Why Does Percentage Padding Break Flex Item Continuity?

Why Percentage Padding Disrupts Flex Item Continuity

In a flexbox container, when percentage padding is applied to its non-flex child elements, it can cause the container to split into multiple lines. This behavior occurs due to the complex calculations involved in determining the width of the container.

When percentage padding is applied, its value is calculated relative to the width of the containing block. However, the width of the containing block is initially unknown and must be calculated based on its content, including the padded elements.

This leads to a circular calculation:

1. Calculate the containing block's width based on the padded elements.
2. Use the calculated width to determine the percentage padding value.
3. Apply the padding to the elements, which affects their size.
4. Recalculate the containing block's width based on the updated element sizes.

This process continues iteratively until the width of the containing block stabilizes. However, during this iteration, the padding values for the elements are constantly being adjusted, causing the elements to shift and potentially break the continuity of the flex item.

In contrast, when fixed padding is used, the calculation is simpler and done in a single step. The padding value is added to the element's width, resulting in a predictable and stable width for the containing block. Consequently, the flex item retains its continuity and remains on a single line.

The above is the detailed content of Why Does Percentage Padding Break Flex Item Continuity?. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!