Just when you thought the transition from designing websites from 800×600 to a 1024×768 pixel resolution was over. The 1024×768 user as of December 2008 accounted for 40% of the market while 800×600 users accounted for just 5%. I had hoped there would be some prolonged rest bite before we had to consider another transition in screen resolution. The next obvious battle ground appeared to be the next sizes up such as the 1280×800 and 1280×1024 which account for around 30% of the market.
However in recent months, there has been a huge upsurge in the popularity of netbooks owing to its relatively low cost and mobility. The dilemma is that these netbooks bring to the mix a different set of screen resolutions to contend with. Most netbooks have a 1024×600 screen resolution and while this won’t affect the width of pages, the key space above the fold will be reduced. Websites currently optimised for resolutions 1024×768 and above all of a sudden may find that important marketing messages and call to actions appear much further down the screen than intended.
While netbook’s share of the computer market is relatively small in comparison, it is the fastest growing segment in our increasing desire for more portable web access. Designers will soon have to face issue of how to design for a wider spectrum of screen sizes that range from the small netbooks to the ever increasing popular large widescreen desktop monitors. Using multiple websites designed for netbooks and desktops is not ideal. A more realistic approach would be to design with these users in mind and have the key content contained in an area of the page that is highly visible to all resolutions.
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