General Musings with Kevin Powell

Roma's article: https://blog.kizu.dev/dashed-idents-for-everything/

I recently had the pleasure of chatting with Sara Soueidan, a renowned expert in web accessibility. Our conversation was a deep dive into the nuances of making the web more inclusive and accessible for everyone.Follow Sara: Her course, Practical Accessibility: https://practical-accessibility.today/ Her newsletter: https://www.sarasoueidan.com/newsletter/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/sarasoueidan.com Mastodon: https://front-end.social/@SaraSoueidan Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarasoueidan/ X: https://x.com/SaraSoueidanThings we mentioned during our conversations: Making the web sweeter with Food Network and Cupcakes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2l56RmQAQE Blockquotes in screen readers https://adrianroselli.com/2023/07/blockquotes-in-screen-readers.html The Blockquote element https://heydonworks.com/article/the-blockquote-element/ The HTML Living Standard https://html.spec.whatwg.org/multipage/grouping-content.html WCAG Quick Reference (contains links to Understanding and Techniques docs) https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG22/quickref/ HTML AAM https://www.w3.org/TR/html-aam-1.0/ ARIA 1.3 https://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-1.3/ My course :D https://practical-accessibility.today My newsletter https://sarasoueidan.com/newsletter/

Starting with a dive into an article about the light-dark() function and theming in CSS, I ramble my way through topics of browser support of new features, browsers fixing issues with existing features, and some talk about the spec and how we can all help out in improving the current state of things.✅ Should the CSS light-dark() function support more than light and dark values: https://css-tricks.com/should-the-css-light-dark-function-support-more-than-light-and-dark-values/✅ The game I mentioned: https://css-questions.com✅ Frontend Masters workshop: https://frontendmasters.com/teachers/kevin-powell/?utm_source=powell&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=pro-css&code=powell (affiliate link) ✅ The New CSS Toolkit - Online workshop with Smashing Conference: https://smashingconf.com/online-workshops/workshops/css-toolkit-kevin-powell/✅ Smashing Conf Amsterdam (and in person workshop): https://smashingconf.com/amsterdam-2026✅ Interop Proposers Guide: https://github.com/web-platform-tests/interop/blob/main/proposal_guide.md

This one has nothing to do with front-end! Rather, I ramble a lot about how I might be doing too much, and spend quite a bit of time talking about what I wanted to do, and what I might be doing with my HTML & CSS Tip of the Week.🔗 Links✅ HTML & CSS Tip of the Week: https://html-css-tip-of-the-week.netlify.app/✅ DevTools for Beginners: https://devtoolsforbeginners.kevinpowell.co/✅ CSS Demystified: https://cssdemystified.com/

Why is CSS so weird? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHUtMbJw8iA HTML & CSS Tip of the Week: https://html-css-tip-of-the-week.netlify.app/ The Ben Schwarz post on Bluesky I mentioned: https://bsky.app/profile/benschwarz.bsky.social/post/3lulxryudjs2t  My primary YouTube channel where I teach frontend development, with a strong focus on CSS: https://youtube.com/@kevinpowell  ✉ The written version of my newsletter: https://www.kevinpowell.co/newsletter 💬 Come hang out with other dev's in my Discord Community: https://discord.gg/nTYCvrK  Help support my channel  👨‍🎓 Get a course: https://www.kevinpowell.co/courses 💖 Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/kevinpowell

Been having a hard time getting anything done the last few weeks, and as I pull out of it, I talk about some of the issues around productivity culture in general, and how sometimes it seems like we are less productive than we might have realized. 

The livestream I mentioned: https://youtube.com/live/r7m3Ka2LmPMState of CSS Survey: https://survey.devographics.com/en-US/survey/state-of-css/2025?source=kevin_powellThe gap decoration demos by Edge: https://microsoftedge.github.io/Demos/css-gap-decorations/In this episode I discuss CSS features I wish existed, like custom media queries, gap in block elements, and the color contrast function.

Dive into a critical examination of AI in software development, where skepticism meets statistics on productivity and creativity. Explore how 76% of developers are using AI tools yet grappling with the balance between human insight and machine efficiency. The discussion highlights the risks of de-skilling workers and prioritizing busy work over genuine innovation. With thought-provoking insights on environmental impacts and big tech dynamics, the conversation encourages a more responsible, human-centered approach to technology's role in our workflows.

Today I'm tackling a topic that's been on my mind: the perception that Flexbox is easier than Grid. I share my frustrations and insights while revamping my CSS Demystified course.

My upcoming in-person workshop: https://smashingconf.com/workshops/workshops/ny/kevin-j-powell-css/My courses can all be found here: https://kevinpowell.co/coursesIn this episode of General Musings, I dive deep into learning and teaching frontend development. I share my personal experiences, why teaching is the best way to learn, and the importance of addressing roadblocks in learning. I also get into the cognitive overload beginners face and my evolving approach to teaching complex subjects. Plus, I'll touch on why beginners should teach and why it's essential to explain things in a way that makes sense to them.