wide or narrow forum type ? opinions

[GeraintUk]

i've just narrowed the forum.

Only works on first two posts as i've got some coding error which i'm trying to sort.

However, do users prefer it full width or centralised and more compact ?
Most php boards use this and I can eventually put a backdrop around the sides if I want to.

Thoughts please.

Cheers
G

[< KEVIN >]

narrow like mine

http://rovercoupe.boldlygoingnowhere.org

[Leo]

Kevin I think yours is a little too narrow, imo of course

G is there a way of having it go to a max of say ~1280px wide and if anyone has a screen wider, it will stay at that, but if they have a narrower one it'll resize down to whatever narrowness they're running?

Err not sure that made sense!

e.g. at 1280, the forum will be 1280 width (ok, minus a few to allow for scroll bar and window edges)
at 1920 (or whatever huge sizes) the forum will still be 1280
at 1024 or smaller, it will resize to be 100% of the window/screen width.

Is that possible? I think that's how I'd do it if I were the boss man

[s0ck]

As long as there is never a horizontal scroll bar I imagine we'll be happy with whatever.

[BlueRover]

I was going to mention that the wording on the previous page setup was right up to the edge of the window and perhaps to move it inwards slightly. The margins seem a little on the wide side but I am viewing at 1920x1200 so I may be exaggerating things a little.
I've now made the window 1200 pixels wide and it still looks a little spaced out. Perhaps adding a background would help as you suggest. Also, peeps have mentioned the brightness of the colour scheme but I've just turned my light on and it looks better. Perhaps when you get the chance an alternate scheme (say Nightview) is needed eventually but no rush. The work on the new site is excellent, thanks.

Now get some sleep.

[GeraintUk]

my plan is get the layouts sorted first, hence why i've not looked into alternate themes yet, as i'd then have two types to alter with each test.

I think you can do some of the things you mentioned Leo. I was thinking the same tbh. Something in between the narrow setup and the full width setup might work well.

[Leo]

my plan is get the layouts sorted first, hence why i've not looked into alternate themes yet, as i'd then have two types to alter with each test.

I think you can do some of the things you mentioned Leo. I was thinking the same tbh. Something in between the narrow setup and the full width setup might work well.

Cool... although I think I should just STFU because I just resized the window and it seems to resize to whatever size you choose below the 1280 which my screen is set to.

[RobBBoi]

Think I prefer the wider bit after the first 2 post tbh.

[Leo]

Think I prefer the wider bit after the first 2 post tbh.

Agreed, it just looks wrong with the blank bits at the side imo.

[Ross9]

wide for me, tbh the new style is too cramped, be it colour or set up caused it has no differentiation between the items, nowhere near as clear as the old one etc, so looks cramped.

Aything that spaces and spreads it out is welcome as far as I am concerned.

Ross

[RobBBoi]

I bet Geraint is wishing he had never started now, lol.

[Leo]

wide for me, tbh the new style is too cramped, be it colour or set up caused it has no differentiation between the items, nowhere near as clear as the old one etc, so looks cramped.

Aything that spaces and spreads it out is welcome as far as I am concerned.

Ross

Yeah I see what you mean Ross, I can't quite put my finger on it either. I have to say at this point that IMO there should be a limit on the size (both pixels and kb) of sig images. Cableguy, Geraint and BlueRover(sorry!!) spring to mind - sigs just don't need to be that big! It's the height more than the width which means you have to scroll so much more, and when sneakily using the forum at work, it's so much more blatant that you're looking at a car site when there's a 700px wide and 400-odd px sig on screen!

[Leo]

Humm, I wrote a load of stuff after Ross's quote in my last post... and it's gone!


Also am seeing this, four times at the very top of the page:

Code: Select all

[phpBB Debug] PHP Notice: in file /includes/functions.php on line 3538: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /language/en/common.php:1)

[< KEVIN >]

Get you asses onto google an find a skin yous like, instead of mucking around with code, it will be a whole lot simpler and all you have to do is edit the site header.
I now it will be pi$$ing yous off.

Then maybe get a freelance coder/designer to come up with a unique style for RT in the future, if we all mucked in a few quid.

just a thought

[Vard66]

Wider. Narrower just means more scrolling, quite apart from anything else.

[< KEVIN >]

i think this is what G's trying to achieve

just had a play about with the prosilver style.

my site for testing purposes - http://mgrovers.dontexist.net

and http://mgrovers.dontexist.net/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3 for topic layout

what do you think?

[RobBBoi]

i think this is what G's trying to achieve

just had a play about with the prosilver style.

my site for testing purposes - http://mgrovers.dontexist.net

what do you think?

Thats not bad. Still prefer the darker one you posted in another thread though!

[< KEVIN >]

just trying to keep with the colours of the old skin on phpbb2, am forgetting the layout of that already.!

[Leo]

wide for me, tbh the new style is too cramped, be it colour or set up caused it has no differentiation between the items, nowhere near as clear as the old one etc, so looks cramped.

Aything that spaces and spreads it out is welcome as far as I am concerned.

Ross

Yeah I see what you mean Ross, I can't quite put my finger on it either. I have to say at this point that IMO there should be a limit on the size (both pixels and kb) of sig images. Cableguy, Geraint and BlueRover(sorry!!) spring to mind - sigs just don't need to be that big! It's the height more than the width which means you have to scroll so much more, and when sneakily using the forum at work, it's so much more blatant that you're looking at a car site when there's a 700px wide and 400-odd px sig on screen!

Just noticed there is an option to switch off the viewing of signatures which I have done... the place looks a lot tidier now

[Punx0r]

Either looks ok to me. It's at the bottom of the screen that IMO could do with a margin i.e. everything from the "post reply" button down is right against the edge of the screen.

1024x768 here

[Semproxion]

Either looks ok to me. It's at the bottom of the screen that IMO could do with a margin i.e. everything from the "post reply" button down is right against the edge of the screen.

1024x768 here

Agreed. Should be possible

1400x900

[agw_01]

Narrow

Helps to split each post up.

[paul888]

Narrow.

[Funkster]

Urgh, it's gone all fixed-width! So I get a scroll bar if my browser is a bit smaller than full screen.

I don't really mind if there are gaps at the sides (though it seems like a waste of screen real estate) but horizontal scroll bars are right out.

fwiw, I realise it's all a WIP :o)
--
Olly

[Punx0r]

I too have a scroll bar now What screen width is it set up for?

[TomcatDan]

Bigger than my 1024x768 laptop that's for sure But on the plus side it looks beautiful on my 1440x900 at work

[GeraintUk]

how about that now.... ?

i've reduced it a little more, but we are now starting to get into the region of making it full on narrow 800px and then on the larger screen systems it looks very wasted space either side.

[a19undertaker]

everyone just go out and buy 19" monitors....sorted

oh and i dont mind either way, narrow/wide

i've got 2" either side on my monitor but as long as i can read it, it's ok

[paul888]

I've got quite wide gaps either side but like it looks ok .

[< KEVIN >]

am using a res of 1024 on my tiny 14" ibm and looks perfect, a half inch gap either side.

[Punx0r]

Yeah it now looks fine on 768x1024.

[TomcatDan]

It's perfect

[GeraintUk]

cool,,,950px wide setting it is.

I have about 3.5" either side on my 20" widescreen, but I can live with it, and i'll put a backdrop on when themes are finally selected.

Cheers
g

[TomcatDan]

To be fair G, the gaps on either side aren't any different to, for example the times online site, and theirs are even more noticable because the background is grey.

You've done a good job imo.

[Leo]

Aye, looks good to me too.

It's coming together nicely, great work Geraint