Tailwindcss: Atomic CSS

[benfrain]

Hello, could you explain how tailwind differs from Atomic CSS (http://acss.io)?

Are there any fundamental design differences that led to you creating something different rather than using an existing utility framework such as Atomic?

May also be good to link to 'prior art' such as Atomic in this respect within the docs?

[niallobrien]

For starters, look at the syntax of the Atomic library; I nearly puked and immediately closed the tab. :rofl:

[joshmanders]

oh god, I didn't even notice that, @niallobrien. That syntax is hideous.

[VinSpee]

syntax is a matter of opinion. I think an actual answer would be more useful.

Conceptually they're similar. The primary differences IMO:

• tailwind has a set of opinions in an effort to make it practical, whereas Atomic CSS doesn't, in an effort to be more flexible.
• Atomic CSS's Atomizer ensures your CSS output is as small as possible, whereas tailwind will give you a full stylesheet, no matter what you're actually consuming.

[benfrain]

@VinSpee thanks 👍
But, in essence Tailwind is still build upon the fundamental approach pioneered by Atomic back in 2013, correct?

[niallobrien]

Correct, though I liken it more to Tachyons or BassCSS.

[sebastienbarre]

Definitely closer to Tachyons. Cursory look, this project has better colors, and good (in-progress) doc, though it could use a components example gallery in the long-run. I do like Tachyons type scale and measure better, but, you know, taste. Keep up the great work.

[DCzajkowski]

Tailwind has also awesome utilities that work with PostCSS like @apply or @responsive.

[davidhemphill]

Really enjoying the discussion here! We're working hard on refining the messaging around the commonalities and differentiation between other popular frameworks, and will be making some changes in that direction soon.

That said, we're trying to keep the main repo's issue tracker for bugs, issues and feature suggestions. I'd love it if you'd continue the discussion over at our /discuss repo. Thank you!

[thierryk]

@niallobrien here is the "big picture".