When Pre Means Preformatted: The Art of Wrapping Text in HTML Pre Tags

• The <pre> tag in HTML is used to display preformatted text. This means it preserves the formatting of the text within the tag, including spaces, tabs, and line breaks.
• By default, browsers won't wrap text within a <pre> tag, which can cause long lines of text to overflow the container and require horizontal scrolling.

CSS:

While <pre> tags maintain formatting, CSS can be used to control how the text wraps within the pre tag:

Important Note:

• It's generally not recommended to use <pre> tags for long passages of text meant to be read easily. In those cases, a regular paragraph tag (<p>) styled with a monospace font (like Courier) might be a better choice. This allows the browser to handle wrapping as usual and avoids potential horizontal scrolling issues.

<pre id="my-code">This is some preformatted text with long lines that would normally overflow. But with CSS, we can make it wrap and add a scrollbar if needed.</pre>

#my-code {
  white-space: pre-wrap;  /* Allow text to wrap at necessary points */
  overflow-x: auto;       /* Add horizontal scrollbar if content overflows */
  /* Optional styling for monospace font and background color */
  font-family: monospace;
  background-color: #f8f8f8;
  padding: 10px;
}

In this example:

• The HTML code defines a <pre> tag with the ID "my-code" containing the text you want to display.
• The CSS targets the element with the ID "my-code".
• The white-space: pre-wrap; property allows the text to wrap at designated points and within the container's width.
• The overflow-x: auto; property adds a horizontal scrollbar if the content overflows the pre tag's width.

Additional styling (optional):

• The CSS also includes optional styling for a monospace font (like Courier) and a light background color to improve readability.

• If your goal is to display preformatted text with line breaks and proper wrapping, consider using the <p> tag instead of <pre>.
• Style the <p> tag with a monospace font (like Courier) using CSS:

<p class="code-text">This is some preformatted text that will wrap and behave like a normal paragraph.</p>

.code-text {
  font-family: monospace;
}

This approach keeps the text formatting for code snippets or similar content while allowing the browser to handle wrapping for better readability.

Highlighting code with dedicated syntax highlighting libraries:

• For code snippets, consider using dedicated syntax highlighting libraries like Prism.js or CodeMirror. These libraries offer advanced features like code highlighting based on language syntax and automatic line wrapping.

Using a dedicated code block component:

• Many modern web frameworks provide pre-built components specifically designed for displaying code blocks. These components often handle syntax highlighting, wrapping, and other functionalities for a more robust solution.