Flatten

Getting started

Overview of the project, its contents, and how to get started with a simple template.

1. File structure

Within the download you'll find the following file structure and contents, logically grouping common assets and providing both compiled and minified variations.

Once downloaded, unzip the compressed folder to see the structure of (the compiled) Flatten. You'll see something like this:

  flatten/
  ├── css/
  │   ├── bootstrap.css
  │   ├── bootstrap.min.css
  │   ├── flat-prettify.css
  │   ├── flatten.css
  │   ├── flat-ui.css
  │   ├── font-awesome.min.css
  │   ├── font-awesome-ie7.min.css
  ├── js/
  │   ├── jquery.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-transition.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-alert.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-modal.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-dropdown.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-scrollspy.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-tab.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-tooltip.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-popover.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-button.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-collapse.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-carousel.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-typeahead.js
  │   ├── bootstrap-affix.js
  │   ├── application.js
  │   ├── flat/
  │   │   ├── bootstrap-select.js
  │   │   ├── bootstrap-switch.js
  │   │   ├── flatui-radio.js
  │   │   ├── flatui-checkbox.js
  │   ├── google-code-prettify/
  │   │   ├── prettify.js
  │   ├── holder/
  │   │   └── holder.js
  └── font/
      ├── glyphicons-halflings.png
      └── glyphicons-halflings-white.png

This is the most basic form of Flatten: compiled files for quick drop-in usage in nearly any web project. We provide compiled CSS and JS (bootstrap.*), as well as compiled and minified CSS and JS (bootstrap.min.*).

Please note that all JavaScript plugins require jQuery to be included.

2. What's included

Flatten comes equipped with HTML, CSS, and JS for all sorts of things, but they can be summarized with a handful of categories visible at the top of the Flatten documentation.

Docs sections

Scaffolding

Global styles for the body to reset type and background, link styles, grid system, and two simple layouts.

Base CSS

Styles for common HTML elements like typography, code, tables, forms, and buttons. Also includes Font Awesome, a great icon set.

Components

Basic styles for common interface components like tabs and pills, navbar, alerts, page headers, and more.

JavaScript plugins

Similar to Components, these JavaScript plugins are interactive components for things like tooltips, popovers, modals, and more.

List of components

Together, the Components and JavaScript plugins sections provide the following interface elements:

  • Button groups
  • Button dropdowns
  • Navigational tabs, pills, and lists
  • Navbar
  • Labels
  • Badges
  • Page headers and hero unit
  • Thumbnails
  • Alerts
  • Progress bars
  • Modals
  • Dropdowns
  • Tooltips
  • Popovers
  • Accordion
  • Carousel
  • Typeahead

In future guides, we may walk through these components individually in more detail. Until then, look for each of these in the documentation for information on how to utilize and customize them.

3. Basic HTML template

With a brief intro into the contents out of the way, we can focus on putting Flatten to use. To do that, we'll utilize a basic HTML template that includes everything we mentioned in the File structure.

Now, here's a look at a typical HTML file:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
  <head>
    <title>Flatten 101 Template</title>
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Hello, world!</h1>
    <script src="http://code.jquery.com/jquery.js"></script>
  </body>
</html>

To make this a Flattened template, just include the appropriate CSS and JS files:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
  <head>
    <title>Flatten 101 Template</title>
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <!-- CSS -->
    <link href="css/bootstrap.css" rel="stylesheet" media="screen">
    <link href="css/bootstrap-responsive.css" rel="stylesheet" media="screen">
    <link href="css/flat-ui.css" rel="stylesheet" media="screen">
    <link href="css/flatten.css" rel="stylesheet" media="screen">
    <link href="css/font-awesome.min.css" rel="stylesheet" media="screen">
    <!-- Include only if you need -->
    <!-- <link href="css/flat-prettify.css" rel="stylesheet" media="screen"> -->
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Hello, world!</h1>
    <!-- JS -->
    <script src="http://code.jquery.com/jquery.js"></script>
    <script src="js/bootstrap.min.js"></script>
    <script src="/js/holder/holder.js"></script>
    <script src="/js/flat/bootstrap-select.js"></script>
    <script src="/js/flat/bootstrap-switch.js"></script>
    <script src="/js/flat/flatui-radio.js"></script>
    <script src="/js/flat/flatui-checkbox.js"></script>
    <script src="/js/application.js"></script>
    <!-- Include only if you need -->
    <!-- <script src="/js/google-code-prettify/prettify.js"></script> -->
  </body>
</html>

And you're set! With those two files added, you can begin to develop any site or application with Flatten.

4. Examples

Move beyond the base template with a few example layouts. We encourage folks to iterate on these examples and not simply use them as an end result.

  • Starter template

    A barebones HTML document with all the Flatten CSS and JavaScript included.

  • Narrow marketing

    Slim, lightweight marketing template for small projects or teams.

  • Sign in

    Barebones sign in form with custom, larger form controls and a flexible layout.

  • Carousel jumbotron

    A more interactive riff on the basic marketing site featuring a prominent carousel.