How to properly install/use less in codeigniter?

@samara 

To properly install and use LESS in CodeIgniter, follow these steps:

1. Install LESS Compiler: Install the LESS compiler using npm (Node Package Manager) by running the following command in your command prompt or terminal: npm install -g less
2. Create LESS files: Create a .less file for each CSS file you want to compile. For example, you can create a file called styles.less in your assets/css directory.
3. Create a route: In your routes.php file located in the application/config directory, create a route for the less file so that it can be accessed by the LESS compiler. Add the following line: $route['assets/css/styles.less'] = 'assets/css/styles.less';
4. Create a helper function: Open your application/helpers directory and create a new PHP file called less_helper.php. Add the following code to define a helper function: checkedCompile($less_file, $css_file); }
5. Include the LESS Helper: Open the application/config/autoload.php file and autoload the less_helper as a helper by adding 'less_helper' to the helpers array: $autoload['helper'] = array('less_helper');
6. Compile the LESS file: In your view file or controller, call the compile_less helper function to compile the LESS file into CSS. For example: $less_file = 'assets/css/styles.less'; compile_less($less_file);
7. Use the compiled CSS file: The helper function will compile the LESS file into a CSS file and save it in the same directory with the same name. You can now include the compiled CSS file in your view file or wherever required:
8. Optional: Cache the compiled CSS: If you want to speed up the rendering process, you can modify the compile_less function to save the CSS file with a different name and use CodeIgniter's caching mechanism.