views:

268

answers:

3

Most statistics out there for browser stats show you the resolution of the screen.

Thats fine for Windows where browsers typically open full screen and most people leave it as that. So if the browser stats say 1024x768 you just need to subtract a little width for the browser chrome.

On a Mac however browsers typically dont open full screen.

What kind of width is a mac browser likely to be when it opens as such.

I'm thinking of a width of 960 as recommended by what-is-the-best-absolute-width-for-a-webpage. However I'm wondering if this is equally as good width for a mac?

I'm not sure when Apple last made 1280x768 laptops or screens anyway so its probably a non issue. It just frustrates me a little that most places I find statistics on screen resolution dont show you the actual available width.

+5  A: 
keparo
So what if the "widths" are all set to "100%", how big does it get then?
TM
Ah, good question. It depends on the browser, but Firefox will just go ahead and maximize to fullscreen. I'll make a note of it above.
keparo
+1  A: 

Instead of fretting about absolute widths, why not do percentages, and give it a min-width so that it doesn't start to look too terribly bad at lower resolutions?

The min-width could be where your 960 or 990 comes into play.

contagious
A: 

The stats you've read are based on actual screen sizes of visitors. If you're looking for stats on what size the average user's browser is at, you'll need to look elsewhere. Also I never browse full screen on windows or mac OS, and I consider a design that's wider than 960px or so to be very annoying. (it's 2^16+2^17+2^18+2^19)

I'm feeling lucky for browser size. See the second chart.

dlamblin