The Chrome DevTools are an essential tool for anyone who builds websites. They help you to understand how your website is functioning and make debugging a lot easier. The Chrome Inspect Tool is one of the most useful tools in the DevTools, as it allows you to view and edit specific elements on your webpage, inspect their properties, and even see the HTML code behind it. Read on to learn more about the Google Chrome Inspect Tool and its various features.
What is the Chrome Inspect Tool?
The Inspect tool is a debugging tool inside the Chrome DevTools that allows you to view and edit the aspect of any element on your website. You can select any element on the page and then use the various features of the Inspect tool to inspect it in greater detail. The Inspect tool is available in both the desktop and mobile versions of Chrome.
A step-by-step guide to using the Inspect Tool
The first step in using the Inspect tool is to select any element on the page. You can do this by right-clicking on the element or by using the keyboard shortcut ‘Shift + Esc’ to open the Elements panel and then clicking on the desired element. The second step is to open your Chrome DevTools. You can do this by pressing ‘Ctrl + Shift + I’ or ‘Command + Shift + I’ on Mac. The third step is to click on the ‘Inspect’ button in the top right-hand corner of the DevTools panel. You can also press ‘F12’ on your keyboard. The fourth step is to click on the ‘Elements’ tab in the DevTools panel.
View HTML code
Using the ‘View Source’ option in the Elements panel, you can view the HTML code behind an element. This is incredibly useful if you’re trying to figure out why a certain element is displaying as it is on the page. To do this, select the element whose HTML code you want to view and then click on ‘View Source’. This will open the page’s HTML code in a new tab and highlight the relevant element.
See CSS Styles applied to an element
The DevTools allow you to see both the CSS properties that are applied to an element and their values. This is incredibly useful if you want to know why a certain element is styled in a certain way. To see the CSS styles applied to an element, select the element whose CSS styles you want to view and then click on the ‘CSS’ tab. This will open a new panel that shows all of the CSS styles applied to the element.
JavaScript debugging
If your website is powered by JavaScript, you can use the Inspect tool to debug your website’s scripts. This allows you to see the various functions and scripts on your website and their current state. To debug your website’s scripts, select the element whose scripts you want to debug and then click on the ‘Sources’ tab. This will open a new panel that shows the scripts and functions on your page.
Change CSS Styles on a page
One of the most powerful features of Chrome DevTools is the ability to edit CSS styles on the fly. This allows you to change CSS properties on an element or even change the CSS of multiple elements or the entire page. To do this, select the element whose CSS you want to change or multiple elements whose CSS you want to change, and then click on the ‘Style’ tab. This will open a new panel that allows you to edit the CSS.
Summing up
The Chrome DevTools is a powerful debugging tool that allows you to view and edit any element on a webpage. This can be incredibly useful for debugging any issues with your website and understanding how your website is function at a code level. The Chrome Inspect Tool is one of the most useful tools in the DevTools, as it allows you to view and edit specific elements on your webpage, inspect their properties, and even see the HTML code behind it.