Designing websites... what res to work with?

Discussion in 'HTML & Website Design' started by chem, Dec 31, 2006.

  1. #1
    Hi,

    I was just wondering what the common resolution is of the every day user is?

    Right off the bat you will probally give your res which is some odd or very high number, but thats not what i'm looking for. Webmasters, designers, ect... tend to use a bigger resolution then the everyday user.

    I tend to build my websites for 800*600 but I'm ready to jump up to 1024*768. Do you think I'm safe to do so or should I wait?

    Thanks,
    Aaron
     
    chem, Dec 31, 2006 IP
  2. iatbm

    iatbm Prominent Member

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    #2
    Still get some 20% people with 800x600 so guess we should stick with 800x600 in 2007.....in 2008 I will shift to 1024x768 ....
     
    iatbm, Dec 31, 2006 IP
  3. JEET

    JEET Notable Member

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    #3
    Why not design so the site design fits both screen sizes?
    It's not very difficult... ;)
    Although if you have to choose one, try going with what you think your visitors generally use (covering maximum users). Or use 800x600, centered, and fill sides with some color.
    Bye :)
     
    JEET, Dec 31, 2006 IP
  4. chem

    chem Active Member

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    #4
    I design my sites to fit 800x600 but recently I was working on a clients site and we put pictures of homes on the side. We had to make the RV pics much smaller due to res. I was wondering if we could recode the site to 1024*768 and make the pictures on the side larger. Know what I mean?

    Maybe theres a way in css to make picture sizes bigger depending on res? I dunno, I'm a newb ;)
     
    chem, Dec 31, 2006 IP
  5. ophir.oren

    ophir.oren Peon

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    #5
    the best thing to do is try to design your website so it will look good on all resolutions.
     
    ophir.oren, Dec 31, 2006 IP
  6. swiftmed

    swiftmed Peon

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    #6
    Alot of people now use 1024x768 displays but you will still get a lot of people using the 800x600 res who are using old computers, people whos eye vision isnt soo good, so its good to keep them in mind. i personally design for 1024x768, but thats my preference.
     
    swiftmed, Jan 7, 2007 IP
  7. orangelad

    orangelad Peon

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    #7
    Ideally, you should be using a fluid or fixed-fluid design, rather than a strictly fixed width. Within the next few months, 800x600 resolution use will be so minuscule that it'll hardly be worth trifling with. Sites such as nytimes.com and yahoo.com have already made the switch to 1024 design, so I'd say it's pretty mainstream.
     
    orangelad, Jan 7, 2007 IP
  8. klown

    klown Peon

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    #8
    20% of people is hardly miniscule.. its not dropping in use much either. Older people use it more often. I see it dropping after around 5-10 years not even the next year or two.

    5% of users on a site is a lot so think about that.. for mine i pay a lot of money to get the clients there, throwing a % or two out the window is just bad business.

    Your right about fluid or fixed-fluid design however, thats the ticket and what the better designs use.
     
    klown, Jan 7, 2007 IP
  9. orangelad

    orangelad Peon

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    #9
    One caveat - look at your demographic. If you're writing a PS3 forum, it's safe to assume that virtually all of your users are running 1024 res or higher.

    If you're selling adult diapers, you may want to reconsider.
     
    orangelad, Jan 7, 2007 IP
  10. Game Producer

    Game Producer Well-Known Member

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    #10
    Shoemoney had some stats where roughly 3.5% had 800x600. I also wrote a post that says 2.77% have 800x600.

    One other gaming site reported his site getting bit less than 13% with 800x600 resolution

    W3 site might have said that "many still use 800x600".

    It's hard to say what's "everyone using" but webmasters etc. probably are using 1024 or higher resolution. Some people still use 800x600 so it really depends your site theme.
     
    Game Producer, Jan 8, 2007 IP
  11. proprod

    proprod Active Member

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    #11
    I try to do mine in percentages, and then check them out in different resolutions, it's possible to get the correct percentage and it looks good in all resolutions.
     
    proprod, Jan 8, 2007 IP
  12. technoguy

    technoguy Notable Member

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    #12
    you must develop a site which is suitable for all the resolutions and all the browsers.
     
    technoguy, Jan 8, 2007 IP
  13. surgeprotector

    surgeprotector Peon

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    #13
    It has sort of been suggested, but take a look at open visitor stats for big sites. Depending on your content it may vary, but a lot of people still use 800x600. In x years when everyone has minimum 32" flat panels on their desks then maybe everyone can switch to the higher resolutions.

    Anyone care to explain what a fluid or fixed fluid design is?
     
    surgeprotector, Jan 8, 2007 IP
  14. chem

    chem Active Member

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    #14

    Keep in mind who visits these sites. Shoemoney readers are often much tech aware then your everyday consumer. Gamers tend to be the same way also.
     
    chem, Jan 8, 2007 IP
  15. magnumpi

    magnumpi Peon

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    #15
    I've moved to 1024x768 now after years on 800x600.

    Less than 5% of my visitors use 800x600.
     
    magnumpi, Jan 8, 2007 IP
  16. tyros8000

    tyros8000 Peon

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    #16
    i work to 780px width max. that is about borderline for 800x600 resolution.

    i would move to a wider width but there are still a lot on 800x600 so for now i am sticking to that.
     
    tyros8000, Jan 8, 2007 IP
  17. Angelus

    Angelus Well-Known Member

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    #17
    Sam here. 780px looks good on high resolutions also...

    p.l.u.r.
     
    Angelus, Jan 8, 2007 IP
  18. CanaryWoolf

    CanaryWoolf Peon

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    #18
    I took a decision when building our site to use a fluid design which to my eyes at least works well and does not look 'odd' even at 1440 x 900 resolution. http://www.cavaliermailing.com/content/index.html

    I've seen the 800 x 600 resolution drop from 35% to about 15% in about 18 months. If you want absolute continuity and to know exactly what each page is going to look like then you must go for a fixed design. If you are going to build a new site then I would go for 1024 x 768 but think carefully about what would be not shown (without scrolling) on the right hand edge. Maybe use that area for some less important text, ads, or images?

    CW
     
    CanaryWoolf, Jan 8, 2007 IP