Animating CSS border-image</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

Border images are an overlooked feature. One neat fact is that border image slices can run across entire borders on an element, and animating it creates beautiful effects.
Animating CSS border-image originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

Animating CSS border-image

Smashing Magazine’s in-person conferences are back and returning to the wonderful city of Freiburg next month, September 7–10.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/smashingconf-freiburg-2026-september-7-10/">SmashingConf Freiburg 2026, September 7-10</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

Smashing Magazine’s in-person conferences are back and returning to the wonderful city of Freiburg next month, September 7–10.
SmashingConf Freiburg 2026, September 7-10 originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.

SmashingConf Freiburg 2026, September 7-10

There's a lot of nuance to the <code>&#60;dialog&#62;</code> element, a seemingly little piece of web architecture. I've got some notes from digging into it.
<hr />
<a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com/using-and-styling-the-dialog-element/">Using and Styling the Dialog Element</a> originally handwritten and published with love on <a rel="nofollow" href="https://css-tricks.com">CSS-Tricks</a>. You should really <a href="https://css-tricks.com/newsletters/">get the newsletter</a> as well.

There's a lot of nuance to the <dialog> element, a seemingly little piece of web architecture. I've got some notes from digging into it.
Using and Styling the Dialog Element originally handwritten and published with love on CSS-Tricks. You should really get the newsletter as well.