Staying Above the Fold(?)

All web designers know about the fold. We also all know about the myth: 80% of web users never scroll down a webpage and therefore don't see your content below the fold.

For those unacquainted "the fold" in web design terms refers to the area of a web page which is visible on the screen without needing to scroll down the page. Needless to say the most important content must naturally be within this area. The fold usually comprises of an area of 1024 x 700 pixels for average desktop computers(with a 1024 x 740 resolution) and if your designing with netbooks in mind then you need to consider that most netbooks have a screen height of 600px, which means your fold should stop at approximately 560px.

This area however has been becoming less important and having much of your content hidden below the fold has become a diminishing issue. As some research from cx parteners has shown the vast majority of users DO scroll down the page and having less content in the fold can encourage users to scroll down to find what they are looking for.

Take a look at the research: http://www.cxpartners.co.uk/thoughts/the_myth_of_the_page_fold_evidence_from_user_testing.htm