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ilian92

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 7, 2012
163
106
To the web developers out there, do you use a front end framework like Bootstrap for your projects, or do you prefer starting from scratch?

Just out of interest. :)
 
I don't use a particular framework like Bootstrap or Foundation but have my own project folder customized to suit my own needs and work style. Everytime i start a new project i just make a copy of that folder and start working from there (I have it set up so that I can invoke a create project command from Sublime and it makes a copy where I want).

I prefer doing it this way because I can have everything tailored to my workflow, as opposed to having to learn and adapt to a particular framework.
 
I don't usually start off with a framework because then I'm dependent on someone else for it. And if I have a problem, I can't fix it, I have to wait for someone else to.

Yes yes, I know if I find a bug in bootstrap, I can fix it myself or report it, but if I have to learn the inner-workings of a framework, it's not really a framework I want to use, is it?

Having said that, my boss asked me to re-write the front end of an enterprise class application from Flex to HTML5 (in 2 months:eek:) and I'm using bootstrap and it's going very fast.
 
Yeah, they are quite tempting, aren't they?

But generally I tend to not use one for a more complex project. Feel there's way too much in there that I just don't need, so why overload my pages with unnecessary code. Plus if something goes wrong you have to really dig deep into the system to find out what's causing it and how to fix it, this sometimes messes something else up..
 
18 months ago, I tried using Bootstrap for a project, just to see how good it was.

I now use it in everything. Literally every web site I'm responsible for uses Bootstrap and FontAwesome.

I'm still on Boostrap 2 just now. Moving to Bootstrap 3 and FontAwesome 4 requires some manual changes to your HTML, especially with the changes to its grid structure. I'm putting off the horrible task of replacing loads of .span6 with .col-md-6. Maybe this summer.
 
Foundation 5 with SASS & Compass. Always, for every project. It's just spectacular.

There are JS polyfills for getting it to work reasonably in IE8. Some might consider this bad practice, I consider it bad practice to be using IE8 in 2014.

The benefit of using the SASS version is that I can strip out all the styling or any elements that aren't required, or if I wanted, even just down to the grid css itself.

I'd argue that there is little reason to build your own grid system these days. Unless you have a large amount of time available or the project calls for something truly mind-bending.
 
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It's usually dictated by the project I'm working on.

I built my own SASS-based setup for a recent project that was built in the Sitecore CMS. When I work in Adobe CQ/Experience Manager, I usually pull in Bootstrap or Foundation, and on a series of flat marketing pages I'm building, I'm using Foundation.

It's good to know how to build a solid fluid grid system yourself, but having an off-the-shelf solution is sometimes good for speed.
 
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