*** Fixed Width Forum ***

[Smileyman]

A lot of people have wide-screen monitors these days, and most forums I visit have a fixed width, so that you can read the thread more comfortably.

Reading some of the posts on this forum can be a daunting task, simply because if you don't format the post yourself by pressing Enter to keep everything nicely paragraphed, you end up with sentences that wrap around the full width of your screen, just like this sentence does.

If you decide to format the post yourself, making sure that you keep [ENTER]
the text within a certain boundary, you can get something more readable, [ENTER]
like I've done with this sentence, but a fixed width forum (like most are), [ENTER]
would allow us to see all posts in a readable manner.

Here's an example of what I mean, using this thread as an example:

Variable-width forum (what we have now):


Fixed-width forum:


Maybe Auran could set up a poll to see if this is worth considering?

Hmm, maybe there's a Firefox plug-in that will restrict certain website's width!
I'm off to look-see.

Smiley.

 

[RRSignal]

Let me know what that addon is. I hate widescreen with a passion.

 

[Smileyman]

Couldn't find a plug-in for that.
I did find one that moved the tabs in Firefox from the top to the right, and was adjustable, but I used it for all of 5 minutes.

It was nicely done, and it did allow the forum to display at a decent fixed width, but I couldn't handle having all the screen real estate on the left.
It's the same as having the bookmarks pane open on the left.

I prefer the forum in the middle of the screen, but I'd like it not to use the full width of the screen.

TPR forums are nicely readable because they use fixed width, but UKTrainz don't use it (although they do have user info panels on the left, which takes up some of the slack).

Smiley.

 

[crohakon]

Why not just reduce the size of your browser window to what ever is comfortable to you?

 

[Smileyman]

That's how I took the screenshots to show the examples, so it's an obvious solution, but that's just messy!

I don't like multiple windows in view.
That's why we have a taskbar.

Smiley.

 

[ish6]

Thanks Smiley!!!

BTW -- Luv your smiley slot machine, LOL :wave:

Ishie

 

[Johnk]

Smileyman I have to agree with yo 100%. I just spent $350 on a new LG 24 inch wide screen monitor because it's one of the few pivot monitors on the market.

Image

This allows me to see a full A4 page when I'm designing magazines such as the Trainz Community Newsletter.

The perfect web page size is about 950 pixels which is about the width of a sheet of Typing paper. The Trainz Resources Directory is around that size.

You have my vote!

Johnk

 

[jadebullet]

Really, I think that I am missing the point here. I have a wide screen monitor and I am having no problems whatsoever. If you are complaining about the fact that sentences are written that are more than two lines, I am not sure what the problem is. Maybe it is because I am a writer, and I constantly read books, but I see no problem in having a sentence that spans multiple lines. Unless, of course, it is a run on sentence.

I still think that people should definitely "double enter" when making a new paragraph, and actually make a paragraph when it is appropriate. This will eliminate the "wall of text" that can plague a post and make me not want to read it.

 

[RRSignal]

The problem is that text runs off the edge of the screen on normal monitors.

 

[Dermmy]

I'd rather have a text-off-the-edge problem - which fwiw I have never seen despite having viewed this forum using a half-dozen or so 'normal monitors' over the years - than go to a fixed width which will restrict image sizes. One of the great things about Trainz is the screenshots and if we went with John's suggestion of 950 we would be stuck back with good ol' 800 x 600s. What the heck does the size of an A4 sheet of paper have to do with the viewing size of a computer monitor....

Andy ??

 

[crohakon]

I have to go with the nay votes here... I do web design/developing on the side and normally keep might projects between 800px and 1000px in width depending on the amount of data to display. However, forums are a whole different matter. Even more so when you introduce high quality large screen shots (which I love, sorry dial-upers.)

So... you want the forums smaller? Limit the size of the browser window... or zoom in on the page. I think this can be done on most browsers by holding down the 'Ctrl' key and using the scroll wheel on the mouse.

 

[Johnk]

Having been a printer, typesetter for almost 30 years of my earlier life, what I could tell you guys about typography would probably bore you to tears in less than a minute. Suffice to say that it's a proven fact that wide columns slow down your reading ability and induce comprehension problems. The narrower the column, the faster and more accurately you can read it. Ask any newspaper or magazine editor.

Paper size vs screen size is so important, it's actually not funny. A4 and Quarto paper didn't just happen. the sizes evolved over the years as writers, typographers and readers searched for the happy medium.

It was decided long before I was born that Quarto paper was about as wide as you could go when using a standard pica typewriter. Any wider and the text got progressively harder to read. To prove my point, take the Terms and Conditions of any contract, insurance policy or warranty. In the old days (up to 2000), they deliberately made the text smaller and the lines longer to encourage people NOT to read the fine print.

If your eyes have to move as they read text, as they have to do with a wide screen monitor, the chances of missing something important are guaranteed. That's why the best web sites have fixed column widths and use the side margins for editorials, menus and advertising.

 

[RRSignal]

That's not boring at all. I minored in journalism and spent years and years on newspapers in every role. I wish more people were aware of the facts you posted.