These computers included a built-in 9 inch display with a screen resolution of 72 pixels per inch. The origin of the 72 ppi screen resolution dates all the way back to the mid 1980's when Apple released its first Macintosh computers. Some say it's 'ppi' ( pixels per inch), others claim it's 'dpi' ( dots per inch), and the whole thing would get very confusing if it were not for one small fact - it's all complete nonsense! In this tutorial, we'll learn why there's simply no such thing as a standard web or screen resolution and why, if your images are destined for the web, you don't need to worry about image resolution at all!ĭownload this tutorial as a print-ready PDF! A Little History. You may have even heard it said that while 72 ppi is correct for images displayed on a Mac, a Windows-based PC needs the resolution set to 96 ppi.
If you've been around computers and digital images for a while, especially if you're a web designer or a photographer publishing your photos online, you've no doubt heard it said that the correct resolution for images displayed on the web, or on computer screens in general, is 72 pixels per inch (ppi).
