My Browser Rant

So here's the deal:  In my opinion, if you are using the  Windows or Linux platform you should really be using either Firefox or Opera as your web browser.  If you are an Apple user, then Safari is just nifty as a web browser.  I just can't recommend Internet Explorer to anyone.  Here's why.

This website is built first to current html and css standards, and then any specific browser issues are addressed.  The idea is that the website should function for any web browser, just like a television broadcast should function for any television.  If you have a crappy little black and white number with a mono speaker you might miss out on the full picture and sound quality, but you should be able to still watch the show.

Now, the truth is that the most standards-compliant browser on the landscape today is Firefox.  As such, I have built this website using Firefox as the primary test case.  Once it works there, then I flip over to Internet Explorer to find out what is broken.

Why does Internet Explorer break things?  Because until very recently Microsoft showed very little interest in being standards compliant.  Their browser was buggy, with a laundry list of html and css rendering bugs that drive web developers insane.  And before I go any farther I should point out that I am not a Microsoft hater.  I have worked on the main Redmond campus on several occasions.  I use their operating system and am perfectly happy with it.  I use their software development tools every single day, and again I am very happy with them.  This does not alter in the least the fact that up through version 6.x, their Internet Explorer web browser has been a piece of crap.  The good news is that Microsoft has finally seen the light, and Internet Explorer version 7.x is a huge step in the right direction.  It is, for the most part, standards compliant.  Everything on this website renders properly on IE7, with only a few very minor issues.  If you insist on using a Microsoft browser, you should be ok with IE7 for the most part.

But Firefox is still better, in my opinion, in just about every category.  So take that with a grain of salt.  My opinion is mine alone, and I don't expect anyone to particularly value it.