[ Sponsored Links ]

Advertise here »

"Letterbox" is the word I know

reply to message » post a new message » e-mail to a friend »
Subject:  "Letterbox" is the word I know Francois Jordaan
Author:   fjordaan :   view profile | all posts by this author | add to favourites
Date:   18:14:32 27 May 2004
Rating:  
  (5 point avg. from 1 vote)  
 
I didn't mean to suggest that a liquid layout should always be used.

(Jargon guide: A liquid layout is where the content on the page always expands to the full width of the browser window, or proportionally with it.)

The worst thing about a letterbox layout is that the *height* is fixed. No user will ever appreciate having to scroll down while there is still plenty of available vertical space in the window. For an example, see
http://www.nestle.com/

Fixing the *width* is another matter. While you can argue that it, too, is against the spirit of the web medium, a lot of the time it makes sense to use a fixed-width layout. For example for the line-length issue you mention. But often it, too, is just lazy design, because it's hard to mock up a liquid layout in Photoshop.

(In theory CSS allows you to set maximum line lengths, but since IE doesn't support max-width or min-width, that's still just wishful thinking.)

Typically, sites with relatively simple content and little navigation work better with fixed-width layouts, e.g. most blogs or small-company sites. (And you're right, they should cope well with font size changes.) Sites that need multiple columns (typically for navigation) are often better off with a liquid layout. Some good examples:
http://www.dh.gov.uk/
http://www.sitepoint.com/
An added benefit is that this allows you to use a larger font size. (In fact, I would suggest that this very site would be better off with larger fonts and a liquid layout.)

On a final, technical note: If you use CSS rather than tables to lay out web pages, even if you fix the page width, the user -- or another device -- can still override it if they wish.
 
« Back to Internet Marketing Forum Previous Thread »  |  Next Thread »
  • auto centring of web sites or postcarding..?, Lucyf, 21 May 14:30
    hello has anyone heard of 'postcarding' it is when a web page automatically opens in the centre of the browser, regardless of the browser or size of screen? I think it is als ...
    • Re: auto centring of web sites or postcarding..?, Alex Chudnovsky, 21 May 15:10
      On 14:30:41 21 May 2004 Lucyf wrote: >has anyone heard of 'postcarding' it is when a web page >automatically opens in the centre of the browser, >regardless of the browser or s ...
    • auto centring of web sites or postcarding..?, Stuart Curran, 24 May 12:39
      Hi Lucyf I think that this approach is usually employed for sites where a degree of "pixel perfect" design is required. Its common to find a lot of brochure sites for design com ...
    • "Letterbox" is the word I know, fjordaan , 24 May 14:29
      ...but different designers will doubtless have their own terms. Mostly I'd advise against it. The main reasons why it is used are 1) Better knowledge of Photoshop than the w ...
      • "Letterbox" is the word I know, paulnattress, 25 May 16:17
        Can I throw a thought or two about liquid into the mix here? How does a liquid layout affect the relationship between elements on a page? Good information design creates relatio ...
        • "Letterbox" is the word I know, fjordaan , 27 May 18:14
          I didn't mean to suggest that a liquid layout should always be used. (Jargon guide: A liquid layout is where the content on the page always expands to the full width of the brow ...
« Back to Internet Marketing Forum Post a new message »
Subscribe for only €299