[css-fonts] Should font-palette be reset by the font shorthand?

[jfkthame]

Currently, the spec for the font shorthand says that:

All subproperties of the 'font' property are first reset to their initial values, including ... 'font-palette'.

However, it appears that neither the WebKit nor Blink implementations actually do this:

> document.body.style.fontPalette = "dark"
< 'dark'
> document.body.style.font = "12px sans-serif"
< '12px sans-serif'
> window.getComputedStyle(document.body).fontPalette
< 'dark'

Should the spec be revised to reflect implementation reality here, or should this simply be regarded as a bug in those browsers?

[emilio]

@litherum @drott was this intentional or an oversight?

[svgeesus]

The spec was only recently clarified to explicitly list all the longhands which are reset by the font shorthand. So I suspect that this is simply implementation lag. The spec is now pretty clear:

All subproperties of the font property are first reset to their initial values, including those listed above plus font-size-adjust, font-kerning, all subproperties of font-variant, font-feature-settings, font-language-override, font-optical-sizing, font-variation-settings, and font-palette.

[jfkthame]

And font-synthesis?

[svgeesus]

Good catch. Do we need to have discussion on a call so we are sure that the list of longhands reset by the font shorthand is

a) complete
b) agreed to be what we want?

[jfkthame]

I think it'd be worth asking the question, at least. I could imagine authors wanting to set font-palette, for example, on the root and not have it affected by shorthand font usage elsewhere.

[fantasai]

So if I understand correctly, what we have is the following:

Set Explicitly

font-style
font-weight
font-size
font-stretch (L3)
font-family
font-variant-caps (L2)
line-height

Reset Implicitly

font-size-adjust
font-kerning
font-variant-*
font-feature-settings
font-variation-settings
font-language-override
font-optical-sizing

Cascaded Independently

font-synthesis-*

And the question right now is whether font-palette belongs in Reset Implicitly or Cascaded Independently.

Fwiw, I think it'd be helpful to include a Note of any font-* properties not reset by the font shorthand in the spec, so we're clear that leaving something out is not an oversight.

[svgeesus]

And the question right now is whether font-palette belongs in Reset Implicitly or Cascaded Independently.

Exactly

[css-meeting-bot]

The CSS Working Group just discussed [css-fonts] Should `font-palette` be reset by the `font` shorthand?, and agreed to the following:

• RESOLVED: Use set explicitly, reset implicitly and cascade implicitly terms
• RESOLVED: Put font-palette in the cascaded independently category
• RESOLVED: Explicitly enumerate all properties which are cascaded independently that start with font-

The full IRC log of that discussion

<chris_> q+
<flackr> jfkthame: When implementing font palette for gecko, I noticed in blink and webkit the font shorthand doesn't reset ?? to the initial. This could just be a bug, but I wonder if it would be preferable
<flackr> s/??/font-palette
<flackr> jfkthame: font palette seems to be a bit different in that it may be set on the root, and devs may be surprised when the font short-hand loses that setting
<astearns> ack chris_
<flackr> chris_: Agree it's surprising. The only reason the spec doesn't do this was because it's recent.
<flackr> chris_: This one should not have been in the implicitly reset
<flackr> chris_: We should use set explicitly, reset implicitly, and cascade??
<flackr> chris_: it's common to set on the root, it makes sense
<dbaron> s/cascade??/cascaded independently/
<flackr> RESOLVED: Use set explicitly, reset implicitly and cascade implicitly terms
<flackr> RESOLVED: Put font-palette in the cascaded independently category
<flackr> fantasai: Every property that's not part of the shorthand be cascaded independently. It would be helpful to have a note for the properties that begin with font- to consider them explicitly
<flackr> astearns: are there any properties beside font-palette and font-synthesis in this category?
<flackr> chris_: don't think so, might happen
<flackr> RESOLVED: Explicitly enumerate all properties which are cascaded independently that start with font-

[drott]

As we're currently working on the reset behaviour it'd be good to be able to quote an updated spec text.

[svgeesus]

I will try to get this done in the next few days

[svgeesus]

Added the list of set explicitly, reset implicitly and cascade implicitly groups.

[svgeesus]

@drott please take a look

[drott]

@drott please take a look

Thanks, mostly LGTM, I left two comments here regarding extra prose in the beginning and end.

[cdoublev]

I do not see font-variant-emoji listed as a reset-only sub-property. Is it intentional?

[svgeesus]

I do not see font-variant-emoji listed as a reset-only sub-property. Is it intentional?

Not intentional, thanks for noticing, corrected.

Thanks, mostly LGTM, I left two comments here regarding extra prose in the beginning and end.

The "extra text" at the beginning has been there since CSS1, although I moved it to the start of the section.
I added your suggestion for better text at the end.

[drott]

Thanks for the edits, @svgeesus.