Optimal page width?

800px, you can always make pages auto-center or auto stretch...

Thanks for a quick reply...

dyno

If you're doing a fixed width layout you'll want to go around 760 px or so. That leaves room for the browser chrome.

760px yeah tried that too to adjust for Operas bar...

I usualy start with a 800 X 600 area in photoshop and out of habit I dont fill to edge.

If the type of layout doesnt limit my size due to images I usualy do 750 nice even number. The menu spaceing I usually use is 180 px.

One thing to concider, what will a printout look like?

-Greg

I believe that a width of 750 or so makes for good printing. At least, that's what I've heard. I haven't actually tested it myself since hearing it.

I never have never had to worry about that bacuse I have never made a informational site.

Developing your site around how it will print out is the wrong thing to go about things IMO. I would rather have a print page link which opens a text only version of the page. You could have an onLoad JS event which just starts the printing off itself.

Optimal page site is important for your target market. So it would be useful to know what that is? People always reel out the old statistic that 99.99% use 800x600 screens taken from a survey from 1892 but the reality is in most circumstances 1024x768 is the screen resolution to worry about.

-Rob

I would not agree.... Clients I have done computer work for usually have 800x600 on a 17 inch screen.

Either way adjust for both those screens, many methods available...

The big client I'm working now has a higher screen resolution than even I have. Not sure exactly what it is, but it's above 1024 x 768. It's high enough that I have to get her to hook her laptop up to a projector to let me know how big I need to make a mock-up of her site for a board meeting. Normally I would just make it fit on a 800x600 or 1024x768 screen, but this is a news site, so it will go down a bit on the screen.

Always make it fit the smallest and usually you wont have a problem with the others

I always make mine fill an 800x600 screen. (Yes, this means that it won't fit at 640x480), but very few (if any ) use this screen resolution.

I have NEVER seen a 640x480.

Haha 640x480 - don't think anybody has used this resolution for the last 8-10 years!

Most of my sites - if it's left to me are 750px wide, and fixed width. The current client i'm working with though has requested it to fill the screen on every resolution from 800x600 to 1280x1024, it's been pretty difficult getting it to look acceptable on all of them.

So yeah, 760px or under for fixed width.

definitelly not less than 750px for me. most of the time it is stretchable or 950px.