Firefox 45.0: Unlocking New CSS Features

The latest version of Firefox, 45.0, has brought a slew of exciting new features to the world of CSS. Among these are several long-awaited improvements to CSS Grid, which will revolutionize the way you approach web design.

One of the most significant updates is full support for CSS Box Alignment in grid layouts. This means that developers can now use the missing values of `start`, `end`, `self-start`, `self-end`, `left`, `right`, `last-baseline`, and `space-evenly` to fine-tune their grid layouts. This feature has been a long time coming, but it's finally here thanks to Firefox bug 1176782.

In addition to CSS Box Alignment, the `display: contents` property has also received full support in Firefox 45.0. This property allows developers to create more efficient and flexible layouts, and is particularly useful for complex grid-based designs. As with many of the new features in this release, this one was first introduced back in Firefox 37.

Another key update is the ability to set values for `grid-template-columns` and `grid-template-rows` in pixel units (px). This means that developers can now use precise measurements to define their grid layouts, rather than relying on relative units like percentages. This feature is the result of Firefox bug 978212, which has been resolved.

The alignment and justification properties for grid layouts have also received a significant boost with this release. `align-content` and `justify-content` are now fully supported, allowing developers to easily align and justify their content within grid cells. Similarly, `align-self` and `justify-self` can be used to control the alignment of individual grid items.

One of the more subtle but still important updates is the implementation of implied minimum sizes for grid items. This means that when a grid item's dimensions are set to auto, it will now automatically resize to fit its contents. This feature was previously only available in Internet Explorer and Safari, so it's great to see Firefox finally catching up.

Another area where Firefox 45.0 has improved is the support for gutters in CSS Grids. The `grid-column-gap`, `grid-row-gap`, and `grid-gap` properties are now fully supported, allowing developers to easily create consistent spacing between grid items.

Finally, it's worth noting that the implementation of CSS Grids in Firefox has been considered experimental up until this point. However, with the release of 45.0, it's now activated by default in nightly and developer editions - although not yet in beta or release versions. This means that developers can start experimenting with CSS Grids right away, without having to worry about enabling a experimental feature.

In addition to these CSS Grid updates, Firefox 45.0 also includes support for percentage values in the `word-spacing` property (thanks to Firefox bug 1038663). This may seem like a small update, but it's another example of how Firefox is continually refining and improving its support for web developers.

Overall, Firefox 45.0 represents a major milestone in the development of CSS Grids and other web design features. With these updates, developers will be able to create more complex, responsive, and visually appealing layouts than ever before - all while taking advantage of the latest and greatest web technologies.

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