html table - which column will give ?

Question

when you have a table where you define explicitically the width per <td> and the total is greater than the existing width that you have to play with. what determines which column will shrink and which will enforce the td width?

Answer 1

The browser rendering it makes the choice, plus other factors such as how you have set the widths.

Why not set one column to be auto width? then this one will be the one to size, or use percentages?

Answer 2

If I understand your question you can apply width in percentage and keep one of the columns as auto width(dont apply any width to it).

Answer 3

Two table rendering algorithms are recommended in Appendix B of the HTML 4.01 specification.