Fixed vs. Fluid vs. Elastic Layout: What’s The Right One For You?

admin    Web Designer     Elastic Layout, Fixed Layout, Fixed vs. Fluid vs. Elastic Layout, Fluid Layout, Website Development

The problem has boggled the minds of Web designers for years: fixed, fluid, elastic or a hybrid layout design? Each option has its benefits and disadvantages. But the final decision depends so much on usability that it is not one to be made lightly. So, with all the confusion, is there a right decision? By considering a few factors and properly setting up the final design, you can end up with a successful layout design that reaps all the benefits.

This article discusses the pros and cons of each type of layout. Either one can be used to make a successful website layout, as long as you keep usability in mind.

Also consider our previous articles:

• Flexible Layouts: Challenge For The Future, which discusses the challenges of flexible layouts for the future.
• Applying Divine Proportion To Your Web Designs, which explains the process of applying divine proportion to fixed layouts, but concludes with applying the Rule of Thirds to fluid layouts.

Why all the debate? Web page design comes down to usability, and this can be difficult to balance because website users can account for many different variables among them.

When designing a website layout for a large audience, the designer must consider the following potential differences among visitors:

• Screen resolution,
• Browser choice,
• Whether or not the browser is maximized,
• Extra toolbars open in the browser (History, Bookmarks, etc.),
• Even the operating system and hardware.

Without the benefit of a standardized website size to work with, Web designers encounter numerous problems when it’s time to get to work.

read more