[...] Mark at Weblog Tools Collection wrote, “I personally prefer one column themes with a minimal second column. Most information that is put on my sidebar(s) is extraneous and could be placed elsewhere. I have also found that some of that information deters from the original content of the blog.” Like Lorelle’s readers, Mark’s have some valuable input as well. Read their comments on choosing the right blog layout. [...]

On the other hand, those who use small monitors (below 17″) often don’t get to see the right column, closest to the edge, because the small resolution “swallows” it, so if one wants to comply with 800*600 standard, most 3 columns layouts won’t suit him.

[...] une des questions qui se pose très rapidement. Combien de colonnes doit avoir mon blog ? Mark de Weblog Tools Collection et Lorelle se sont posés la question et j’avoue que, moi-même, je me la pose depuis un [...]

2 column: the default, very nice. But sometimes (as in the case of my site, netsua.com) it doesn’t accomodate everything

3 column: Only if used responsibly. I don’t like it when the 2 sidebars are next to each other, but when they’re seperated by the main content and paced out with widgets correctly,it can turn your blog into a website and make you have more stuff.

4 column: Yes, they SHOULD be illegal. That’s just too much.

On my blog I just have blog stuff (archives, categories, calendar, rss feeds) on the left sidebar, then the content, and then on the right sidebar I have other stuff (about me, latest posts, twitter, and blogroll)

[...] couple of weeks ago there was a discussion over at Weblog Tools Collection looking at whether two or three column’s was best. Mark had this to say: I personally prefer [...]

[...] Design: How Many Columns? Mark from Weblog Tools Collection offers Two or Three Columns?, his perspective on how many columns a blog should have. I personally prefer one column themes with [...]

I really don’t like most three column designs. To users using a theme with three columns, there are two things to consider: functionality and visual appeal. Then there is the balance of the two.

My current, and previous, design of my website uses two columns. I studied statistical data with my last design and found that a lot of the content I had in my sidebar was not being used. I was a little shocked to see how little category and archive links were being used (try single percentage points for my users!). So not only did my site not have enough legitimate content to justify a three column design, it’s two column design could be cut down a bit, and it was, in my new design this past January.

So I think in deciding what is right for your site, you should not just consider the visual appeal or what you think the functionality of a three column design offers. Far too often I see sites with three columns, and I perhaps use the links in one of the sidebars, but rarely in both, because most of the time it’s just superfluous stuff. (After noticing the lack of category and archive link usage on my own site, I started to notice my own lack of use of such links. It’s funny that the normal design assumes categories and archive lists are a must in one or more sidebars, as I now don’t believe the statistical reasoning can always back that up.)

Then there is an issue of readability. It’s common knowledge that reading a small paperback book, line by line, feels easier on your eyes that reading a large hardback book with the same print size, line by line. This is because your eyes have to scroll farther, left to right. With that in mind, I think the idea that spreading information out horizontally is a bit faulty. It doesn’t make the text any more scannable, if at all. It isn’t about screen size. It’s about user experience. So then if you want to accommodate that issue of scannability, you keep your three columns but don’t make the entire design very wide…which can look a bit awkward, I think many will agree.

I say two columns. And even as resolutions expand more than they already have, or as dual monitor setups gain popularity, whichever comes first, I think we should stick to two, or, at most, three column designs, because that enables people on such setups to multitask (e.g., your site open in one window on the left of the screen, another’s site open in another window on the right of the screen).

Still, people are doing pretty good things with ‘extras’ in the increasingly large footers these days.