page width

[sunburst]

Is there something I can do in my browser or operating system to make the pages of the new cafe fit my screen? As it is, since the change, I have to scroll side to side to see the whole page because it is wider than my screen. I've tried different browsers and it's the same, and besides, I'd rather use my preferred (and default) browser.

[Bill Van Liere]

I have the same problem with one of my computers but not the other.

Let's see where these young computer bucks are when we need them.

Thanks in advance for any help I might recieve.

[Bill Snyder]

Is your monitor set for the maximum resolution that it can be set for? Out of curiousity I reset my monitor to 800x600 then checked and I have to scroll across at that setting. Set to 1024x768 it shows everything just fine.

[Scott Tichenor]

I'm afraid there isn't an answer to like if you own a small monitor or your screen resolution setting is 800 x 600. If your screen resolution is 800 x 600, this site is going to be problematic, period. I know the percentage of users that visit this site at that resolution (1% range, decreases monthly by very minor increments), with even fewer (but yes, some!) set at 640 x 480, and knew exactly what I was causing when I made the decision to change the site width.

For the record, that decision was heavily influenced by the new forum and the classifieds which is where the bulk of the business of this community happens. I could use the excuse that much of the web isn't very useful at 800 x 600, and I really believe that, but that's passing the buck. There are trade-offs with any design, even those that are free flowing and fit any screen size. You can argue the latter with me all you want, but I don't buy free flowing site widths for a site like this. I have years of Section 508 employment experience at two different universities--places I'll openly accuse of marching to the drumbeat of web usability, but mostly as lip service, so it's not like this was a decision made without knowing there would be consequences for some in order to make other improvements.

I was fighting a limitation in what I could effectively publish given the previous width of the site. Expanding that range has opened up a lot of possibilities and improvements, of course, at the expense of a few.

Telling someone with possibly poor eyesight that needs a lower resolution to buy a monitor is a solution, but it's not one I feel comfortable making, especially in this economy. Increasing the resolution, if possible, may not be an effective answer for someone that would then have trouble reading. For me personally, the web is my job, so a larger monitor is not a luxury, it's a need. If it's not that for you, then I'll stick to what I said earlier that there isn't a happy ending.

Oh, and for the record, I'd be a young buck referred to a couple posts above if you're in your 70s or 80s. Not everyone running a web site is 30, or younger. I was already in my 40s when the web was born. My daughter says I never grew up. Maybe she was right.

[sunburst]

OK, now I know there's nothing to be done at least.

I did try going to 1024 X 768 and it did get this site looking better, but it makes almost everything else worse, so I'll have to just wait until I get a better monitor to get things back to normal.

[Bill Van Liere]

I am afraid there is not an answer to like if you own a small monitor

Ok, now I know what is going on, I got an old monitor here that is not much larger than my foot. Thanks for that explanation Scott, that will save me trying to fix the problem.

Bill-Age: a not very grown up 55.

[AW Meyer]

I was having the same problem. I decided to bite the bullet and buy a new monitor. I recycled the old one (in case anyone's wondering about my carbon footprint) and bought a 19" flat screen monitor for less than $200. I set the resolution to optimum, and voila, I can now see the pics in the classifieds without having to do the horizontal scroll. Next thing you know, I'll be buying a cell phone.