Well, I should have named it "Sidebar vs Sidebar+header table"

What do you guys think? Will having a sidebar AND a table make my site look too cluttered? I'm iffy with sidebars because a lot of them are done sloppily (but a lot of them look gorgeous, too!) and basically I'm just afraid to let my pretty little table go.

So what's the verdict? Keep the table or throw it away?

http://z11.invisionfree.com/Why_So_Serious/index.php?act=idx

I would say chuck the table. It does make it look way too crowded, especially since you have one of those "now accepting" graphics, which is pretty busy already.

On the other hand, if you toned down the "now accepting" graphic, you could chuck the sidebar, because IMO there's nothing there that you couldn't fit in a header table.

I'm not a big fan of sidebars + header tables because I've never seen a site that can pull it off. =/

I have both, but the header is strictly for the chatbox.

XD I think your site looks neat the way it is. I wouldn't change a thing.

client-end design.

Do you need them both? Does someone viewing your site need to see both? Is the information in them essential, useful or just there for show?

Tallygarunga has a good header table, for example. I'm obviously not going to post a bad example, but I'm sure you've seen them. Lots of Potter-based sites use them for house points that can be found elsewhere on the site, which I find really irritating because then I'm scrolling through half a page of useless information.

For me, sidebars are sometimes useful, but a lot of the time they seem to be the trend. Especially since they so often push the forum off the edge of my screen when I go to post a reply.

I guess I really mean it's up to you to decide. You know what you're going to put there. If you're going to repeat the same information twice, then you probably don't need both. But I already have a bias against sidebars so if it was up to me, I'd keep the header table.

From a member standpoint, it looks fine.

From an admin standpoint, I'd get rid of the header table.

I personally feel that you need to get rid of that graphic. Yes, you may need canons, but you can use a smaller graphic advertising that in your header table. That's just way too big.

With a site like that, I would say to get rid of the sidebar. You can get rid of the sidebar and use a smaller graphic, and put them in a header table. With the kind of layout that you have, it would look much cleaner if you kept a header and would fit in better with the layout than having a huge sidebar.

Sometimes the extra coding from both a header and side table can cause problems - the page doesn't load completely and your left with a bunch of stray code across your screen at least thats happened to me before (not as much with high speed). As for aesthetics, it depends on the width and background. Naturally the background has to fit with whatever tables you use or things just look choppy. Side tables are very popular now, though and I'm contemplating using one but again, background issue. For your forum, I'm going to agree with antisocialist - the flow looks much better with a header table. Otherwise the forum seems a bit cluttered at least at the top. A clean look makes any forum seem much more professional anyway.

I must admit - I have always loved your site. Why? Because the whole thing with the Joker crossing things out and putting faces on people was hilarious, but also creative. I find myself always talking about, since I just thought that was so unique. I would join your site if I was more interested in Batman :)

On the note of the sidebar or header, I would say go with the sidebar. You can put a lot more info in it, and maintain that joker-has-gone-through-this-forum look. Some things I suggest you put in the sidebar: more cards! Like, in the forecast section, add some cards to it. Also add other elements that the Joker used in comic books and stuff. I know that were certain gas bombs and stuff that he used - spread those out, too. Another thing that would be cool if you could add one of Batman's boomerang things, but make it look like it broke in half and is bleeding (weird, but in a freaky-Joker way).
At the top, you have a "Ladies and gentlemen... Tonight's entertainment... is still working on the sidebar." message. When you finish the sidebar, I suggest that you put a wanted poster there of the Joker, but then look like Joker wrote on it.
Another thing would be to add a picture of Batman, but maybe look like the Joker has written on it or been playing bullseye on his pic.

^ Haha, you can tell when I like a board when I write paragraphs of things it can do XD