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390 lines
7.2 KiB
Markdown
390 lines
7.2 KiB
Markdown
---
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language: less
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filename: learnless.less
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contributors:
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- ["Saravanan Ganesh", "http://srrvnn.me"]
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---
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Less is a CSS pre-processor, that adds features such as variables, nesting, mixins and more.
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Less (and other preprocessors, such as [Sass](http://sass-lang.com/)) help developers to write maintainable and DRY (Don't Repeat Yourself) code.
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```css
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//Single line comments are removed when Less is compiled to CSS.
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/*Multi line comments are preserved. */
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/* Variables
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==============================*/
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/* You can store a CSS value (such as a color) in a variable.
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Use the '@' symbol to create a variable. */
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@primary-color: #a3a4ff;
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@secondary-color: #51527f;
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@body-font: 'Roboto', sans-serif;
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/* You can use the variables throughout your stylesheet.
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Now if you want to change a color, you only have to make the change once.*/
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body {
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background-color: @primary-color;
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color: @secondary-color;
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font-family: @body-font;
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}
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/* This would compile to: */
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body {
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background-color: #a3a4ff;
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color: #51527F;
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font-family: 'Roboto', sans-serif;
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}
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/* This is much more maintainable than having to change the color
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each time it appears throughout your stylesheet. */
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/* Mixins
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==============================*/
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/* If you find you are writing the same code for more than one
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element, you might want to reuse that easily.*/
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.center {
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display: block;
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margin-left: auto;
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margin-right: auto;
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left: 0;
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right: 0;
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}
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/* You can use the mixin by simply adding the selector as a style */
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div {
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.center;
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background-color: @primary-color;
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}
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/* Which would compile to: */
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.center {
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display: block;
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margin-left: auto;
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margin-right: auto;
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left: 0;
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right: 0;
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}
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div {
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display: block;
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margin-left: auto;
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margin-right: auto;
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left: 0;
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right: 0;
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background-color: #a3a4ff;
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}
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/* You can omit the mixin code from being compiled by adding parenthesis
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after the selector */
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.center() {
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display: block;
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margin-left: auto;
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margin-right: auto;
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left: 0;
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right: 0;
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}
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div {
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.center;
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background-color: @primary-color;
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}
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/* Which would compile to: */
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div {
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display: block;
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margin-left: auto;
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margin-right: auto;
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left: 0;
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right: 0;
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background-color: #a3a4ff;
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}
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/* Nesting
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==============================*/
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/* Less allows you to nest selectors within selectors */
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ul {
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list-style-type: none;
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margin-top: 2em;
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li {
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background-color: #f00;
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}
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}
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/* '&' will be replaced by the parent selector. */
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/* You can also nest pseudo-classes. */
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/* Keep in mind that over-nesting will make your code less maintainable.
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Best practices recommend going no more than 3 levels deep when nesting.
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For example: */
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ul {
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list-style-type: none;
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margin-top: 2em;
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li {
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background-color: red;
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&:hover {
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background-color: blue;
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}
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a {
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color: white;
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}
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}
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}
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/* Compiles to: */
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ul {
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list-style-type: none;
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margin-top: 2em;
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}
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ul li {
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background-color: red;
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}
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ul li:hover {
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background-color: blue;
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}
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ul li a {
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color: white;
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}
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/* Functions
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==============================*/
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/* Less provides functions that can be used to accomplish a variety of
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tasks. Consider the following: */
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/* Functions can be invoked by using their name and passing in the
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required arguments. */
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body {
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width: round(10.25px);
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}
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.header {
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background-color: lighten(#000, 0.5);
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}
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.footer {
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background-color: fadeout(#000, 0.25)
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}
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/* Compiles to: */
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body {
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width: 10px;
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}
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.header {
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background-color: #010101;
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}
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.footer {
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background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.75);
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}
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/* You may also define your own functions. Functions are very similar to
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mixins. When trying to choose between a function or a mixin, remember
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that mixins are best for generating CSS while functions are better for
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logic that might be used throughout your Less code. The examples in
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the 'Math Operators' section are ideal candidates for becoming a reusable
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function. */
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/* This function calculates the average of two numbers: */
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.average(@x, @y) {
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@average-result: ((@x + @y) / 2);
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}
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div {
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.average(16px, 50px); // "call" the mixin
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padding: @average-result; // use its "return" value
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}
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/* Compiles to: */
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div {
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padding: 33px;
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}
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/*Extend (Inheritance)
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==============================*/
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/*Extend is a way to share the properties of one selector with another. */
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.display {
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height: 50px;
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}
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.display-success {
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&:extend(.display);
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border-color: #22df56;
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}
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/* Compiles to: */
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.display,
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.display-success {
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height: 50px;
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}
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.display-success {
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border-color: #22df56;
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}
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/* Extending a CSS statement is preferable to creating a mixin
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because of the way it groups together the classes that all share
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the same base styling. If this was done with a mixin, the properties
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would be duplicated for each statement that
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called the mixin. While it won't affect your workflow, it will
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add unnecessary bloat to the files created by the Less compiler. */
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/*Partials and Imports
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==============================*/
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/* Less allows you to create partial files. This can help keep your Less
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code modularized. Partial files conventionally begin with an '_',
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e.g. _reset.less. and are imported into a main less file that gets
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compiled into CSS */
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/* Consider the following CSS which we'll put in a file called _reset.less */
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html,
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body,
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ul,
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ol {
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margin: 0;
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padding: 0;
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}
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/* Less offers @import which can be used to import partials into a file.
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This differs from the traditional CSS @import statement which makes
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another HTTP request to fetch the imported file. Less takes the
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imported file and combines it with the compiled code. */
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@import 'reset';
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body {
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font-size: 16px;
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font-family: Helvetica, Arial, Sans-serif;
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}
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/* Compiles to: */
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html, body, ul, ol {
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margin: 0;
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padding: 0;
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}
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body {
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font-size: 16px;
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font-family: Helvetica, Arial, Sans-serif;
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}
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/* Math Operations
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==============================*/
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/* Less provides the following operators: +, -, *, /, and %. These can
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be useful for calculating values directly in your Less files instead
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of using values that you've already calculated by hand. Below is an example
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of a setting up a simple two column design. */
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@content-area: 960px;
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@main-content: 600px;
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@sidebar-content: 300px;
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@main-size: @main-content / @content-area * 100%;
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@sidebar-size: @sidebar-content / @content-area * 100%;
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@gutter: 100% - (@main-size + @sidebar-size);
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body {
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width: 100%;
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}
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.main-content {
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width: @main-size;
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}
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.sidebar {
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width: @sidebar-size;
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}
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.gutter {
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width: @gutter;
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}
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/* Compiles to: */
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body {
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width: 100%;
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}
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.main-content {
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width: 62.5%;
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}
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.sidebar {
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width: 31.25%;
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}
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.gutter {
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width: 6.25%;
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}
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```
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## Practice Less
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If you want to play with Less in your browser, check out:
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* [Codepen](http://codepen.io/)
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* [LESS2CSS](http://lesscss.org/less-preview/)
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## Compatibility
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Less can be used in any project as long as you have a program to compile it into CSS. You'll want to verify that the CSS you're using is compatible with your target browsers.
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[QuirksMode CSS](http://www.quirksmode.org/css/) and [CanIUse](http://caniuse.com) are great resources for checking compatibility.
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## Further reading
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* [Official Documentation](http://lesscss.org/features/)
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* [Less CSS - Beginner's Guide](http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/less-basic/)
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