There is often a lot of confusion around screen resolutions and the optimum size to build for. In reality, there isn’t one recommended size as it’s impossible to cater to all the variations in screen sizes, browsers and platforms. The solution, as Jakob Neilsen claims, is to have “pages [that] work at any resolution” and this can be achieved by fluid sites that expand or retract to fit the proportions of the user’s screen.
Neilsen further outlines that sites “should optimize for 1024x768, which is currently the most widely used screen size” but should resize and work well in other sizes too. Therefore, when sites are built, they should work and look best in the most commonly used size. Fluid sites are achieved through table-less layouts with % widths that allow pages to expand and contract.
Other usability considerations for optimizing page layout are:
- Initial Visibility: The most important content should appear above the fold, which is the part of the page that is visible without needing to scroll. Obviously as screen sizes increase the amount of scrolling reduces but where possible important pages such as homepage should attempt to work well in smaller sizes too.
- Layout: In the optimum screen size each of the page’s elements should align in its correct position, with pictures appearing next to appropriate text and so on. Ideally, if this can be achieved when pages resize then it will further improve the usability of the site, however this can be quite difficult to achieve on smaller sizes.
- Readability: The text on the site should be easy to read in terms of size, font, and the columns in which it is placed, this is especially important as sites increase and decrease in size.
The best way to test how the sites works in different resolutions is to view it from different window sizes. Although there are programs that can do this for you, it is best to manually change the resolutions on the PC as it’s the most accurate reflection of the screen. By building sites to be fluid you are allowing it to be viewed in all devices, such as PCs and mobile devices, which helps improve the usability of your site.