User blog comment:Susanolivia/Experience the new Wikia/@comment-93604-20100924054159

First impressions of the new look. I see that it is optimized for 1024 by 768 screen resolution. That is good if a fixed-width format must be used. The single right column is OK. It is not too wide. I can live with it. It would be better if the column were on the left. People will inevitably add images in the content space that are too wide to fit there.

With the column on the left it doesn't matter if people add images that are too big. The images can extend to the right without overlapping anything. I am a webmaster. If I use side columns on a web page I try to keep the longer column on the left. I avoid right columns altogether. If I do use a right column I keep the content very short, and usually wrapped around the table of contents, and not extending down into content space. So technically, there is no right column. It is cut off by content space. Content has priority, and this way the main content will fit in any screen size. Text is always wrapped to fit the width. Images can extend past the right edge, and smartphone/netbook readers can ignore them this way, or scroll.

Site navigation has been almost totally screwed up in the beta system. Current system is much better, and many sites worked very hard on site navigation. Please put site navigation back in the side column. That will free up ad space at the top. Ad space is the main point of this redo anyway, isn't it?

I suggest using floating ads that follow the reader in the side column. This will make advertisers very happy. I suggest putting all Wikia ads at the bottom of the page. This will make room for site navigation that keeps readers on the wiki. It also makes room for the floating advertisements that pay the bills, and make all this possible.