Windows xp's default resolution is 800x600, The reason, tonnes of people still has 14" monitors, now almost a decade sinse 1024x768 became an 'normal' screen resolution, Windows Vists (as far as i know) will have a default screen resolution of 1024x768, 800x600, i hope, will soon be only for people who have tiny monitors or cant see well, no more trying to cram in all you can to fir an 800x600 resolution, the standard is soon to be 1024x768! Finnaly!

All my sites are designed to fit in a 800x600 resolurion, to please everyone, Im am about to change this, Im tired of running out of room, or people complaining that images are too small, we live in the age of 10mbps connection, large images re fine these days.

Say no to small resolution, join the masses and get big!!!!!!

over 60% or was users have a resolution of 1024x768 or greater! If your still at 800x600 or smaller, try 1024x768, you may find that you are viewing sites as they were designed to be viewed.

Even if the new default is 1024x768, i'd still design for 800x600. High-speed internet access isnt for everyone. Plus, a large image doesnt mean a long download, if you know how to compress. If people complain about small images, that probably means their resolution is at 1280x1024, so that's not our problem.

Two problems with that reason:

1. Dial-up still exists and some of us still use it and those which do get drawn away from image-heavy sites.
2. Bandwidth. This is still limited and an site with large images means lots of this needed.

I like the idea of 1024x768 becoming standard. My websites have always been designed for user's under that resolution (because that's my screen res). If it's the standard, people can't hold that against my site

The governent have stated that over 50% of internet connections in the UK are now broadband, by large images i dont meam 1000x500, more of abour 400x200, some sites dont use graphics at all to please dail-up users,

!A site with no graphics is better than a site with bad graphics!"

Well instead of using fixed width of website design you can always use like width:100%; I helped for a friend's site here at Trap17. Here is result of this work http://botexec.trap17.com/index.php.
There is also possible to apply javascript function where you define properties from which is layout choosen. If there is 800*600 then this CSS file no.1 will be used, if 1024 then no.2. This is nice script but some people don't like javascript, so this sort of site can be handicap for some people.

The width=100% is always a good idea to use. And yeah, a lot of people still have dial up and horrible connections. I wouldn't use the javascript because it seems kind of clunky to have too much of it on your page, but the CSS is my preferred method of doing it.

800x600 is good so that it makes your site look more fuller and has more information contained within it. 1024x768 will mean that you may have to put more info into your site.

Anyway if they change it, I will not need to change any of my sites as I have made the defualt size at 800x600.

If anybody makes their resolution smaller than that then they have to scroll the page left and right to see it all.

If they make it bigger, no matter how much bigger then I have made my site so it expands to the full screen resolution size.

So I will not really have to do much to my site. I may increase the font size a little though.

I am glad that I had done it that way now.

Bandwidth it is an issue today and it will continue being a critical issue in web design for the next year. Web Design is an art. And it can be focused to a small minority or to the hall comunity. It is your decision to design for everybody or leave people outside. Same can be said about crossbrowsing.

Not everyone using the Internet is using a PC with a 17" monitor - there are plenty of people using handheld devices so you need to keep that in mind when designing your site.