New Windows Update - Browser Choice!

mrk · 15 Mar 2010 at 11:03

IE isn't exactly the most standards compliant browser, Firefox however is.

Mattus · 15 Mar 2010 at 14:55

PhillyDee said:
It only gets used when a website has not been coded properly for all browsers (Usually open source based or similar websites!!).

You're wrong to shift the blame onto the website owner there. Such sites will probably work fine not just in Firefox, but also in Chrome, Opera and Safari. The issue isn't that the site hasn't been coded for all browsers. The issue is that the site adheres to standards which aren't supported in IE, or just isn't rendered properly by IE. That is the fault of the browser, not the site.

SiriusB · 15 Mar 2010 at 15:51

PhillyDee said:
So did I. I chose not to use any other 3rd party browser.

Firefox is installed, but I do not use it. It only gets used when a website has not been coded properly for all browsers (Usually open source based or similar websites!!).

I still got that MS update. I refused to use it and uninstalled the update. How dare they.

Is IE your default browser? If so, that would probably explain why you still got the update.

Hoodlum · 15 Mar 2010 at 16:10

SiriusB said:
Not really no. They are offering a choice, and they know as well as most of us that the huge majority of Windows users will just stick with IE anyway. There is no point offering Firefox, Opera, Chrome, whatever users a choice, since they already made the choice in installing something other than IE.

As long as an update is provided this is overwhelmingly a good thing, imo. The number of users on older versions of IE is a huge problem for developers.

PhillyDee · 15 Mar 2010 at 18:18

Mattus said:
You're wrong to shift the blame onto the website owner there. Such sites will probably work fine not just in Firefox, but also in Chrome, Opera and Safari. The issue isn't that the site hasn't been coded for all browsers. The issue is that the site adheres to standards which aren't supported in IE, or just isn't rendered properly by IE. That is the fault of the browser, not the site.

I am aware of the whole IE non CSS standard style sheets and the like, but the original point still stands

. Seriosuly though, it is usually the open source community which either doesn't work properly on IE, or works poorly.

SiriusB said:
Is IE your default browser? If so, that would probably explain why you still got the update.

Fair point!

james.miller · 15 Mar 2010 at 18:27

"we're forcing you to make a choice"

"how dare you let me choose :mad:

"

Burnsy2023 · 15 Mar 2010 at 19:20

Khaaan! said:
IE isn't exactly the most standards compliant browser, Firefox however is.

No it's not. It still doesn't pass the Acid3 test unlike Chrome.

mrk · 15 Mar 2010 at 19:24

That all depends, the moment you start to install extensions to Chrome the 100% Acid3 pass drops. Adblock for example breaks Acid3 100% completion.

It's a difference of a few % anyway but having 100% pass means having no adblocking - I'm happy to not have 100% and keep adblocking.

Burnsy2023 · 15 Mar 2010 at 19:25

Khaaan! said:
That all depends, the moment you start to install extensions to Chrome the 100% Acid3 pass drops. Adblock for example breaks Acid3 100% completion.

It's a difference of a few % anyway but having 100% pass means having no adblocking - I'm happy to not have 100% and keep adblocking.

No it doesn't. I have adblock installed and I still get 100% completion.

mrk · 15 Mar 2010 at 19:31

Which Adblock?

Chrome 5 with AdThwart (the better adblocker):

My FF 3.6 gets 94 - TBH I'm not at all bothered about getting 100% - The extensions give me more control and improve my web surfing activities and thus provide much more benefit than 100% Acid3 would instead.

Much better than the pittiful 20/100 that IE8 (32bit) gets...

Burnsy2023 · 15 Mar 2010 at 19:52

Either way, my point is that FF isn't the most standards compliant browser, contrary to what you said.

mrk · 15 Mar 2010 at 21:11

Meh, it's still one of the most standards compliant.

Burnsy2023 · 15 Mar 2010 at 21:19

Khaaan! said:
Meh, it's still one of the most standards compliant.

Which is an interesting debate as I wonder how many sites you visit on a regular basis are actually standards compliant.

SiriusB · 15 Mar 2010 at 21:22

Burnsy2023 said:
Either way, my point is that FF isn't the most standards compliant browser, contrary to what you said.

To be fair on Khaaan he never explicitly said FF was the most standards compliant!

Burnsy2023 · 15 Mar 2010 at 21:39

SiriusB said:
To be fair on Khaaan he never explicitly said FF was the most standards compliant!

He didn't?

Khaaan! said:
IE isn't exactly the most standards compliant browser, Firefox however is.

Am I reading that differently to you?

james.miller · 15 Mar 2010 at 21:43

failing acid3 doesnt mean it isnt, either

SiriusB · 15 Mar 2010 at 21:47

Burnsy2023 said:
Am I reading that differently to you?

OK on reading it again I can see where you're coming from. I gave Khaaan the benefit of the doubt and read it as "I.E. isn't the most standards compliant, however firefox is standards compliant."

mrk · 15 Mar 2010 at 22:11

Burnsy2023 said:
Which is an interesting debate as I wonder how many sites you visit on a regular basis are actually standards compliant.

While I might not browse them every single say I do have 170 odd bookmarks from gaming sites to forums and tech blogs to social networking and news + media sites quite a few of which bear the standards compliance logos.

I didn't exactly mean that Firefox was /the/ standards compliant browser but it is one of the most standards compliant...

It's amazing how things can be taken askew when you forget a word or two even though it wouldn't be difficult to know what I meant anyway...in this case the words being "one of..."

SiriusB · 15 Mar 2010 at 23:15

I mentally insert missing words. Or at least the words I think are missing!

Tute · 16 Mar 2010 at 01:47

I didn't actually know what Acid is but from reading around, it seems to be a test of standards compliance.

However, despite the fact that FF et al score so much better than IE, I can't say i've ever had problems with a site not displaying correctly on just IE, but I certainly have had things go strange and/or not work on other browsers.

So what exactly does the Acid test, well, do?