Why is my text string line-breaking in a strange way? (HTML / CSS)

Question

JSFiddle for this to see the HTML/CSS in detail

I think this is the relevant CSS:

ul {
    list-style-position: inside;
    list-style-type: circle;
    padding-top: 16px;
    padding-left: 8px;
    padding-bottom: 5px;
}

ul li {
    padding-top: 0px;
    padding-bottom: 16px;
    word-break: normal;
    word-wrap: normal;
}

/*
 How to center the bullet vertically with the content:
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/31966278/421797
 (You also have to wrap your li content in a span tag!)
 */
li span {
    display: inline-table;
    vertical-align: middle;
    padding-left: 16px;
}

Ultimately I don't know why an extra line seems to get rendered for a long text string when it should probably have 2-3 line breaks instead.

The JSFiddle above will show the CSS I'm using. It won't render the problem I'm seeing on iPhone SE:

If anything I would expect:

Empfänger
personenbezogener Daten

And all the list items have the same margin from the bullet point, and the bullet point should be vertically aligned to its list item content.

/*
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/3428477/421797
 Makes sure the Browser isn't trying to perform its own magic.
 
 Also,
 You can debug this in the simulator by looking here for how to do that:
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/43771390/421797
 
 */

@media screen and (max-device-width: 480px) {
  body {
    -webkit-text-size-adjust: none;
  }
}

body {
  padding: 20px;
  padding-right: 5px;
  margin: 0px;
}

#content {
  padding: 0px;
  color: #46484d;
  background-color: white;
  font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif;
  font-size: 17px;
  line-height: 27px;
  letter-spacing: -0.24px;
}

p {
  padding: 0px;
  margin: 0px;
}

a {
  color: #3d78fe;
  text-decoration: none;
}

p.header {}

p.footer {}

ul {
  list-style-position: inside;
  list-style-type: circle;
  padding-top: 16px;
  padding-left: 8px;
  padding-bottom: 5px;
}

ul li {
  padding-top: 0px;
  padding-bottom: 16px;
  word-break: normal;
  word-wrap: normal;
}


/*
 How to center the bullet vertically with the content:
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/31966278/421797
 (You also have to wrap your li content in a span tag!)
 */

li span {
  display: inline-table;
  vertical-align: middle;
  padding-left: 16px;
}


/*
 How to choose different images depending on screen properties
 https://www.html5rocks.com/en/mobile/high-dpi/
 */

ul.bullets {
  list-style-image: -webkit-image-set( url("ovalCopy.png") 1x, url("ovalCopy@2x.png") 2x, url("ovalCopy@3x.png") 3x);
}

<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0;" />
<div id="content">
  <p class="header">
    Blahblahblah, I redacted this for our product in test.
  </p>
  <ul class="bullets">
    <li><span>Datenkategorien</span></li>
    <li><span>Zwecke der Datenverarbeitung</span></li>
    <li><span>Empfänger personenbezogener Daten</span></li>
  </ul>
  <p class="footer">
    Etwas unklar? <a href="getInTouch">Schreib uns.</a>
  </p>
</div>

NOTE: I'm also open to other ways to achieve the same goal, such as div classes for list items with floating image bullets. We're using HTML as a rendering method, not because it needs to be semantically awesome. — horseshoe7, Mar 04 '19 at 09:53
I do not recommend any vertically alignment of the bullet points other then top. This is beyond user expectations. If you happen to have a long `
It's really not my decision how something is supposed to look visually. This is why we have designers. In the context of what our app is doing, a vertically-aligned bullet point makes sense. — horseshoe7, Mar 04 '19 at 10:17

yunzen · Answer 1 · 2019-03-04T10:07:16.530

Get rid of all of these

ul {
  list-style-position: inside;
}
li span {
  padding-left: 16px;
}

and set

ul {
  padding-left: 1em;
}

ul {
  /* list-style-position: inside; */
  list-style-type: circle;
  padding-top: 16px;
  padding-left: 1em;
  padding-bottom: 5px;
}

ul li {
  padding-top: 0px;
  padding-bottom: 16px;
  word-break: normal;
  word-wrap: normal;
}

/*
 How to center the bullet vertically with the content:
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/31966278/421797
 (You also have to wrap your li content in a span tag!)
 */

li span {
  display: inline-table;
  vertical-align: middle;
  /* padding-left: 16px; */
}

/*
 How to choose different images depending on screen properties
 https://www.html5rocks.com/en/mobile/high-dpi/
 */

ul.bullets {
  list-style-image: -webkit-image-set( url("ovalCopy.png") 1x, url("ovalCopy@2x.png") 2x, url("ovalCopy@3x.png") 3x);
}






/*
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/3428477/421797
 Makes sure the Browser isn't trying to perform its own magic.
 
