Software:88x31 pixel web button
88x31 pixel format
The 88x31 pixel web button format was a popular size for web buttons in the early days of the World Wide Web. It was used to create small graphics that linked to other websites or services. The most common picture formats used for these buttons were GIF and PNG, which allowed for transparency and animation.
Origin and rationale
The reason why the size 88x31 was chosen is not clear, but some possible explanations are:
- It was a multiple of 8, which made it easier to align on a grid.
- It was small enough to fit on a single line of text, but large enough to display some details.
- It was a compromise between the standard banner size of 468x60 and the smaller icon size of 16x16.
- It was influenced by the size of credit card logos or other existing graphics.[1]
The first known instance of the 88x31 size for buttons was on the now-defunct website LinkExchange (ILE) was a directory of websites that agreed to display a button linking to other websites in the directory. The 88x31 size was chosen because it was small enough to fit on most web pages, yet large enough to be easily visible. The aspect ratio of 88:31 was chosen to make the buttons appear roughly square, which was important for maintaining a clean and consistent look on websites that displayed many of these buttons.[1]
Another source of these buttons was GeoCities, which was the largest provider of personal hosting at that time. GeoCities required that all free hosting users have a link back to GeoCities somewhere on the page. They provided several options for these links, including 88x31 buttons.[1]
Usage and examples
These buttons became very popular and widespread on the web, and many websites created their own versions of them. Some websites even collected and displayed thousands of these buttons from various sources.[2] These buttons were often used to show affiliation, support, or endorsement of other websites or services.
One example was Yahoo Advertising, which supported different ad sizes for publishers and advertisers. One of these sizes is the Micro Bar (88x31), which is described as “a smaller version of a standard banner ad” that can be used for “advertising products or services with minimal text”.[3]
Some other uses of these buttons were related to web browsers and plugins. In the early days of the web, different browsers had different features and capabilities, and some websites used specific HTML tags or scripts that could only be viewed in certain browsers like Netscape Communicator and Internet Explorer. To indicate this, some websites used 88x31 buttons that said “Best viewed in…” followed by the name and logo of the browser.[4] These buttons were meant to encourage users to switch to a different browser or update their current one.
Another use case was related to plugins such as Adobe Flash Player, which enabled interactive and multimedia content on web pages. Some websites used 88x31 buttons that said “Get Flash Player” or “Download Flash Player” to direct users to install or update the plugin.[5] These buttons were often animated or had sound effects to attract attention.
Decline and legacy
However, as web design evolved and became more sophisticated, these buttons gradually lost their appeal and relevance. They were replaced by more modern and dynamic elements such as CSS buttons, social media icons, or badges. Nowadays, these buttons are mostly seen as nostalgic relics of the past web era.[6]
References
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