{{_i}}Bootstrap is made with LESS at its core, a dynamic stylesheet language created by our good friend, Alexis Sellier. It makes developing systems-based CSS faster, easier, and more fun.{{/i}}

{{_i}}Why LESS?{{/i}}

{{_i}}One of Bootstrap's creators wrote a quick blog post about this, summarized here:{{/i}}

{{_i}}Bootstrap compiles faster ~6x faster with Less compared to Sass{{/i}}
{{_i}}Less is written in JavaScript, making it easier to us to dive in and patch compared to Ruby with Sass.{{/i}}
{{_i}}Less is more; we want to feel like we're writing CSS and making Bootstrap approachable to all.{{/i}}

{{_i}}What's included?{{/i}}

{{_i}}As an extension of CSS, LESS includes variables, mixins for reusable snippets of code, operations for simple math, nesting, and even color functions.{{/i}}

{{_i}}Learn more{{/i}}

{{_i}}Visit the official website at http://lesscss.org to learn more.{{/i}}

{{_i}}Since our CSS is written with Less and utilizes variables and mixins, it needs to be compiled for final production implementation. Here's how.{{/i}}

{{_i}}Note: If you're submitting a pull request to GitHub with modified CSS, you must recompile the CSS via any of these methods.{{/i}}

{{_i}}Tools for compiling{{/i}}

{{_i}}Node with makefile{{/i}}

{{_i}}Install the LESS command line compiler, JSHint, Recess, and uglify-js globally with npm by running the following command:{{/i}}

$ npm install -g less jshint recess uglify-js

{{_i}}Once installed just run make from the root of your bootstrap directory and you're all set.{{/i}}

{{_i}}Additionally, if you have watchr installed, you may run make watch to have bootstrap automatically rebuilt every time you edit a file in the bootstrap lib (this isn't required, just a convenience method).{{/i}}

{{_i}}Command line{{/i}}

{{_i}}Install the LESS command line tool via Node and run the following command:{{/i}}

$ lessc ./less/bootstrap.less > bootstrap.css

{{_i}}Be sure to include --compress in that command if you're trying to save some bytes!{{/i}}

{{_i}}Javascript{{/i}}

{{_i}}Download the latest Less.js and include the path to it (and Bootstrap) in the <head>.{{/i}}

<link rel="stylesheet/less" href="/path/to/bootstrap.less">
<script src="/path/to/less.js"></script>

{{_i}}To recompile the .less files, just save them and reload your page. Less.js compiles them and stores them in local storage.{{/i}}

{{_i}}Unofficial Mac app{{/i}}

{{_i}}The unofficial Mac app watches directories of .less files and compiles the code to local files after every save of a watched .less file. If you like, you can toggle preferences in the app for automatic minifying and which directory the compiled files end up in.{{/i}}

{{_i}}More apps{{/i}}

Crunch

{{_i}}Crunch is a great looking LESS editor and compiler built on Adobe Air.{{/i}}

CodeKit

{{_i}}Created by the same guy as the unofficial Mac app, CodeKit is a Mac app that compiles LESS, SASS, Stylus, and CoffeeScript.{{/i}}

Simpless

{{_i}}Mac, Linux, and Windows app for drag and drop compiling of LESS files. Plus, the source code is on GitHub.{{/i}}

{{_i}}Quickly start any web project by dropping in the compiled or minified CSS and JS. Layer on custom styles separately for easy upgrades and maintenance moving forward.{{/i}}

{{_i}}Setup file structure{{/i}}

{{_i}}Download the latest compiled Bootstrap and place into your project. For example, you might have something like this:{{/i}}

  app/
  ├── layouts/
  └── templates/
  public/
  ├── css/
  │   ├── bootstrap.min.css
  ├── js/
  │   ├── bootstrap.min.js
  └── img/
      ├── glyphicons-halflings.png
      └── glyphicons-halflings-white.png

{{_i}}Utilize starter template{{/i}}

{{_i}}Copy the following base HTML to get started.{{/i}}

<html>
  <head>
    <title>Bootstrap 101 Template</title>
    <!-- Bootstrap -->
    <link href="public/css/bootstrap.min.css" rel="stylesheet">
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Hello, world!</h1>
    <!-- Bootstrap -->
    <script src="public/js/bootstrap.min.js"></script>
  </body>
</html>

{{_i}}Layer on custom code{{/i}}

{{_i}}Work in your custom CSS, JS, and more as necessary to make Bootstrap your own with your own separate CSS and JS files.{{/i}}

<html>
  <head>
    <title>Bootstrap 101 Template</title>
    <!-- Bootstrap -->
    <link href="public/css/bootstrap.min.css" rel="stylesheet">
    <!-- Project -->
    <link href="public/css/application.css" rel="stylesheet">
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Hello, world!</h1>
    <!-- Bootstrap -->
    <script src="public/js/bootstrap.min.js"></script>
    <!-- Project -->
    <script src="public/js/application.js"></script>
  </body>
</html>

{{_i}}Extending Bootstrap{{/i}}

{{_i}}Built with LESS{{/i}}