Core_Computer Studies: Using Browser Safe Colors or a Web Palette

A Web Palette is the palette of colours that are 'browser safe'. The browser safe colour palette is a palette of colours that browsers can display.

It makes simple sense to design your site and prepare your images using colours that can be viewed on the web.

It is important that you know and understand what the consequences are for not using the browser safe colour palette. If you choose colours that are not in this palette you will find that on one monitor what looks like a neutral light tone will appear very differently on another monitor. Depending upon how the other monitor interprets the colour it could shift and look like some other colour.

For instance what displays as light grey on a 24-bit, 16.7 million colour monitor might display as a really ugly greenish grey on a 8-bit, 256 colour monitor. "Browser Safe Colours" are the 216 colours that can be viewed on 8-bit PC and Macintosh monitors and look close to the same. With browser safe colours, you can be sure that they will not dither on these machines and your pages will appear as you intended.

These notes are written for students who undertake the Core Computer course at School of Art, Australian National University. Students of the course should feel free to contact any member of staff with comments questions and general suggestions..

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