How to Efficiently Restart CSS3 Animations Without Element Removal?

Restarting CSS3 Animations: A More Efficient Technique

When working with CSS3 animations, it often becomes necessary to restart the animation after an event, such as a click. However, setting the affected element's scale or other properties directly can be problematic, leading to delays or complicated chaining of assignments.

Element Removal Trick

One unconventional method proposed is to remove the animated element from the document and re-insert a cloned version. While it does effectively restart the animation, it introduces unnecessary complexity and potential performance issues.

Reflow to the Rescue

A more elegant and efficient solution lies in triggering a reflow. Reflow is a process where the browser recalculates the layout of elements in response to a change in the DOM or CSS. By exploiting this behavior, we can effectively reset the animation without removing the element.

The following JavaScript code demonstrates this approach:

function reset_animation() {
  var el = document.getElementById('animated');
  el.style.animation = 'none';
  el.offsetHeight; /* trigger reflow */
  el.style.animation = null; 
}

The offsetHeight property is used to trigger the reflow, forcing the browser to recalculate the layout and reapply the animation settings. This effectively restarts the animation immediately without any delays or cumbersome chaining.

This technique is applicable to a wide range of CSS3 animations and can be easily integrated into any web application or framework. It provides a simple yet effective way to restart animations without introducing unwanted side effects.

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