Page 1 of 1

Discussion thread - Full Width site setting

Posted: March 2nd, 2019, 10:46 am
by Itsallaguess
I've started this thread so that it can hold any discussion around the new 'Full Width setting' that's now available to help improve the browser experience when visiting the Lemon Fool website.

By default, the setting is in the 'Off' position, and can be configured by individual users by following the instructions on the URL below (which will eventually turn into a STICKY post, so please try to keep any discussions here for now, and not on the linked thread below) -

https://www.lemonfool.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=16543

The tool has been in operation for a while now, with testing responses being really positive. That's also given us the benefit of knowing that the default 'Off' position does not cause any issues that we've been made aware of.

We'd be interested in any feedback, positive or negative, around this new functionality, but hopefully it will improve the user-experience on the varied number of digital devices that we're all likely to be using nowadays.

It's been primarily introduced to help with the legibility of tabular-data that's posted on the investment threads, but I personally think it also improves the general usability of the forum when using wider screen-areas, which will take advantage of the new functionality if it's turned on by individual users.

Please read the above linked instructions if you're interested in trying this out, and to help give a flavour of the advantages for tabular data, here's a sample post with a wide table in it -

https://www.lemonfool.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=4982

Whilst there's still a scroll-bar visible with the above tabular-data, hopefully the advantage of being able to see much larger amounts of the tabular-data is obvious with the new wider-screen setting now being available.

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

Re: Discussion thread - Full Width site setting

Posted: March 2nd, 2019, 12:40 pm
by mc2fool
Hummm ... well, on my dual headed 1280x1024 desktop I notice very little difference with the browser maximized on one screen. Where I do see the difference is if I stretch the window across both monitors, so I guess it's really for wider-than-1280 screens that you've done this up for.

On my 1366x768 laptop I also don't notice a difference straight off but that's because on the laptop I've always viewed TLF at 110% zoom, (a) 'cos the wasted screen real estate whitespace on either side at 100% always irked me and (b) 'cos it gives me a slightly larger font that way. If I turn on Use maximum width and view at 100% it does, of course, fix that particular wasted screen real estate problem but doesn't do (b) so I think I'll just stick with it the way I had it before.

For me the real flaw in the layout is the column at the right of the posts (postprofile). It provides no information that can't be obtained by just clicking on the username should one want it, and on taller posts -- like the ones in the HYP portfolio observations thread you linked to as an example -- that right hand column results in vast amounts of wasted screen real estate, as the profile info only ever occupies the top few lines.

(And I note that it's even worse if I stretch the browser across both monitors on my desktop to make it 2560px wide, as you've kept the postprofile at a relative width of 22%, so it stretches too giving even more wasted screen real estate...)

So, my preference would be for an option to get rid of the right hand postprofile column altogether. That would help with the legibility of tabular-data for all users, as everyone would be able to see larger amounts of the tabular-data, not just those with wider screens, and I think it would also improve the general usability for everyone, again not just for those with wider screens.

(If any of the profile info is deemed to be useful to have at a glance, it could easily be added at the top of the post, in a line just below the post title header (h3).)

Now, I do appreciate that an option to get rid of the right hand postprofile column is much easier asked for than done ;) and I fully admit I haven't looked though the available phpBB Board Styles to see if there's any out-of-the-box options available. But in any case, that's my two-penny-worth on the matter, given and hopefully taken as a constructive suggestion. :)

Re: Discussion thread - Full Width site setting

Posted: March 2nd, 2019, 2:49 pm
by tjh290633
Perhaps the post profile is why I see little difference, because it does not appear on the mobile version.

I know that I can make the screen wider, by turning to landscape format, and on my PC I can change the font size to see more of a table. I just wonder if we are trying to solve a problem which can be already solved by other means.

TJH