The Box Model - The CSS - page 74

overflow
The overflow property defines what is done if the content in a box is too
big for its defined space. The possible values for the overflow property
are as follows:
■ visible : Shows the content outside of the box (default)
■ hidden : Clips the content and hides what falls outside the dimensions
of the box
■ scroll : Clips the content and always draws scrollbars to allow for
access to additional content
■ auto : Clips the content and draws scrollbars only when they are needed
The overflow behavior for the width and the height of a box can be indi-
vidually set with the overflow-x and overflow-y properties.
note By default, Internet Explorer will not let the content flow out of the
box but instead expand the box to fit the content as if width or height
were min-width or min-height . This is partly why a short height is used in the
hasLayout fixes discussed in Chapter 2.
Min and Max Dimensions
When designing flexible layouts or taking multiple types of devices into
account, it can be useful to place restrictions on the size of elements. As
you will see in Chapter 7, these properties are most useful when paired
with width or height settings of auto or a different type of length unit.
article {
width: 100%; /* let element fit parent */
min-width : 200px; /* ensure content isn't too narrow */
max-width : 900px /* ensure content isn't too wide */
}