What is the best way to apply overlays to customize a specific part of a single character while also accommodating dynamic width adjustments?

Question

What is the best way to apply overlays to customize a specific part of a single character while also accommodating dynamic width adjustments?

Query

Is it feasible to style a specific portion of a single character?

Interpretation

You cannot apply CSS attributes to parts of characters. However, if you wish to style only a particular section of a character, there is currently no standardized method to achieve this.

Illustration

Can you apply styles to an "X" where half is red and the other half is black?

Ineffective Code

<div class="content"> 
    X
</div>

.content {
    position: relative;
    font-size: 50px;
    color: black;
}

.content:after {
    content: 'X';
    color: red;
    width: 50%;
    position: absolute;
    overflow: hidden;
}

Check out the demo on jsFiddle

Objective

I am looking to style the Font Awesome icon-star symbol. If I have a dynamic-width overlay, shouldn't it be possible to accurately represent scores visually?

html css overlay

Answer 1

Answer №1

While experimenting with a demo fiddle, I managed to solve the problem on my own and wanted to share my solution. It's surprisingly straightforward.

First things first: Check out the DEMO here

If you want to style a single character in a unique way, you'll need some additional markup for your content. Essentially, you have to duplicate it:

<div class="content">
    <span class="overlay">X</span>
    X
</div>

Although using pseudo-elements like :after or :before would be more elegant, I couldn't find a way to make it work.

The overlay must be absolutely positioned relative to the content element:

.content {
    display: inline-block;
    position: relative;
    color: black;
}

.overlay {
    width: 50%;
    position: absolute;
    color: red;
    overflow: hidden;
}

Don't forget to include overflow: hidden; to clip the excess part of the "X".

You can adjust the width as needed instead of sticking to 50%, providing great flexibility with this approach. You can even customize the height, other CSS properties, or combine multiple attributes.

Explore the Extended DEMO further

Answer 2

While experimenting with a demo fiddle, I managed to solve the problem on my own and wanted to share my solution. It's surprisingly straightforward.

First things first: Check out the DEMO here

If you want to style a single character in a unique way, you'll need some additional markup for your content. Essentially, you have to duplicate it:

<div class="content">
    <span class="overlay">X</span>
    X
</div>

Although using pseudo-elements like :after or :before would be more elegant, I couldn't find a way to make it work.

The overlay must be absolutely positioned relative to the content element:

.content {
    display: inline-block;
    position: relative;
    color: black;
}

.overlay {
    width: 50%;
    position: absolute;
    color: red;
    overflow: hidden;
}

Don't forget to include overflow: hidden; to clip the excess part of the "X".

You can adjust the width as needed instead of sticking to 50%, providing great flexibility with this approach. You can even customize the height, other CSS properties, or combine multiple attributes.

Explore the Extended DEMO further

Answer 3

Answer №2

Impressive job on your solution. I have developed a version that utilizes :after (instead of repeating the content in the HTML) and it is functioning smoothly in Chrome 19.

Check out my version here

To summarize:

Apply position:relative to .content
Absolutely position :after
Set :after to have overflow:hidden
Adjust the width, height, text-indent, and line-height of :after to conceal certain parts of it.

Although I am uncertain about its cross-browser compatibility — as the em values may vary across browsers. (Note that it will not function properly in IE 7 or older versions).

Furthermore, you may need to replicate the content in your CSS file instead of the HTML, which might not be the most ideal approach depending on the circumstances.

Answer 4

Impressive job on your solution. I have developed a version that utilizes :after (instead of repeating the content in the HTML) and it is functioning smoothly in Chrome 19.

Check out my version here

To summarize:

Apply position:relative to .content
Absolutely position :after
Set :after to have overflow:hidden
Adjust the width, height, text-indent, and line-height of :after to conceal certain parts of it.

Although I am uncertain about its cross-browser compatibility — as the em values may vary across browsers. (Note that it will not function properly in IE 7 or older versions).

Furthermore, you may need to replicate the content in your CSS file instead of the HTML, which might not be the most ideal approach depending on the circumstances.

What is the best way to apply overlays to customize a specific part of a single character while also accommodating dynamic width adjustments?

Query

Interpretation

Illustration

Ineffective Code

Objective

Answer №1

First things first: Check out the DEMO here

Explore the Extended DEMO further

Answer №2

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