AskSaidit: Do you use browser zoom/magnification to view saidit? And if so, what percentage?

submitted by magnora7 from self.AskSaidIt

I'm talking the control in chrome or firefox where you can do ctrl and +, or ctrl and -, or ctrl and mousewheel.

I normally view saidit on 140-170% browser zoom, but 160% is probably my favorite. How about you all?

I realized yesterday that at 100% normal zoom, the font sizes on saidit are far smaller than those on google or almost all other websites. I think this is because it's using font sizes from original reddit, from the 90s and early 00s web. It uses fonts back from when default screen resolutions were like 1024x768, so the font would appear larger on the screen, because fonts are based on pixels. Now people have 4k resolution screens, which in effect makes the fonts smaller.

I also think this small text problem is a part why some newcomers think saidit looks "outdated". Zooming your browser fixes the issue, and then the site looks great, but perhaps a higher zoom level should be default in the sitecode so no adjustment is required by the user.

What made it clear to me is this: If you open saidit at 100% zoom, and then look at some google search results in 100% zoom and compare the difference in font size, you will see how much smaller our font is. Compare saidit also to reddit, and ruqqus, and voat. I personally think saidit looks much better at 140% browser zoom. That brings us in line with the readability of the other sites at default zoom. I'm playing with the thought of making 140% zoom the default look of the site. It would make the site look more approachable to new users too. What do you all think of this idea? What's your preferred zoom level?

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[–][deleted] 4 insightful - 3 fun4 insightful - 2 fun5 insightful - 3 fun -  (2 children)

100 % on a normal (24'' i believe) full hd screen. Perfectly readable for me. I have no problem with zooming in the other direction should you start playing with the zoom.

[–]magnora7[S] 5 insightful - 3 fun5 insightful - 2 fun6 insightful - 3 fun -  (1 child)

Thanks for the input!

I use a 1080p 22" monitor that's about 3 feet away, so I might like the zoom more than other people. But just cross-comparing to the other sites shows me we have the smallest fonts and icons of anyone, which makes me think zooming might be a good idea.

[–][deleted] 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Now i remember. My thinkpad also is only 1368*768 (or something like that) and it just looks fine on this one also.

Just omit and close the ticket. Tell them to get some glasses. :)

[–]cisheteroscum 3 insightful - 4 fun3 insightful - 3 fun4 insightful - 4 fun -  (0 children)

I'm talking the control in chrome or firefox where you can do ctrl and +, or ctrl and -, or ctrl and mousewheel.

Same but not firefox. It's just like old reddit, so I like the layout a lot

I normally view saidit on 140-170% browser zoom, but 160% is probably my favorite

You're crazy. I use like 90%-100% on a ~20" screen. How do you read what you're responding to?

[–]magnora7[S] 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (3 children)

I found out this is pretty easy to accomplish too, I messed with the css last night, there is a css "scale(1.4)" command I can apply to the main html page that scales everything automatically, it's great. However in firefox only it produces severe font kerning issues, which is annoying. But after lots of searching I found out those kerning issues can be fixed if the fonts are all sized in 'pt' instead of px or em. So I just have to change all the fonts to their equivalent pt size, and then I can scale the whole site for all browsers automatically with just a couple lines of css.

[–]JasonCarswell 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (2 children)

And all the CSS themes will be potentially affected, not just mine.

If it ain't broke...

[–]magnora7[S] 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

It is broke though, that's my point. And it wouldn't change the css anymore than browser scaling already does

[–]JasonCarswell 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Doesn't seem broke to me. And I wouldn't call it outdated. Just efficient. Obviously I don't know nearly as much, but I still have concerns.

As was said there's pt, px, em and maybe another if I recall. I can't speak to all the other themes but most of mine were px, easy enough to change. If it's the same as browser scaling then the entire question is moot or unnecessary.

I'm happy to be here now to help and to fix all the subs with my CSS themes, but my concern is for other subs with themes. For example, Mnemonic checks in now and then and has /s/Internet, but who knows when that will be. Easy enough for me to say, as I let my subs be broke for half a year or so. That could happen again, but on a wider scale.

On the plus side, I love the idea of standardizing everything to be uniform, even if it means a little overhauling to clean up. In the long run it makes thing easier.

I'm not trying to persuade one way or another, but rather just to be aware of all the factors and fallout.

