Dude, cryptic knows about the queues and all of the other stuff we've been complaining about. Don't worry. I think it's probably a good idea to complain about this now since they'll pay more attention to it because they just put the new forum out there.

Well, the main reason why is because a lot of people still use 1024x768 resolution. It's sad, but also true. Just looking at one of my sites that had 381,000 visitors last month (5.6 million impressions), 20% of them had a resolution of 1024x768 (75,000 visitors).

So as a general rule, we tend to hard-code the widths at or around 1000 pixels (to account for browser chrome) as then we know we can control the look of a site for basically most users (a very small percentage use lower resolutions or mobile devices).

You could probably make the argument that it's not as important on a forum to use a fixed width, and I might not even disagree, but I understand it. I personally prefer the forums the way they are, because paragraphs come out correctly. If it was not fixed width, then a long paragraph may only end up on one or two lines with a large resolution.

So it really just comes down to controlling the look and feel. And we have to keep in mind those users with the average lowest resolution. Almost any site that is fixed width is done so with 1024x768 in mind.

Well said. So you're basically saying that since most use that low resolution, it will appear as a normal paragraph to them under the current forum appearance? I guess it makes sense-the smaller the fixed width the better for most users.

By using a fixed width, it will look the same to everyone, regardless of their screen resolution (with a few exceptions based on OS/browser combos and fonts). And technically only around 20-25% of users have a resolution of 1024x768. We use that one because it's a significant number of users still. About 70%+ will have a larger resolution. And 5-10% will have a lower resolution (800x600, netbooks, mobile devices, etc.) These trends change over time. I look forward to the day I can hard-code at a higher resolution!

Welcome to the world of web design ^^

Actually on mine it looks good and I like the new design.

Dear Pottsey, don't get me wrong: I am sorry for you that you have that many black spaces but as a webdesigner you can never ever make everyone happy so you have to stick with the standard.

Hey Cryptic, get your web-designing team some wide screen monitors please.

Other than being very small and cramped, I love the look and feel of the forums. The web site is totally side-docked bugged however with everything shoved to the left margin.

I just checked out your homepage. One of the sites I manage (PopStar) actively supported the campaign for a third season of LotS. I have never seen the show myself, but I liked the passionate community behind it. It's unfortunate it didn't get a third season.

On topic, I'm sure they do have wide screen monitors, and I'm sure you know that. :-)

I like the layout, though it could use some improvement in the background as it scrolls down. Also, it continues to have issues with the menubars. None of them appear where they should when I open them.