The best format for pictures

[Billie Bonce]

I continuously try to make a series of pictures (we can call it a comic strip or not - never mind). Previously I attempted to make pages of traditional printing-friendly format (i.e., portrait orientation and size adjusted to fit A4 paper sheets). But recently I got an idea that virtually nobody would print those pictures. And watching the pictures on PC monitor demands completely different format. The best is (probably) the one that ideally fits the screen. So I decided to ask you all: what format would you prefer? What is the aspect ratio of your screen, what is the resolution? I make a poll and hope for your response.

Here are some hints.
Old computer monitors had screen format 4:3 (ratio 1.333). They could be 800x600 or 1024x768 (let's forget about 640x480 and 320x240). I think it's all in the past. I used a laptop with such screen for 5 years but since recently now I have a new one with significantly different possibilities
17'' and 19'' monitors have a surprisingly square format 5:4 (ratio 1.25). Typical resolution is 1280x1024.
Most modern formats are 'wide screens'. But they are different, too.
Most of the modern laptops and LCD monitors have 16:10 (i.e. 8:5) format (ratio 1.6). Typical resolutions are 1280x800, 1440x900, 1600x1000. This aspect ratio is the closest to the 'golden section' (1.618)
Some older wide screen laptops had LCD matrices with 15:9 (i.e. 5:3) format (ratio 1.667). I've seen a lot of laptops with such screens with 1280x768 resolution.
Some newer laptops and many newer LCD monitors have the same format as wide-screen TVs: 16:9 (ratio 1.778). Not very convenient for most computer tasks, but more and more monitors have that format. Typical resolutions could be 1280x720, 1366x768 (32'' LCD TV), 1600x900 (maybe, actually never seen such) and 1920x1080 (HDTV).
Usual office paper suitable for printing has format 297x210 [mm] (A4 format) with 1.414 ratio. Well, maybe you use other formats in America, like 'Letter' or 'Legal', but I know about them only from printer settings. Never seen a single sheet of any of such formats. We use only A4 or A3 here.
Traditional photo frame had 3:2 format (1.5 ratio).

I think I would prefer 1.6 aspect ratio. The size of a picture is a serious question, too. My current work is 1600x1000, but I can take 1920x1200, if necessary.

Take into account that large image would be downscaled automatically to lower resolution with the same aspect ratio, but smaller image wouldn't look as good on the monitor with greater resolution.

That's it and here is the poll

[quicksanimator]

Looks like I'm the first "Other" vote.
My 24" CRT monitor is set at 1280x960, a 4:3 ratio resolution.
It can go higher, but the dot pitch is optimal for this current setting.

[quagmire_uk]

My screen is a 1920x1200 (16:10 aspect ratio), but I'm not sure what to vote for, as while it might be nice to have a full picture that fills the whole screen, it isn't really necessary. I'm quite happy with a picture that fills most of the screen. I'm tempted to go for that "it doesn't matter" option.

[Billie Bonce]

Thank you all very much for your contributions. I still want more people to tale the poll. Will check it when I'll return after my trip to the sea that I plan for next two weeks.

The preliminary results show that in general my idea was good. It seems nobody would like to printout the pages, so I should make the pictures in landscape orientation That is not a great surprise, as I'm always not happy when I read comics or manga on computer - it's not convenient.

I'm also not surprised that many people don't care at all.

The real surprise is that many people still use traditional monitors with resolution of 1280x1024 for their private needs.

[Aiko]

And here's the second "other" format: 1600x1200

[Billie Bonce]

And here's the second "other" format: 1600x1200

I see, it's 4:3 like 1024x768, but with higher resolution.

Well, I guess 1600x1000 would be a good compromise for everybody.

[AyaneMatrix]

While my screen is currently set at 1280x1024 (5:4 ratio), I think it can actually go a bit higher with 1400x1200 or so. At least that's what I remember seeing when I'm under LInux.

But, for the most part, it doesn't really matter what the image is going to be set at, so long as the resolution is high enough to view what's going on in the scene. Though, if the option did one day present itself, having a high resolution image would be the first thing I'd download over a normal one; you know, for quality purposes. Printing is probably the furthest from my mind at the moment since all of my printers are junk.

[nachtjaeger]

Whatever gets posted is fine with me- I'll "deal" as my daughter's generation says.

[Sandy Place]

Whatever gets posted is fine with me- I'll "deal" as my daughter's generation says.

I picked the 1280 x 1024 because it seems closest to what I typically use, but nachtjaeger summed it up pretty well.

Cheers,
sp

[bart1997]

.