Safari content width (NOT window width!)

You seem, with respect, to be having a very hard time understanding that your browser cannot change how a web site is programmed.

But yes, you can of course just zoom in on the page: hold down the control key and use the scroll button on your mouse.

You can also turn the Zoom function on in System Preferences/Universal Access.

It all depends on how the site is coded, the native resolution of the device being used (the OS platform), and the fonts and sizes you've chosen. The PeeCee native resolution is 96dpi, while Mac OS X is 72 dpi, so you can't control that aspect. Nor can you control how the site is coded; the only thing you can control is the fonts and font sizes you've chosen for display in a browser.

Mulder

David Lewis15 wrote:
For reference: On the PC at work, when I open the New York Times it fills the whole screen, soup to nuts. On my Mac at home, when I open the New York Times it only fills about half the width of the page, leaving a sea of white unused browser to the left and right of the content.

It sounds like your PC's monitor at work is smaller and/or has a lower screen resolution (i.e. renders objects and text larger) than your Mac's screen.

I opened your first New York Times link in *Windows Internet Explorer* with the window at my full screen width and this is how it looks:



And this is the same page in *Safari on my Mac*, also with the window at my full screen width, same size screen and same screen resolution:



They look the same, taking up the same amount of page width.

It's not Safari that is rendering things differently than on your PC. I'm almost certain it's that your screen on your PC is a very different size or has very different resolution settings. If so, the actual width in pixels of the window you have open on your PC is much smaller than the width in pixels of the window on your Mac, essentially allowing just that central portion of the page to be visible in your PC's browser window.

On your PC at work, go to the control panel and check the settings in Appearance and Themes, Change the Screen Resolution. What does it say the current screen resolution is? (e.g. 800 by 600 pixels, 1024 by 640 pixels, etc.) Then on your Mac check System Preferences, Displays, in the Display section, and check the resolution setting there. If the Mac's screen resolution is much higher (larger numbers) that explains the difference you're seeing. You' have more pixels to work with on the Mac, so you're seeing more of the web page.

I hate having the computer up to my face to be able to read it, and I feel that if the width of the page were to fill the screen it would not be an issue; it isn't at work.

It sounds like you might be having problems that are not related to the layout of web pages as much as with the size of text and other page elements on your Mac as opposed to your PC? If that's the situation, there are several things you can do to make things easier to read on your Mac. Let me know if that's the problem and I'll go further with that thought.

Message was edited by: Rachel R

David Lewis15 wrote:
The monitor at work is set to 1024x768, but it is irrelevant.

It's not actually irrelevant. It precisely explains why you're seeing something different on your PC than on your Mac, as you discovered and mentioned in your other post about changing screen resolution. But I understand that you're saying you want a solution aside from that.

I asked the last question in my previous post because I did have some suggestions if that was applicable to your situation. I didn't want to go into more detail if that wasn't applicable.

Firefox has a "zoom" feature that might do what you want. Safari does not. You can install and use Firefox on your Mac and decide which browser you prefer, or use one when you prefer its features, the other when you prefer the other.

Please understand that those of us answering are only trying to help, on our own time and as volunteers. We're offering the best answers we can based on the information that you're providing.

Message was edited by: Rachel R

You're welcome. 🙂

I understand the frustration. My father has similar problems with text on his Mac. He finds changing the screen resolution a good solution, but I don't like that option as you don't, due to the fuzziness that you mention. To each their own. 😉

My issue is similar but different. My SafariBrowser only fills about one half of my screen. I have repeatedly hit the green plus sign to enlarge the screen, but it only enlarges to about a half screen width. Can anyone help me. I assume the solution is rather simple, but I have not found it.

fortyeleven wrote:
My issue is similar but different. My SafariBrowser only fills about one half of my screen. I have repeatedly hit the green plus sign to enlarge the screen, but it only enlarges to about a half screen width. Can anyone help me. I assume the solution is rather simple, but I have not found it.

Click on the hash marks at the bottom right corner of the window and drag to make the window wider. This is something you can do with most windows in Mac OS applications to resize them.

Hi Rachal - I know what David is concerned with and it is as he has said, there is a whole pile of window real estateon either side of the web content that has nothing in it. My experience is that the content gets scrunched to the centre to the point where items that would be (for the most part) to the right of the screen get forced back and behind(sometime, or in front other times) the content on the right. This has nothing to do with sizing the window. It also does not have anything to do with how the page was set up. It is a Safari or Apple problem. I have a windows xp machine right beside me and I often have to go to the same sight on the windows machine that I have up on my Mac Powerbook 17". You can use any Display size you want, and make the window as big as you want, even zoom in and out and nothing seems to change the issue.

I don't think I have had the problem on the left side of the screen.

Here are two examples - Picture 1.png. Now if I have done this right you should see a page from Cooks Illustrated. In the uppe right side or the content is the recipe search box, but it is behind the content of the web page. This I hope is a close up - Picture 3.png

My Second example is ESPN - Picture 4.png - The ad on the right side for Miller beer is over the content of the web page. - Picture 5.png

You cannot move any of the information to get around it or behind it, and if I go to windows xp, the pages appear normal with both problem contents out to the right.

Hope this clarifies our frustrations.

Thanks

Monty

You're welcome. 🙂

If you're new to Macs and/or switching over from Windows, it might be worth browsing through Apple's Mac 101 pages and Switch 101.

I see no difference in page size, only in layout, as your second link is to the printable version of that article.