Marketing & SEO Discussion List - LED Digest

                 The LED Digest
             Moderated Discussion List
     "Effective Online Advertising, Since 1997"

      Data > Information > Knowledge > Wisdom

http://www.AudetteMedia.com : the LED's Publisher
The Internet Marketing Boutique: SEO, SEM, Social Media

http://www.SEOToolSet.com/training/ : the LED's Premier Sponsor
Bruce Clay's Search Engine Optimization Training & Certification

==================================================
List Moderator:                     Published by:
Adam Audette                           LED Digest
adam, led-digest.com     http://www.led-digest.com
..............................................
July 29, 2008                       Issue no. 2686
..............................................


            .....IN THIS DIGEST.....


==== CONTINUING =================

    --== Design Resolution & Sizing ==--

        ~ Will Bontrager
"...consult statistics of browser window size
in addition to screen resolution."

        ~ Karl L. Baldwin
"I am incredulous that I never see anyone other
than myself...design websites with auto-wrap."

        ~ Tom Aman
"You are equating screen resolution with
browser window size..."


======== CONTINUING ===============================

From: Will Bontrager
Subject: Resolution

> The trend sure seems to be more and more
> people these days are using a higher
> resolution, with 45% using 1024 x 768 and a
> low 7% using 800 x 600.
    - Robert Joy, LED 2683
    - http://www.led-digest.com/content/view/2098/190/

It may be prudent to consult statistics of browser window size in
addition to screen resolution.

I, and several others I am associated with, do not run the browser
window full screen. We like to have other application windows visible.

A browser window 800 pixels wide will have scrollbars at the bottom of
wider web pages, even with an umpteen zillion pixel screen resolution.

Will Bontrager
http://www.willmaster.com/


-------- new post - same topic --------

From: Karl Baldwin
Subject: Resolution

Over the years, I have, from time to time, read on many different
forums, these discussions on designing websites for a particular
resolution. I am incredulous that I never see anyone other than myself
who has always (10 + years) designed websites with auto-wrap. The
advantages, seems to me to be conspicuously and intuitively obvious.

Regardless of any viewer's screen size or resolution settings, my sites
will display all of the pages content, up to 100% of each monitor's
viewing width, with no side scrolling - on anybody's computer screen.

The disadvantages? The only one I can think of is that a monitor with
very high resolution (mine is 1200 x 1600) will have lengthy lines of
text. However, I have never once found that to be an issue either from
website owners or visitors (up to 1200 visitors per hour) on my website
in over 10 years.

Therefore I find all this wringing-of-hands and gnashing-of-teeth over
designing for a specific resolution to be a bogus criteria laid down as
the gospel by some well meaning "design Guru" from years past, a
perpetuated to this day by the follower-on Lemmings.

Damn, I hope that didn't sound too harsh.

Best Regards,
Karl L. Baldwin
Mountain Lodging
http://www.mountain-lodging.com


-------- new post - same topic --------

From: Tom Aman
Subject: Resolution

> The trend sure seems to be more and more
> people these days are using a higher
> resolution, with 45% using 1024 x 768 and a
> low 7% using 800 x 600. These figures do
> seem to vary depending what site one looks
> at, although all seem to agree that 800 x
> 600 has declined and continues to decline.
    - Robert Joy, LED 2683

You are making the mistake many have made in the past (and still make).
You are equating screen resolution with browser window size, assuming
that surfers all run their browsers full screen.  Bear in mind that many
of us do not.  I seldom run my browser full screen because it makes text
lines too long for comfortable reading and I find it very annoying when
a site is designed to expect a wide screen (I hate those horizontal
scroll bars).

Also, screen size does not mean "available real estate".  Personally, I
have the Window's task bar at the bottom of my screen and often run with
a second tool bar for some software I use a lot down running the left
side of my screen.  So with a resolution of 1024 x 768, I would probably
have available display real estate of somthing like 995 x 740 (number
are a guess).  Also, some people like a task bar wider than the default
to show more icons at one time so the 744 number would be more like 720.

Basically, "optimal design parameters" are screen layouts that work at
any reasonable size (even as small as 640 wide).  It may take a bit more
work to do this, but it will keep visitors much happier.

Tom Aman


(c) Copyright 1995-2008 Orange Wheel, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
-----------------------------------------------------------------

"...an author is one who can judge his own stuff's worth, without pity,
and destroy most of it." - Colette