A few ideas: 1) Apply the new theme to /s/SaiditCSSthemes or something popular like /s/conspiracy for folks to test out and compare. Or. 2a) Apply the new theme to all of SaidIt with a notice that it's on trial for a week and people should weigh in. 2b) At the end of the week you can make the announcement that people don't want it and revert it, or 2c) Declare that the people have spoken, like it, and the test changes will be permanent. 3) Or try another experiment for a week. 4) Lather, rinse, repeat.

If you and /u/d3rr ever want to brainstorm and dev up a new site-wide theme I'd be happy to help. D3 has mentioned he'd like to do a theme for the mobile version, and I'm game to help. I'm planning to pull away a few months this fall to finish my story. You can have me if you grab me before I switch gears and habits. I'll visit but hope not to return until it's done, and then you can utilize me again at your leisure. This winter I aim to also start finessing and overhauling the aesthetics of WikiSpooks with Robin.

[–]philosopher 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

I'm at 125%. And yes, please make the default larger, it does make the site look dated.

[–]philosopher 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

...and of course the images shouldn't just be scaled up, but new ones should be put in place that have increased resolution in order to scale them up. Blurry low-res upscaled images look outdated too.

[–]lawuigi 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

I keep it at 100% and only use the zoom temporarily on low resolution images. Currently using a 26" monitor at 2560x1440.

[–]magnora7[S] 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Wow lots of people are saying that. I'm kind of surprised tbh, but this is why I asked! Thanks for the info

[–]philomath 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (3 children)

I read Saidit on a 12.5" 1366x768 laptop monitor sometimes, and sometimes on a 24" IP monitor. I think it looks fine on both, but I will say that all over the net (and in App Suites, and more) I am constantly rolling my browser zoom up and down via CNTL+MouseWheel and have been for a few years now whenever something seems too small. I rolled the 12.5" monitor to 140% and that seemed way too big to me.

Also, I'm not sure how Saidit looks "outdated"? Again, I enjoy the interface. It's simple, doesn't run over the top of the user, and gets the job done.

[–]magnora7[S] 3 insightful - 2 fun3 insightful - 1 fun4 insightful - 2 fun -  (2 children)

Thanks for the info.

Also, I'm not sure how Saidit looks "outdated"?

Thanks, I don't think it does either. It's just a criticism I hear from time to time about the visual appearance from some new users.

[–]lawuigi 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

I have a hunch that most of the complaints are more focused on the Reddit-style post layout with nested comments. Which I could understand since this layout has been around for over a decade. However, I haven't seen a better layout and several other sites use this same setup. To just name a few of them; notabug.io, poal.co, voat.co, raddle.me, tildes.net, and thedonald.win.

Out of all of these only Tildes stand out to me for being incredibly minimalist and uses a slightly bigger font for comments. The others use a comparable font size to Saidit. So the only other things I see different is the color pallet and the maximum width on the comment blocks (I admit limiting the width makes it easier for me to read but I usually get around this by not full screening the browser). Overall nothing stands out enough for me to think that another Reddit-Alt found the mythical new modern look. So unless someone can provide an example of what they want or explicitly point out some aspect of the design I say just shrug off the complaints.

[–]magnora7[S] 3 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 0 fun4 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Thanks for the feedback. I'll probably leave it as-is. If I make another site I might make things bigger as default

[–][deleted] 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (10 children)

How many people browse from desktop? I think you will lose more users to other alternatives if you turn the site into a gay "new Saidit" look.

People migrating to saidit are probably former old.reddit.com users.

The mobile browser look is a little homoerotic already.

[–]magnora7[S] 5 insightful - 4 fun5 insightful - 3 fun6 insightful - 4 fun -  (8 children)

homoerotic

Can you speak like an adult instead of a child? I'm not really listening to someone who can't communicate like a grown-up

[–][deleted] 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (7 children)

Criticizes the tone of the writing without addressing the substance of the argument

[–]magnora7[S] 5 insightful - 4 fun5 insightful - 3 fun6 insightful - 4 fun -  (6 children)

You're the one dragging discussion down the pyramid of debate by calling things you dislike "homoerotic"... don't try and spin this back on me. Nice try though. Step up your game before calling out others.

[–][deleted] 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

I like how you performed this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasectomy so gently almost tenderly on him. It'll hurt for weeks to come. I'm sure of that.

[–][deleted] 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (4 children)

Words, I don't want to scare you, but the average person knows over forty thousand and uses them to convey concepts.

You might want to add a list of 'naughty' words to the pyramid of debate so that you can more efficiently bulldoze over the rules whenever you are roleplaying as a user.

