Round and oval tooltips bring a playful twist to user interactions with their delightful bubble-like designs that captivate audiences. Perfect for websites targeting younger demographics like kids and teens, these expressive elements inject fun into any interface by combining visual appeal with practical functionality.
Expressive Visual Elements for Modern Websites
These circular and elliptical tooltips transform traditional square information boxes into engaging conversation starters. The organic shapes naturally complement sites using curved design elements, creating visual harmony. When users hover over buttons, links, or icons, these friendly bubbles emerge with gentle animations that feel more like natural conversations than technical notifications. The flexible system includes four distinct presentation formats:
- Round Bubbles – Perfect circular popups
- Oval Bubbles – Horizontally elongated variants
- Round Tooltips – Classic text helpers with curved containers
- Oval Tooltips – Extended shape for longer messages
Integrate them as subtle interactive enhancements on e-learning platforms, gaming websites, or any digital experience where warmth matters more than formal rigidity. See them animate below images of smiling children in portfolio sections demonstrating human-centered design principles.
Comprehensive Feature Set for Ultimate Customization
Design Flexibility
Choose from eight distinct sizes ranging from compact icons-only popups to expansive containers holding paragraphs of text. Size classes like .tooltip-small and .tooltip-xlarge maintain consistent proportions while accommodating different content volumes.
Positioning Precision
Display content in all eight cardinal directions relative to the trigger element: top-left, top, top-right, right, bottom-right, bottom, bottom-left, and left. The position classes ensure tooltips never awkwardly clip off-screen edges.
Vibrant Appearance Options
- Six border styles including dashed, dotted, and double-line variations
- Sixteen curated color palettes from vibrant neon combinations to subtle pastels
- Thirteen Google Font options optimized for readability in small spaces
- Font Awesome 4.7 icon integration for visual communication
Content Possibilities
Beyond text, inject interactive elements into your tooltips:
- Internal hyperlinks for quick navigation
- Clickable buttons for immediate actions
- Crisp SVG icons reinforcing messages
- Thumbnail images like product previews
Position these precisely using the detailed HTML documentation that provides markup examples for complex implementations.
Technical Architecture
- Modern Browsers: Pure CSS3 implementation with hardware-accelerated animations requiring zero images or JavaScript
- IE9 Support: jQuery transitions provide animation fallback
- IE8 Compatibility: Image-based backgrounds with jQuery dependency
- Four LESS files: Customize sizes, colors, typography, and mixins through variables
- Minimal Markup Philosophy: Clean HTML structure focuses styling in CSS
Smart Positioning Engine
The optional smarTooltip jQuery plugin revolutionizes how tooltips interact with screen boundaries. By intelligently detecting available viewport space, it dynamically repositions tooltips to prevent awkward clipping. Here’s why developers adopt it:
- Automatic collision detection between tooltip edges and viewport boundaries
- Custom positioning rules per tooltip via data attributes like
data-position-exceptions="top,left" - Configuration-free implementation requiring only CSS class additions
- Works alongside standard positioning when dynamic adjustment isn’t needed
See this adaptive algorithm in action: hovering near screen edges flips tooltip positions seamlessly for uninterrupted information flow. For demos, watch the smarTooltip video documentation.
Important Implementation Guidelines
While endlessly customizable, these tooltips have intentional design constraints:
Content Management Strategy
Unlike fluid containers, bubble sizes remain fixed using your selected size class. Follow these practices:
- Calculate approximate content volume before assigning size classes
- Create custom sizes via LESS variables when predefined options don’t fit
- Test responsiveness across device breakpoints after implementation
CMS Integration Limitations
Avoid using within content management systems if auto-generated content varies significantly. Manual text sizing and positioning ensures visual perfection but demands:
- Precise character count management
- Consistent breakpoint handling
- Device-specific testing iterations
For dynamic sites, implement these in controlled widget areas rather than main content streams.
Cross-Browser Support Matrix
Table showing browser compatibility and fallback mechanisms:
| Browser | Version | Supports | Fallback Mechanism |
|---|---|---|---|
| Firefox | 16+ | Pure CSS3 | None required |
| Chrome | 23+ | Pure CSS3 | None required |
| Safari | 5.1+ | Pure CSS3 | None required |
| Opera | 12.1+ | Pure CSS3 | None required |
| Internet Explorer | 10 | Partial CSS3 | None required |
| Internet Explorer | 9 | Basic Styling | jQuery transitions |
| Internet Explorer | 8 | Core Functionality | Image backgrounds + jQuery |
Resource Credits and Licensing
These tooltips leverage notable open-source projects:
- LESS CSS for dynamic stylesheet generation
- jQuery foundation for legacy browser support
- Font Awesome 4.7 iconography
- Google Fonts library for typographic diversity
Licensing Requirements
An extended license is legally required if:
- Integrating into distributed ThemeForest or CodeCanyon templates
- Redistributing modified versions as commercial products
- Using within SaaS applications with multiple end-users
Continuous Improvement History
Recent updates demonstrate commitment to compatibility and functionality:
March 18 Update: Introduced smarTooltip positioning plugin enabling automatic boundary detection for fewer clipped tooltips in complex layouts.
March 13 Update: Added comprehensive fallback support for older Internet Explorer versions through:
- jQuery-based animations replacing CSS3 transitions in IE9
- Retro-compatible image backgrounds for IE8 styling
- Legacy browser testing documentation
Share your experiences through ratings and comments to guide future enhancements by Tudor, your friendly tooltip craftsman.
