Pretext
DOM-free text layout engine for precise typographic control
What it does
Pretext is a DOM-free text layout engine that gives developers precise typographic control. It bypasses browser rendering for pixel-perfect text positioning, custom line breaking, and advanced layout features. Ideal for creative coding, data visualization, and any project requiring exact text placement beyond what CSS can offer.
Does the same job
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- ZJztext.js – JavaScript library that makes any font 3D2020 · bennettfeely.com · ▲257
- DADropflow, a CSS layout engine for node or <canvas>2024 · github.com · ▲404
For the last 5 years I've been working on a layout engine that targets CSS2 and some more modern properties. Live demo: https://chearon.github.io/dropflow/ It matches browsers in all cases I can find where they agree, and it's fast. It supports `position`, `inline-block`, `z-index`, and complex properties like `float` and `vertical-align`. It doesn't support high-level layout like flexbox or grid yet, but you can get intrinsics to easily divide space yourself and paint multiple layout trees. It has a great text layout implementation, and supporting non-Latin scripts is a…
- PTPlain text for the web2016 · saola.in · ▲151
- JFJavaScript-free (X)HTML Includes2025 · github.com · ▲211
(spoiler: its XSLT) I've been working on a little demo for how to avoid copy-pasting header/footer boilerplate on a simple static webpage. My goal is to approximate the experience of Jekyll/Hugo but eliminate the need for a build step before publishing. This demo shows how to get basic templating features with XSL so you could write a blog post which looks like My Article some content hello hello Some properties which set this approach apart from other methods: - no build step (no need to setup Jekyll on the client or configure Github/Gitlab actions) - works on any webserver…
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