4 ms·

It looks like this: https://i.imgur.com/6Zw2fyr_d.jpg?maxwidth=640&shape=thumb&fidelity=medium https://i.imgur.com/6Zw2fyr_d.jpg?maxwidth=640&shape=thumb&f...

jordigh 9y ago
So, it looks like if I set my fill-width to 25 columns, I can still use this and make it readable to pocket computers, right?
- zaarn 9y ago
  You should generally not assume a text is readable because it uses x-wide columns. At 25 character columns it will also look rather awful on desktop or widescreen monitors. Borrowing from email etiquette I find using > arrows to be most indicative of quotes, although HN sometimes eats newlines for breakfast.
  - jordigh 9y ago
    But if short lines are readable on one screen, surely short lines are also readable on another screen, right? It's not like eyes depend on the width of the screen, just on the width of the line.
    - zaarn 9y ago
      Using short lines on a screen too wide leads to wasted screen space, usually people dislike that, it interrupts the reading flow. Same for too wide lines. The ideal length of a line is somewhere between 50 and 70 characters. Readable != Good Writing This is not an issue if you don't use codeblocks, the browser is then free to reflow the text as necessary. If you use codeblocks the browser cannot reflow (by default) and you make the entire UX worse.
  - styfle 9y ago
    Where can I find the formatting syntax for Hacker News? Clearly it's not markdown :P
    - couchand 9y ago
      https://news.ycombinator.com/formatdoc https://news.ycombinator.com/formatdoc
    - zaarn 9y ago
      I think just using markdown gets the point across sufficiently. The HN format captures the most important parts of MD; italics, code and ALL CAPS.
- throwanem 9y ago
  At the cost of making it hard to read on desktops, yes. Or you could just, you know, use the leading > style and not have to worry about it the more...
rasz 9y ago
rotate 90 degrees

jordigh 9y ago

So, it looks like if I set my fill-width to 25 columns, I can still use this and make it readable to pocket computers, right?

zaarn 9y ago
You should generally not assume a text is readable because it uses x-wide columns. At 25 character columns it will also look rather awful on desktop or widescreen monitors. Borrowing from email etiquette I find using > arrows to be most indicative of quotes, although HN sometimes eats newlines for breakfast.
- jordigh 9y ago
  But if short lines are readable on one screen, surely short lines are also readable on another screen, right? It's not like eyes depend on the width of the screen, just on the width of the line.
  - zaarn 9y ago
    Using short lines on a screen too wide leads to wasted screen space, usually people dislike that, it interrupts the reading flow. Same for too wide lines. The ideal length of a line is somewhere between 50 and 70 characters. Readable != Good Writing This is not an issue if you don't use codeblocks, the browser is then free to reflow the text as necessary. If you use codeblocks the browser cannot reflow (by default) and you make the entire UX worse.
- styfle 9y ago
  Where can I find the formatting syntax for Hacker News? Clearly it's not markdown :P
  - couchand 9y ago
    https://news.ycombinator.com/formatdoc https://news.ycombinator.com/formatdoc
  - zaarn 9y ago
    I think just using markdown gets the point across sufficiently. The HN format captures the most important parts of MD; italics, code and ALL CAPS.
throwanem 9y ago
At the cost of making it hard to read on desktops, yes. Or you could just, you know, use the leading > style and not have to worry about it the more...

rasz 9y ago

rotate 90 degrees