web-smart colors

why?

[matthewwithanm]

Could somebody please explain to me the benefit of using "web-smart" colors? It seems completely arbitrary. Whereas the original web-safe palette was based around colors that could be displayed across different platforms, the web-smart palette seems to be the product of somebody's desire for more colors...but what is the rationale for which colors are chosen? Just that they happen to be of the hex form AABBCC?

Thanks.

[tedster]

The idea behind web-smart (in contrast to web-safe) colors is that when a computer is only set to 256 colors, the web-smart colors will dither an a visually non-disturbing way. In fact, many do not really dither at all but just "slide over" to the nearest truly web-safe color.

Web smart colors are those which can be represented with a 3-digit version of the fiull hex code in your css files -- that is, the digits double up, #1199bb and so on, so you can write #19b as a shorthand.

There is some sense in this - if you ever get to see your pages on a 256 color set up you'll know why.

[matthewwithanm]

Thanks...yeah I have checked out the page in 256 colors but it seems all colors are sliding (at least when used as a background), not just the web-safe ones.

[pllamonica]

forgetqaboutit. Unless you see people using 16 or 256 colors it is not necessary. Most people are viewing in millions of colors these days. It's one of those things we were taught and can't seem to let go of.

[mzhao]

True, not many people view sites in 256 colors anymore. The web-safe palette was designed in the early days of computers and the Internet.

[tedster]

One thing to note - we're talking here about web smart colors (as opposed to web [1]safe[/i] colors). They are definitely not the same thing. Web smart offers 4096 colors where web safe is only 256 colors.

Still, I agree that there's not a lot of problem today. More important for me is cheking in both 16-bit and 24-bit color depth. Depending on what you've created you may see a surpise or two - especially if you assume that a hex color will naturally match, say, a gif color. I often provide a single color gif for a tiled background in addition to a background-color, just for this kind of contingency.