> It's a bit awkward to read on large screens. Long lines and whatnot
For years and years and years I always had a half-screen-width browser window, precisely because it's easier to read text that way. But then site authors started assuming that I'd have a full-width window, and using CSS to waste half the window width.
I still think that the correct response to 'window too wide' is 'shrink the window,' but it's a losing battle.
Wait, why wouldn't the solution be "define a max width"? Site authors should not be wasting your window width, windows should not be "too wide" for text, and you shouldn't have to choose between the two solutions you mentioned.
Only because it seems to me that if the user really wants a terribly wide window … that's his choice. Who am I to prevent someone from doing something which seems stupid to me? Maybe he wants a half-inch high window at the bottom of his screen where he can scroll through my text slowly, or something. His call, not mine.
For years and years and years I always had a half-screen-width browser window, precisely because it's easier to read text that way. But then site authors started assuming that I'd have a full-width window, and using CSS to waste half the window width.
I still think that the correct response to 'window too wide' is 'shrink the window,' but it's a losing battle.