Why learning Bootstrap is a good idea
Bootstrap is an open-source framework maintained by folks who are really good with CSS. They have taken care of making the framework run smoothly and they have covered several common design features you may want. It makes designing a lot simpler and you don’t have to worry too much about how your site looks like on different browsers because the framework already takes care of that. It saves you a lot of time.
Ease Of Use
Bootstrap provides LESS files for those who are accustomed to CSS preprocessing but if you don’t know it or don’t want to use it, you can have plain CSS files as well. All you need to do is download the files from Bootstrap’s website, unzip them and include them in the head of your HTML files. This gives you the access to the entire framework and you can start using the pre defined Bootstrap classes.
Highly Flexible
Bootstrap gives developers the flexibility to develop. It’s a CSS framework with predefined classes for the layout, grid system, various CSS components, and Javascript functions. These are all included and the developer has the flexibility and freedom of using only those classes that are needed in the markup. This makes it highly flexible as only those objects that are needed in the markup are used by the developer that can choose to leave the rest.
Responsive Grid
This is the strongest part of the bootstrap framework. Bootstrap offers a 12 column grid system. The grid system is responsive, that means it adjusts itself depending on the device resolution of the client. These grids have further classes that have been defined in sync with the device resolution that they represent. These grids have the classes xs, sm, md and lg, each representing a device resolution. All the developer needs to do is include these classes while defining the visibility of an element in the markup and hence come up with a responsive website. The responsive grid makes developing responsive websites really easy.
Comprehensive List Of Components
Bootstrap has all the components you would require for your website. It includes Drop Down Menus, Navigation Bar, Progress Bar, Alerts, Labels, Badges etc. It comprehensively includes all the components you may require and you can easily include them in your markup. This saves a lot of time as you would not have to develop these from scratch and worry about the cross browser and cross device compatibility. All that is needed to get them working is to include the correct classes in your markup and things would all into place.
Leveraging Javascript Libraries
Bootstrap has over a dozen javascript plugins pre-developed and ready to be used. There are various popular functions that have been included. These include Tabs, ScrollSpy, Tooltips, Pop Overs, Alerts and lots more. Again using and customizing them is really easy.
Frequent Updates
Bootstrap releases more updates than any other framework. The bootstrap development team starts working on the solution as soon as encounters any problem. With Bootstrap updates released consistently and frequently, you can rest assured that you are working with the latest tools. This also ensures a wider range of cross browser and cross device compatibility.
Detailed Documentation And Vast Community
Bootstrap has a very detailed documentation and a vast community supporting it. Even if a developer is new to Bootstrap, the documentation provides a great support in learning it without any hassles. The documentation includes examples and demos which help understand the concepts and getting accustomed to Bootstrap in a short span of time. Despite such a detailed documentation even if a developer gets stuck somewhere there is a vast community and a lot of forums that help answer questions.
Consistency
Bootstrap was developed with an idea to give developers a centralized development code. Bootstrap provides you with the end result which is uniform across platforms. You don’t have to worry about compatibility issues with Internet Explorer, Google Chrome or Firefox, it gives you the same performance independent of the platform.
The Best Way to Learn Bootstrap
What professional coders say about this:
Start with Bootply — it’s an editor/playground I created that provides access to all of the Bootstrap CSS classes and JS components. There are also a lot of snippets and examples shared by other users.
To get started, just select a template from the left side bar. The template’s CSS, HTML and JavaScript code can then be edited, previewed and saved for later use.
It’s a simple way to play with the different Bootstrap elements and create a layout.
Carol Skelly, 20 years of Web development and design.
The best way to learn Bootstrap is by practice.
I would suggest talking to your friends and relatives to see who needs a website done. You will surely find more than one.
Then, I would suggest downloading a free template that would fit the purpose of the website you want to create.
Great resources can be found at:
- Bootstrapious – Free Bootstrap Themes & Templates,
- Start Bootstrap
- Black Tie – Free Handsome Bootstrap Themes.
These themes use Bootstrap “correctly” and their syntax is nice and clear.
And then, simply experiment with the template, see how everything works and bend the template as you want.
I am sure you will make it, there is really nothing too complicated about Bootstrap.
Some great resources to check out would also be:
- Official Bootstrap docs – Getting started · Bootstrap
- Bootstrap linter (checks your code for incorrect syntax) – Bootlint Online
- Bootstrap tutorials on Bootstrapious – Bootstrap + coding tutorials | Step-by-step tutorials by Bootstrapious
- Bootstrap tutorials on Scotch Web Development – Scotch Web Development
- CSS tutorials, in case you are a real web design beginner – CSS Tutorial
Ondřej Švestka, Sailing in the web design vessel for 10 years.
How to learn Bootstrap in 10 minutes
The process can be broken down into five (easy) steps:
- wireframe your project
- choose a template
- go shopping on the components page
- paste components onto your page
- add some custom frosting on your hipster cupcake
LoorinM, Software Engineer
The best way to learn is self-learning via websites/tutorials.
Before learning Bootstrap you must have some knowledge of HTML5 and CSS3.
You can learn the basics of HTML and CSS from W3Schools Online Web Tutorials. There are books on html5 too that help, but I prefer online tutorials.
Now once you gained the basic knowledge of the HTML, CSS and javascript/jQuery area, you can look into the Bootstrap official website Bootstrap · The world’s most popular mobile-first and responsive front-end framework. They have tutorials, that may take some time, but explore most of the features of the site. You can download the latest version from the site and try out the tutorials on your local machine. Once you have completed the tutorials the site also has some pre-made templates of website layouts. You can use the source code of these websites to analyze the website structures.
Now you have the understanding of how Bootstrap works, take any one of your favorite websites, try to understand the layout of the website and start coding in Bootstrap!
Upasana Sharma, Software consultant
Bootstrap is a free front-end framework for faster, easier and responsive web development which includes predefined HTML & CSS templates for all elements.
One can learn Bootstrap easily in numerous ways :
- W3Schools Bootstrap 3 Tutorial
- Tutorials Point Bootstrap Tutorial
- Derek Banas Tutorial Bootstrap Tutorial
- KudVenkat Tutorials bootstrap tutorial for beginners
- The Newboston Tutorials Bootstrap Tutorials for Beginners Playlist
- Once you have got an idea how bootstrap works, you can refer to the official website of Twitter Bootstrap for its documentation CSS · Bootstrap
Vamsi Krishna Namala, User Interface Developer at Mindtree.
That’s all folks. If you know other ways, don’t forget to share them in the comment section below.
