Key takeaways:
- Centering elements in UI design is often overlooked despite the simplicity of the underlying CSS principles.
- Common issues include misaligned text, inconsistent line height, and improperly aligned icons.
- Solutions involve understanding font metrics, adjusting CSS properties, and opting for better design practices.
- Icon fonts introduce additional challenges and are generally discouraged in favor of image formats with defined dimensions.
- Designers and developers must pay close attention to detail and work collaboratively to achieve visually balanced UIs.
# Introduction to Centering in UI Design
- Centering is a fundamental aspect of UI design that is often mishandled.
- Modern CSS provides simple solutions for horizontal and vertical centering.
- Despite the know-how, real-world applications often exhibit poor alignment.
# Fonts and Text Alignment
- Fonts are a significant source of alignment issues due to inconsistent metrics.
- Examples of poorly aligned text are prevalent across major companies' interfaces.
- Solutions involve adjusting line height and using fonts with consistent metrics.
# Line Height Complications
- Line height is a complex property that affects vertical centering.
- Inconsistencies in line height lead to misalignment, especially across different containers.
- Addressing line height requires a deep understanding of CSS specifications and font metrics.
# Icon Alignment Issues
- Icons suffer from the same alignment issues as text, compounded by their rectangular nature.
- Aligning icons next to text is particularly challenging due to varying font and icon sizes.
- CSS's property offers multiple values but fails to provide a perfect solution for icon alignment.
# Problems with Icon Fonts
- Icon fonts complicate alignment and sizing, leading to inconsistent appearances.
- Despite their drawbacks, icon fonts are widely used, resulting in poorly aligned UI elements.
- A switch to image-based icons with defined dimensions is recommended for better control over alignment.
# Designer and Developer Skill Issues
- Both designers and developers struggle with centering elements, leading to visual imbalances.
- Designers must account for the shape of icons and adjust for optical compensation.
- Developers need to understand font metrics and CSS properties to achieve precise alignment.
# Solutions for Designers
- Designers should create tight bounding boxes for text to facilitate accurate centering.
- Tools like Figma offer features to improve text alignment, though they may not be enabled by default.
# Solutions for Font Designers
- Font designers are encouraged to set metrics that ensure balanced ascender and descender spaces.
- Choosing fonts with aligned metrics, such as SF Pro Text, Inter, and Martian Mono, can simplify the centering process.
# Solutions for Web Developers
- Web developers should use specific font metrics to calculate the correct padding and alignment for text and icons.
- Tools like opentype.js can provide the necessary metrics for precise alignment adjustments.
# Ditching Icon Fonts
- The use of icon fonts should be discontinued in favor of traditional image formats that are easier to align.
- Aligning rectangles (icons as images) is more straightforward than aligning text or icon fonts.
# Optical Compensations
- Developers should use visual balancing techniques to manually adjust elements within their containers for optimal optical alignment.
# The Importance of Attention to Detail
- Everyone involved in UI creation must prioritize alignment for a polished final product.
- Bad centering can detract from the overall UI quality, while well-aligned elements can significantly enhance it.
# Conclusion
- Achieving well-centered and balanced UIs is a collective effort that requires attention to detail and a willingness to tackle design and development challenges.
- By following best practices and avoiding common pitfalls, such as the overuse of icon fonts, designers and developers can create visually appealing and functional interfaces.
# Honorable Mention
- The article acknowledges the challenges of centering and encourages readers to support the author's work on Patreon for early access to future content.
# Call to Action
- Readers are encouraged to subscribe for more insights on programming and UI design.
- The author invites discussions on HackerNews and shares their open-source contributions, including Fira Code, DataScript, Clojure Sublimed, and Humble UI.