spectrum48k

Just wondering what a web designers feelings are on a website that opens up a custom size window eg. 600 x 600 in which to view the website

This is to ensure the layout exactly matches the company's brochure, which is a square shape.

NB: I realise I can achieve this square shape within a normal browser window and just centralise it, which I've done but doesn't look as good.

Just wondering what people feel about a website opening up a new custom size window? eg. Welcome to xxxxx please click here to enter the site - so you click and a anew window opens up exactly the right size to match the brochure.

RichB

Are you sure it doesn't look as good, we often build sites ~800 pixels wide but never do it in a new window, personally I don't like sites that do this.
Apart from anything, do you think it will affect your ranking with Google if the first page it lands on does some javascript... Personally I don't know but would guess its one more step to your content which can't be good.
Presumably if you do this you will end up with a empty page with a link on it if the user has javascript disabled?

Its the same as having a Flash intro then getting to your content, which I personally also do not like.

Just my 2ps.

spectrum48k

Totally agree RichB, those are my fears as well.

The brochure is lovely looking modern thing with a square aspect ratio. All photos and content are built into thise square aspect. The guy is adamant he wants a reproduction of the brochure on screen, so I'd normally put this in a fully size window and center it on the horiz and vertical. Trouble is it has a thick board around the edge of the brochure - which looks orrible when I do the above full size window and center it. Hence my reason for opening a custom size square window. But I totally agree with your reservations.

Will present both options to him and let him decide.

SJ_Skyline

Javascript disabled, popups blocked - these will both cause you a nightmare. You need to educate your customer into understanding that just because something looks good on paper it won't necessarily look good on the screen.

Forcing widths it a bad thing, it goes against all the guidelines laid down by the W3C for layout and acessibility. Most screens are now pover 800px wide but that doesn't take into account the growing numbers of people using PDAs, Blackberries, etc with much much smaller screens. Ideally a site should degrade gracefully across screen sizes and browser cocktails.


But then I don't anything about this anymore

RichB

You could of course have a 'mobile' stylesheet that does away with all the graphics and layout and just displays the text (with minial imagery)