 Also,
 You can debug this in the simulator by looking here for how to do that:
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/43771390/421797
 
 */

@media screen and (max-device-width: 480px) {
  body {
    -webkit-text-size-adjust: none;
  }
}

body {
  padding: 20px;
  padding-right: 5px;
  margin: 0px;
}

#content {
  padding: 0px;
  color: #46484d;
  background-color: white;
  font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif;
  font-size: 17px;
  line-height: 27px;
  letter-spacing: -0.24px;
}

p {
  padding: 0px;
  margin: 0px;
}

<div id="content">
  <p class="header">
    Blahblahblah, I redacted this for our product in test.
  </p>
  <ul class="bullets">
    <li><span>Datenkategorien</span></li>
    <li><span>Zwecke der Datenverarbeitung</span></li>
    <li><span>Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener Daten</span></li>
  </ul>
  <p class="footer">
    Etwas unklar? <a href="getInTouch">Schreib uns.</a>
  </p>
</div>

You might think of replacing

li span {
  display: inline-table;
}

with

li span {
  display: inline-block;
}

as the former looks a little bit hacky and code-smelly

Awesome dude! the simple you write, the better you have. – Burhan Kashour Mar 04 '19 at 09:56 — Burhan Kashour, Mar 04 '19 at 09:56

Hiren Vaghasiya · Accepted Answer · 2019-03-04T10:25:08.583

Using custom :before and display:table-cell, check below

/*
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/3428477/421797
 Makes sure the Browser isn't trying to perform its own magic.
 
 Also,
 You can debug this in the simulator by looking here for how to do that:
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/43771390/421797
 
 */

@media screen and (max-device-width: 480px) {
  body {
    -webkit-text-size-adjust: none;
  }
}

body {
  padding: 20px;
  padding-right: 5px;
  margin: 0px;
}

#content {
  padding: 0px;
  color: #46484d;
  background-color: white;
  font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif;
  font-size: 17px;
  line-height: 27px;
  letter-spacing: -0.24px;
}

p {
  padding: 0px;
  margin: 0px;
}

a {
  color: #3d78fe;
  text-decoration: none;
}

p.header {}

p.footer {}

ul {
  list-style-position: inside;
  list-style-type: circle;
  padding-top: 16px;
  padding-left: 8px;
  padding-bottom: 5px;
}

ul li {
  padding: 15px 0px 15px 20px;
  word-break: normal;
  word-wrap: normal;
  display:table;
  position:relative;
}

ul li:before {
  position: absolute;  
  top:calc(50% - 3px);  
  margin: 0px 0 0 -12px;    
  vertical-align: middle;
  display: table-cell;
  width: 6px;
  height: 6px;
  border:1px solid #000000;
  content: "";
  border-radius:100%;
}


/*
 How to center the bullet vertically with the content:
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/31966278/421797
 (You also have to wrap your li content in a span tag!)
 */

li span {
  display: table-cell;
  vertical-align: middle;
  padding-left: 16px;
}


/*
 How to choose different images depending on screen properties
 https://www.html5rocks.com/en/mobile/high-dpi/
 */

ul.bullets {
  list-style:none;
}

<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0;" />
<div id="content">
  <p class="header">
    Blahblahblah, I redacted this for our product in test.
  </p>
  <ul class="bullets">
    <li><span>Datenkategorien</span></li>
    <li><span>Zwecke der Datenverarbeitung</span></li>
    <li><span>Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener Daten</span></li>
  </ul>
  <p class="footer">
    Etwas unklar? <a href="getInTouch">Schreib uns.</a>
  </p>
</div>

Second Example with image

/*
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/3428477/421797
 Makes sure the Browser isn't trying to perform its own magic.
 
