Hot take: I used to think named grid areas were just extra typing
For about a year, I avoided them and stuck to line numbers. Then I had to rebuild a client's product grid after they changed their mind on the layout three times. Using names like 'product-image' and 'product-title' made those changes take maybe 15 minutes each instead of an hour of recalculating numbers. It clicked when I saw how much easier it was for my teammate to read the code later. Now I start most grids with template areas. Anyone else switch from a skeptic to a believer on a specific Grid feature?
Oh totally, I had the same exact journey. I thought naming things was just making more work until I had to update a grid on a phone screen size. Seeing 'header' and 'nav' in the media query made it so clear what was moving where. It just makes the code feel like it explains itself.
Tell me about it. I was the same way, thinking it was just more stuff to type for no real reason. Then I had to fix a layout that kept changing and my old way with numbers became a total mess. Now I look at that old code and wonder what I was trying to prove, you know? Naming the areas just makes the whole thing read like a map instead of a math test.
Wait you actually used numbers for grid areas? I tried that once on a small sidebar and got lost after three lines. I can't imagine doing a whole layout with numbers, like trying to give someone directions using only the seconds on a clock. My brain would just give up trying to remember if the footer was area 7 or area 12.