Why is there no float center in CSS?

Question

I have found that there is no float center in CSS and I was a little disappointed. However, I can't help but ask myself why. While many people want to use this for centering content I wished to use it to float a bunch of blocks into rows on a dynamic page size. Unfortunately without a float center it looks sloppy as there is extra space (whatever fraction of a full block doesn't fit) on one side. It makes me sad that the intended use of floats is hurt by this property missing.

I can't see a reason why there isn't a float center and was wondering if anyone had reasons, either technical or otherwise why a float center was not included in the standard.

Answer 1

Instead of using float: left, use display: inline-block on the individual elements and center their container.

http://jsfiddle.net/ExplosionPIlls/rAkNY/5/

Answer 2

Yes, There is not Float center/middle and may the W3C having the answer.

There is <center> tag but no-longer.

The <center> tag is deprecated as of HTML 4, and using it creates a few different issues. HTML centered elements can display differently in different browsers, and using the tag can increase page load time. Also, heavy use of will complicate your site redesigns — removing hundreds of tags takes a lot longer than changing one style rule in a stylesheet.

The tag was officially deprecated many, many years ago, but it is still recognized by most browsers through their backward-compatibility features. So yeah, if you something, it'll be centered. However, in the interest of future-proofing you should use modern CSS centering methods instead.

Use margin:0 auto;

If you're centering something else, margin: 0 auto; will get your element centered most of the time. (Quick note: your element must have a declared width for this to work.)

The margin: 0 auto; rule is shorthand for 0 top and bottom margin, and automatic left and right margins. Automatic left and right margins work together to push the element into the center of its container.

Answer 3

there is no float center because floats take elements out of the content flow and position them as far left/right as possible. floats by themselves only move things sideways. not 100% on this last part, but i reckon it has something to do with print. i know the idea of floats was taken from the print industry.