How to Handle Collapsing Containers When Using `display: inline-block` and `position: absolute`?

Positioning Elements with Mixed Display and Positioning

The combination of display:inline-block and position:absolute in CSS can lead to unexpected behavior. When an element is positioned absolutely, it behaves as if it were removed from the normal flow of content, and its containing element is unaware of its height.

Inline vs. Absolute Positioning

display:inline-block allows elements to flow horizontally alongside other elements, while position:absolute removes elements from the flow and positions them according to the top, bottom, left, and right properties.

Issue with Absolute Positioning

In the provided code, the position:absolute element (.element-right-b) removes it from the flow and takes it out of consideration for the overall height calculation of the .section container. As a result, the container has no inherent height and collapses to zero.

Solutions

1. Set Height of Container: If position:absolute is essential, manually set the height of the .section container to prevent it from collapsing.
2. Alternative Position Option: If absolute positioning is not strictly necessary, consider using float or sticky instead. Both allow elements to position themselves relative to other elements without affecting the layout.
3. Inline-Block with Padding: For multiple nested columns with fixed positions, set the display of all nested elements to display:inline-block and apply left padding to subsequent columns to create the desired indentation effect.

Specific Example for Nested Columns

To achieve nested columns with fixed positions, modify the CSS as follows:

<code class="css">.section span {
  display: inline-block;
}
.element-left {
  width: 200px;
}
.element-right {
  width: 100px;
}
.indent-1 {
  padding-left: 10px;
}
.indent-2 {
  padding-left: 20px;
}</code>

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