100% versus Fixed Width?

[Arkwright]

Could someone please tell me the advantages and disadvantages of setting my template to 100% as opposed to fixed width and what in peoples opinion is the preferred option?

Many thanks in advance

Arkie...

[SirBuck]

percentage will adjust to any screen size. Not so good on big screens with high resolution if you don't have a lot of content though.

Fixed is ok but you have to be mindful of other screen sizes.. You don't want people to have to side-scroll your pages.. Its annoying.

If you have a lot of content my opinion would be to go with percentage.. you don't have to do 100% maybe 90% or 85% etc. try out different ones

[gjh42]

100% uses the whole screen but keeps your page from horizontal scrolling on smaller monitors. It can look "stretched" on wide monitors unless designed for it. You can use
max-width: 1200px;
to keep the page from over-stretching, although IE6 doesn't support this standard CSS property. (You can also use min-width to keep the page from cramping in tiny windows, with the same caveat.)

Fixed width lets you design for a known page layout and fully control the proportions and relationships of elements.

I would generally go for a fluid width of around 90-95% to give some breathing room, with min- and max-width set so that modern browsers have the best possible range of good function.
If your audience tends to be less tech-savvy and mostly uses IE6, you might want to stick to a fixed width.
There are ways to distinguish what the user is running and adapt your output accordingly; Web design tutorial sites can give info.

[SirBuck]

I didn't even think about "max width". thats a good idea! thanks Arkie