HTML5 Boilerplate Goes To Version 1.0
(Author's note - This post is out-of-date but it's pretty important read from a historical perspective. It discusses HTML5 Boilerplate, which was an important catalyst for growth in the front-end development world...give it a read!!! -k)
As if it wasn’t awesome already, the [HTML5 Boilerplate][2] just got awesome-er. [2]: http://html5boilerplate.com/
On March 21st, 2011, HTML5 Boilerplate moved out of beta to version 1.0. Paul Irish and Divya Manian have always been the main developers behind it, but Boilerplate’s popularity has drawn in a TON of others to contribute code to the cause. The end result is a very-close-to-perfect template for front-end web development.
While there are lots of small code updates, there are also three important additions:
- Boilerplate Builder Script: The biggest addition, hands down. A script that cleans up your code and optimizes your images, resulting in a tweaked-to-the-max website that loads faster. It needs to run via command line.
- Initializr Integration (this has since been taken down): As it is with jQuery UI and Modernizr, HTML5 Boilerplate now allows you to customize your build for download. It does this by integrating Initializr, allowing you to pick and choose which server configuration, JavaScript and CSS you want to use on your site. Decide what you want, then download all the code.
- Documentation: Pretty much every question about Boilerplate is answered here. Contains a few broken links as of this post but it’s still comprehensive.
There are also two new how-to videos: a getting started one by Manian (great for newbies) and a build script walk-through by Irish.
HTML5 Boilerplate has really stepped its status as must-have tool for web developers. Props to all those involved for making all of our lives easier!!!!