[Wsuug] Of Browsers and Compatibility

[Jason Wilson]

Hello all,

After reading through the latest issue of A List Apart (http:// 
www.alistapart.com/articles/) I was left bashing my head against the  
wall. The articles give two different proposed solutions for an issue  
I feel we will face more and more in the coming years.

What happens to old content, bad content etc. as the web moves  
forwards down standards lane (that's my oversimplified view of what  
the question)?

I'll let you read the articles before discussing my proposed  
solution… … …

Done? Good. It seems most of the problem is dealing with how the  
browsers render engine recognises content. To me the simplest answer  
is, if you want standard rendering, you need a standard rendering  
engine!

Your first thought may be, wouldn't that remove competition? Maybe  
years ago but today very few of us who choose browsers choose them  
based on the rendering engine involved. If Firefox and Internet  
Explorer were using the same rendering engine they would still be two  
separate products with their own attractive features. Just like a  
Honda car and a Ford car are still separate cars if they use the same  
tires. The problem we're having is that proprietary browsers are  
using proprietary tires designed to drive on a different  
interpretation of what a road is. It's madness in my opinion. When I  
go and design a road (website) I shouldn't have to consider adapting  
the road for each car builders ideal of a tire.

I think there really should be a push for a standards based, standard  
issue, browser engine.

What do you all think?

Jason