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General Discussion

Steven Ventimiglia
Steven Ventimiglia
27,412 Points
Posted by Steven Ventimiglia
Steven Ventimiglia
27,412 Points

Please explain why people are obsessed with "grid" frameworks.

I've been in this industry for two decades and I simply don't get it.

"Let's bloat our code so the site looks exactly like someone elses... but it's responsive!"

I mean, I might seem like a grumpy old developer, but as a seasoned designer as well I can of course understand the importance of a grid in design. In fact, it goes way back.

However, in writing code, it feel like I'm being forced to walk around the entire block before going home, which is two feet in front of me.

I thought we were always supposed to avoid re-inventing the wheel. But in this case, it seems like that is being ignored. Like I'm playing connect the dots as opposed to drawing a picture, but now I need to re-arrange the dots because it's not allowing me to draw the picture I intended to.

I want some feedback. It just seems like a waste of time to learn something that seems like a magic wand of stupidty. This is your chance to convince me otherwise.

1 Answer

karis hutcheson
karis hutcheson
7,036 Points
karis hutcheson
karis hutcheson
7,036 Points

I think you hit the nail on the head with the reason. It's the responsive aspect of grid designs. Looking forward into the future, displays will be coming in a huge variety of sizes and aspect ratios. I mean, right now I'm running a dual monitor setup with my laptop (1600 X 900) and a TV (1920 X 1080). I need that my designs to scale well between them and onto my smartphone (2560 X 440 ) or a smart-car display or a smart watch; which who knows how big that is. This can be accomplished without using a grid-style layout but, often, the layout styles must drastically change between sizes via a multitude of media queries. I think the main benefit of a grid layout is that we can use blocks, floats and responsive sizing to maximize the scope of compatible devices while minimizing our responsive-specific code. Even with all the bloatware often contained in a framework, it still beats trying to make my fluid layout responsive; at least it does for me.