A POSSIBLE PROBLEM ON A FEW COMPUTERS

Our site was designed several years ago using a layout technique which positions graphics and text by means of layers (boxes). Today many people are buying relatively small flat-screen monitors set to a higher resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels. As this combination makes everything onscreen smaller, the next step taken is sometimes to use Internet Explorer's option to increase web page text size (View > Text Size > Largest). This option does indeed enlarge the text (only) within each box, but leaves the layers containing graphics at their original sizes and in their original positions. The effect is then for the increased size to force the text in each box to expand, often over the top of other content.

On the left is the NZAN home page as it was designed to be seen:

Here on the right is what you may be seeing if you are experiencing this problem:

Fortunately, other than completely redesigning our site, there are at least two possible solutions:

SOLUTION 1

The first is simply to reset Internet Explorer's text size back to the default of medium:

To do this, drop down Internet Explorer's View menu, hold your mouse over Text Size and click on the Medium option. Of course the main disadvantage of this solution, unless you also alter your monitor's resolution setting, is that you are back to displaying small text on your screen.

SOLUTION 2

It is possible to install a program into Internet Explorer (a 'plug-in') which will allow you, at a push of a button, to immediately magnify everything on a web page while keeping all the contents in proportion (i.e. no overlaps). Such a program is the free EasyRead:

While Windows itself does come with a magnification tool called Magnifier, EasyRead is specifically designed for magnifying pages in Explorer. As you can see from the screen shots at right, EasyRead simply adds two buttons to Explorer's Standard button bar ~ a plus button to magnify and a minus button to reduce.

If you are not familiar with installing programs, it is strongly suggested that you invite your favourite Computer Wizard over for morning tea and some assistance. More information about EasyRead can be found on the manufacturer's Web site at www.iconico.com/easyRead (clicking on this link should take you there).

On the same manufacturer's page (to the right of the screen) are a couple of links to Download EasyRead. Clicking on one of these links will take you to another page which asks you to join a mailing list. H-o-w-e-v-e-r there is also an option to Skip Joining and Download Now. This small free program will download as a compressed 'zip' file, meaning you will need a utility such as WinZip (a trial version is available from winzip.com) to 'unzip' it before installation.