jargon

Comparison

Media queryvsprefers-reduced-motion

Media query

the sidebar collapses below 768 pixels because you picked that number once and never revisited it.

A conditional block applied on properties of the viewport or device — width, orientation, pointer type, colour scheme, motion preference. Width breakpoints are the familiar use and the weakest one, because they describe the window rather than the space a component actually has. The non-width queries are the more valuable half and the more forgotten one: `prefers-color-scheme` and `prefers-reduced-motion` are both accessibility features.

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prefers-reduced-motion

you wrapped the parallax animation in a media query and it stops for anyone who asked their system to calm down.

A media query exposing an operating-system preference for less motion, set by people for whom animation causes nausea or migraine. Honouring it means removing large movement, parallax and auto-playing transitions, not removing every transition — a short fade is usually fine and better than an abrupt change. Treating it as an accessibility requirement rather than a nicety is the correct reading.

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