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I like my size the way it is

1 min read
Image of: William Shunn William Shunn

Remember how collective action killed the  tag back in the late '90s? I'd like to kill another annoying Web practice from that era that seems to be making a resurgence: sites that resize your browser.

I'm sorry, but I've deliberately chosen browser dimensions that fit the way I work with my computer. If I surf to your site and suddenly my multiply-tabbed Firefox browser resizes itself to 800x600 pixels, I'm going to get so annoyed at having to fix this that I'm going to leave your site and never come back.

Come on, it's the Web. If you can't build a site that people can comfortably view no matter their browser dimensions, you should either 1) go back to design school, 2) put your content in a popup instead, or 3) just fucking live with it, chump.

I would cite examples, but I don't want 1) to hurt any feelings unnecessarily or 2) reward any of those sites with extra hits. If I were Stephen Colbert, I would put JavaScript-ed resizing on notice.

Just say no to resizing!

Tagged in:

Html, Javascript, Pet Peeves, Web

Last Update: March 09, 2007

Author

William Shunn 2663 Articles

Hugo and Nebula Award nominee. Creator of Proper Manuscript Format, Spelling Bee Solver, Tylogram, and more. Banned in Canada.

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