 Also,
 You can debug this in the simulator by looking here for how to do that:
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/43771390/421797
 
 */

@media screen and (max-device-width: 480px) {
  body {
    -webkit-text-size-adjust: none;
  }
}

body {
  padding: 20px;
  padding-right: 5px;
  margin: 0px;
}

#content {
  padding: 0px;
  color: #46484d;
  background-color: white;
  font-family: Helvetica, sans-serif;
  font-size: 17px;
  line-height: 27px;
  letter-spacing: -0.24px;
}

p {
  padding: 0px;
  margin: 0px;
}

a {
  color: #3d78fe;
  text-decoration: none;
}

p.header {}

p.footer {}

ul {
  list-style-position: inside;
  list-style-type: circle;
  padding-top: 16px;
  padding-left: 8px;
  padding-bottom: 5px;
}

ul li {
  padding: 15px 0px 15px 20px;
  word-break: normal;
  word-wrap: normal;
  display:table;
  position:relative;
}

ul li:before {
  position: absolute;  
  top:calc(50% - 3px);  
  margin: 0px 0 0 -12px;    
  vertical-align: middle;
  display: table-cell;
  content: "";
  width: 6px;
  height: 6px;
  background: transparent url('http://placehold.jp/3d4070/ffffff/6x6.png?css=%7B%22border-radius%22%3A%2215px%22%7D') no-repeat;
}


/*
 How to center the bullet vertically with the content:
 https://stackoverflow.com/a/31966278/421797
 (You also have to wrap your li content in a span tag!)
 */

li span {
  display: table-cell;
  vertical-align: middle;
  padding-left: 16px;
}


/*
 How to choose different images depending on screen properties
 https://www.html5rocks.com/en/mobile/high-dpi/
 */

ul.bullets {
  list-style:none;
}

<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width; initial-scale=1.0;" />
<div id="content">
  <p class="header">
    Blahblahblah, I redacted this for our product in test.
  </p>
  <ul class="bullets">
    <li><span>Datenkategorien</span></li>
    <li><span>Zwecke der Datenverarbeitung</span></li>
    <li><span>Empfänger personenbezogener Daten Empfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener DatenEmpfänger personenbezogener Daten</span></li>
  </ul>
  <p class="footer">
    Etwas unklar? <a href="getInTouch">Schreib uns.</a>
  </p>
</div>

This is pretty cool! It's almost there. in that the lines are breaking well, and the layout is as I would hope. However, I see you're rendering bullets in CSS. I'd like to be able to use our image, but at the end of the day, I might be able to work with this. — horseshoe7, Mar 04 '19 at 10:13
sweet! Thanks for the update. I'll look at it shortly, and I think this will be what I mark as the correct solution. — horseshoe7, Mar 04 '19 at 10:27

score 0 · Answer 3 · edited Mar 04 '19 at 10:16

0

as i checked, you need to remove:

ul li {
    padding-top: 0px;
    padding-bottom: 16px;
    remove this > word-break: normal;
    and this > word-wrap: normal;
}

and remove all of this:

remove all this > li span {
    display: inline-table;
    vertical-align: middle;
    padding-left: 16px;
}

Image :

Save fiddle : https://jsfiddle.net/u3shocnv/

Simply try this :

ul.bullets {
    list-style: none !important;
}

ul li {
    margin-left: 10px;
}

ul li::before {
    content: '•';
    position: absolute;
    left: 20px;
}

ul li span {
}

Screenshot :

(EDIT: This produced the following result on the device:)

edited Mar 04 '19 at 10:16

horseshoe7

2,745
2
35
49

answered Mar 04 '19 at 09:43

Burhan Kashour

674
5
15

except I want the bullet aligned to the middle of the list item content, and any second line should be indented the same as the first. – horseshoe7 Mar 04 '19 at 09:45
I've edited the code and saved the fiddle for you : https://jsfiddle.net/e9j8Lybp/1/ – Burhan Kashour Mar 04 '19 at 09:53
That's almost there! What's missing now are the bullet images we are using, and the bullet point is no longer vertically aligned to the centre of the content. – horseshoe7 Mar 04 '19 at 09:59
Why to use bullet images while you can fontawesome or any other icon font library? its better for your server load? – Burhan Kashour Mar 04 '19 at 10:00
a) I'm not the designer b) There is no server load. The images are in the app bundle. – horseshoe7 Mar 04 '19 at 10:01
You can use @yunzen solution as described in his answer – Burhan Kashour Mar 04 '19 at 10:03

Why is my text string line-breaking in a strange way? (HTML / CSS)

3 Answers3