Scott Hamm wrote: >I've been asking around in webdesign mailing list for feedbacks and >learned a lot about em, % and accessibility in CSS part. I'm trying >to use % so I can add up to 100% and I've been told that em is better >than % because of IE goof-ups. I've read in various CSS articles and >they had their own preferences. If em is the best method to set up >CSS, then how can I add up the width to remain fluid like %? Your >feedback will be greatly appreciated. > >
As Bob pointed out, this list is not for discussing whether or not people resize their text, etc. So let's not discuss that any further. But Scott has asked some good questions about em and percentages in general that I'd like to address, without getting into which is "better." I think the most important thing to remember when using ems or percentages is that they are not interchangeable when used as a unit of measurement for width. They are interchangeable when used as a unit of measurement for font-size, so this point can be confusing, but is very important. A layout with widths set in ems has a size based on the font size of the user. So, one user with a larger default font size may see your layout at 1000px, while another user with a smaller font size will see your layout at 800px. This also means that the layout will change in size if the user manually resizes his or her textm, but things will stay roughly in proportion to one another. A layout with widths set in percentages has a size based on the viewport size of the user. The layout will change in size if the user manually changes the size of his or her browser window. So it's up to you whether you want the layout to be dependent on font size or window size. Or neither (fixed width via pixels). I don't know of any percentage-based IE bugs that can be avoided by switching to ems (can you give us the source of this information?), and anyway, an em layout is not the same as a percentage layout, so don't use IE bugs as your deciding factor of which to use. Zoe -- Zoe M. Gillenwater Design Services Manager UNC Highway Safety Research Center http://www.hsrc.unc.edu ______________________________________________________________________ css-discuss [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.css-discuss.org/mailman/listinfo/css-d List wiki/FAQ -- http://css-discuss.incutio.com/ Supported by evolt.org -- http://www.evolt.org/help_support_evolt/
