Resize any Display

Hi.  I'm Grace White, a certified teacher, and I will be your instructor.

It is easy as pie to resize our newest displays.  Set the width of the outermost table in pixels or percent.  Bingo.  You have resized your display.  (Our displays resize themselves in vertical directions when viewers enlarge your text.)

Or use "no wrap" for the cell in which you write your words.

Or you banner will look bad when viewed with Netscape and Firefox.

Specific dimensions of width and height can be assigned to any display at this website.  You can define width and/or height in terms of percents or pixels or both.  (It is, however, a bad idea to set the height of any table in pixels.)

The most important lesson to learn is how to size your tables.  If you learn this lesson well, then you will have learned a lot.

We use nested tables to make our displays.  A nested table is any table that is pasted inside of another.  Most displays at this website are made with three or four nested tables.

Four methods exist for resizing your tables (as far as I know, at least).

Before you decide which method to use, you need to know an important fact.

People who visit your website can magnify words on your pages.  Millions of people do it every day around the world.

What will happen when someone enlarges your words to double true size?  To triple true size?  To ten times the size intended by you?

Before you select a method for sizing your tables, think about the millions of viewers who will enlarge your text.

General Rule of Thumb:  Set a width for every display you make.  Do not set a height, however.

Never set a height for any table, no matter which method you use to set a width.

Let your frame (your banner) enlarge itself in vertical directions when viewers resize your text.  If you permit your banner to widen when viewers enlarge your text, your display may become too wide to view -- it may not fit in the viewing screens of people who have poor eyesight. 

Yes, I know -- teachers are not allowed to say "poor eyesight."   I, myself, ignore that rule, for I am as blind as a bat.

The easiest way to create an animated border is to use two tables and to use cell padding.  To create a 3-pixel border, for instance, set table 1 to have 3 pixels of cell padding. Paste table 2, a normal table, into the center of table 1.  Center table 2.  Give table 2 a background color, even if that color is just white.

Use an animation as a background for table 1.  All done.

Method 1:

Fixed Width and No Height

This is a good one.  This method, and method 2 (below), are the only ones that you need to know (in most cases).

Standard Method: Set the width of your outermost table to be precisely some number of pixels.  Set all other tables in your display to be 100% wide.

Alternate Method (not as useful as the standard method): Set the size of you innermost table to be precisely some number of pixels.  Do not assign a width or height to any other table.

If you use one of the methods above, your frame (your display) will remain fixed in width.  Your display will expand in height as needed when viewers resize your text.

Method 2:

Percents

This is a good one to use to set width (only).

Forget about height.  Never set a height for your tables, no matter which method you use to set width.

Set the width of your outermost table to be a percentage  --  80%, for instance.

Set all nested tables to be 100% wide.

If you use this method, then your display can expand and contract in width as well as in height.  Your display will fit where you put it -- unless your text is of gigantic size.

If you use this method, then your display will grow, or shrink, when viewers resize your text.

Method 3:

Amazing Universal Frame

This method works quite poorly in some browsers.  Best Bet: Don't use this method.  If you do use this method, then use "no wrap" for the cell in which you write your words.

Don't assign a width or height to any table or cell.  Make double certain to assign no size whatsoever.  Most displays at this website are "amazing universal frames."   (We use "tricks of the trade" to make our displays behave in a proper manner.)

A display of this kind will grow or shrink in width and height to perfectly fit any number of words, regardless of the actual size of your text.

If you need a display of specific size, use method 1, or method 2, to give your display the width and/or height that you need.

The Advantage and Big Disadvantage: When somebody magnifies your text -- or makes it smaller, even -- the frame will grow, or shrink, accordingly. 

The frame resizes itself, you see -- perfectly, every time -- both vertically and horizontally.

This kind of frame can grow too big to fit on viewing screens when people resize your text.  The viewer, not you, controls the actual size of your page.

If you use this kind of frame, keep your paragraphs narrow. 

Narrow paragraphs always fit inside of the viewing screen.

Method 4:

Fixed Width & Height

The Root of All Evil on Earth

Use pixels to define precisely the width and height of each table.  This method is used by thousands of fools on the internet.  Even some foolish professionals use this method.

Never use this method -- unless you use absolute placement and absolute size of text.  No one who cares about other people would ever use absolute  size of text.

Absolute text cannot be resized by people with minimal vision -- by people with visual challenges --  by folks as blind as bats (like me).