WebAIM - Web Accessibility In Mind

E-mail List Archives

Browser font sizes and EM

for

From: Leo Smith
Date: Mar 11, 2002 7:49AM

I have to concur with Terence's observations below, and go one
step further: "Many users do not know how to change browser font
size settings or that they can be changed"

One other thing that is very noteworthy. If you are using em sizes,
as W3C recommends, and use lower than about 0.85em, then if
you have an IE browser set to "smaller" font size, then this text will
be unreadable.

I had a number of users comment on this on a site I designed with
em sizes - that is, the text was unreadable, and they had *no idea*
how to change it. Apparently, IE in some cases sets "smaller" as
the default install setting, and many folks don't know about that
setting, and don't know how to change it. Also, browser font size
settings in IE can be changed accidently by simultaneously
holding down Ctrl while moving the scroll wheel on a mouse. If a
user does this on a site with fixed font sizes, they will not know
that it was ever changed.

Leo.



On 8 Mar 2002, at 22:35, Terence de Giere wrote:

> My own personal observations, from looking at settings and just plain
> looking at computer monitors in various offices I have worked in
> indicates that "Most users do not change browser defaults".



Leo Smith
Web Designer/Developer
USM Office of Publications and Marketing
University of Southern Maine
207-780-4774


----
To subscribe, unsubscribe, or view list archives,
visit http://www.webaim.org/discussion/