[–]magnora7[S] 4 insightful - 4 fun4 insightful - 3 fun5 insightful - 4 fun -  (1 child)

Now you're playing coy. Please just speak like an adult in the future, don't use ad-hominems for no reason, as you tend to do. That's repeatedly dragging discussion down the pyramid of debate which is against site rules.

[–][deleted] 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

An ad-hominem attack is a fallacy, that is "a statement or an argument based on a false or invalid inference".

Assuming that you are talking about the latter comment being a tu quoque, I want to clarify that my argument there is not meant to imply that my criticism of your user interface is justified because of your hypocritical application of the rules. It is self-contained.

If you are instead referring to my original comment, however, then there is not even a man being attacked. You are using an unorthodox definition for ad hominem that I interpret as "saying naughty words" and so no argument can be had.

[–]JasonCarswell 1 insightful - 3 fun1 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 3 fun -  (0 children)

M7 is the founder and admin.

[–]JasonCarswell 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

" The mobile browser look is a little homoerotic already. "

How so?

[–]VantaFount 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

No, 100% works great for me.
But having a 42" TV as my monitor might have something to do with that.

[–]JasonCarswell 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (4 children)

90% to see more text, etc, on Brave on a PC with 4 1080p monitors.

I vote leave it as is.

Thank you for asking.

Bringing us into it is nice - participatory.

[–][deleted] 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (3 children)

Yeah. That's the first setup i wanna get for a "real" machine. I'll buy a matrox to be able to scale the monitors up to 12. I'm still not sure about the size though.

Do you suggest 27" or 32" ? Desk-size related speaking. I wanna be able to turn them by 90 degrees, at least the outside ones.

Constructing a stand for this is np bc. construction with metal is kinda one of our businesses.

We are still waiting for some money from a deal. But as soon as we get the money to buy this, the monitors are very high on this list.

[–]JasonCarswell 1 insightful - 2 fun1 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 2 fun -  (2 children)

I used to have tall wide over wide and tall. For reading, editing, etc, I prefer having 2 tall side by side. To be honest, I'd rather have 4 tall with one large wide one over all of them just for video/music/audio to either glance at while doing other stuff or to watch the occasional entertainment on. Or I could settle for 2 tall left right and 2 wide in the middle. Of course a big 4K might also be nice instead, perhaps with one on each side. I don't understand why they don't make square monitors 1920x1920 or more. Mine are only 22", refurbished, cheaper, just as good, heavier. I have some suspended with bungee cords. It certainly could be better.

I would like to design some things in metal. I've designed stuff in wood. I love plywood. Always wanted to get a laser plotter and make flat-packed furniture that was stronger than Ikea shit, long lasting, practical and beautiful. This is just one prototype from 2001, and I made better plans that one of these days I should get in 3D and make an animated video to explain how it's properly installed. Of course all of that takes time, plus I'd have to research where to share it. I'd like to make some money off my design for a decade first and then open source it to the world (unless it were to becomes a success to fund my other projects).

[–][deleted] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

My idea is having 16:9 monitors because i am now so used to this format that i cannot see any good reason to change it just now. The four ones i want on my desk are to look at 4 different desktops at the same time. I wanna be able to flip the the outer ones to easier lock at tmux, htop or log-files in emacs. The "big" screen to display stuff for others i want to be like a 60" 4k or something like that. But i honestly never tried gnome with more than two monitors. So i don't know how finely granulated you can adjust the resolution of each desktop when you are using more than one monitor or if it even can be made to work with different resolutions at the same time.

The adjustable stand for these four main monitors we will construct by welding steel tubes together and installing some pressure adjustable air or hydraulic rams (idk the right way to name these things in English) on the stand to make it adjustable and rotatable.

This is because my desk has to be height adjustable too bc. of my back pain when sitting for too long. The rest of the construction plan are basically steel tubes of different diameter and some screws to be able to adjust their length and so the height of the whole thing.

I like your idea to just install some of them (more than the five that will come anyway) by using steel ropes and hanging them from the ceiling.

[–][deleted] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Do you know what a *.dxf file is ? I could just draw my construction for you, if it can be of any help for you.

My handyman does all the steelwork i gotta admit first.

I just do my stuff on a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackboard or a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Index_card and a lot of calculations and advise security risks in construction when i'm not teaching math or screaming at some architect while doing geodetics.

If i got a problem, my handyman usually fixes it. Permanently We do a lot of welding and testing rare metals lately.

But i'm eager to share my monitor stand design with you in dxf or dgn format (i'll just draw it for you) if you design my street art sub in return.

I'm a little bit rusty in Microstation so you gotta know first: This may take a while.