Star IE8's Super Standards Mode Cuts Both Ways
Linked by Thom Holwerda on Fri 25th Jan 2008 13:00 UTC, submitted by gonzo
Internet Explorer "Internet Explorer 8 is going to be the most standards-compliant IE yet, but it's going about it in a way that has some people scratching their heads. With Internet Explorer 8, you have a choice in standards compliance modes. Sound oxymoronic? Shouldn't there be one standards mode by default? Heck, shouldn't the only mode be standards mode? Ah, idealism." Please note, however, that John Resig of Mozilla Corporation spotted something interesting: "Internet Explorer 8 will support DOCTYPE switching for new DOCTYPEs (like HTML5). This really does change any frustration that someone should have concerning the new meta tag. This means that you can write your web pages in a completely standards-based way (CSS, HTML5, JavaScript) and not have to use a single browser-centric tag in order to do so."
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Detlef Niehof
Member since:
2006-05-02

I don't really get why many people here are so negative about this.
I admit that Microsoft essentially cleans up the mess that they are themselves responsible for in the first place. But if this crude meta tag causes IE6/IE7 et al to be replaced by a more standards compliant browser (IE8) in the near future (due to better user acceptance since it doesn't break all pages), then I reckon it will serve us all in the end.

Reply Bookmark Score: 3

red_devel Member since:
2006-03-30

I don't really get why many people here are so negative about this.
I admit that Microsoft essentially cleans up the mess that they are themselves responsible for in the first place. But if this crude meta tag causes IE6/IE7 et al to be replaced by a more standards compliant browser (IE8) in the near future (due to better user acceptance since it doesn't break all pages), then I reckon it will serve us all in the end.



I agree, as someone who does a lot of web development, I'll take having to add one (stupid) tag at the top rather than having to write every webpage with ugly hacks so it will work with IE.

I wonder though, how will the transition work? I mean, I personally still check all of my webpages in IE6 and hack away to make sure they look decent there. There are still too many people browsing with it to ignore, and when you're making a webpage for a client and getting paid good money to do so, it would be a very bad idea to leave it rendering poorly in any browser with a significant chunk of the market. When the people who paid you to make it start getting complaints, they're not going to want to hear "Well, its not my fault, its really Microsoft's fault for making such a bad browser, and your client's fault for not updating to the newest version." Not if you like getting re-hired at least.

So, I'm resigned to having to develop my sites for buggy IE for at least a few more years. Siiiigh. (This is what happens when competition is stifled! If Microsoft had played fair, we'd never be in this mess in the first place! Bitter much? Hell yes)

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modmans2ndcoming Member since:
2005-11-09

this is why the meta tag is a good idea.

you and I as devs can write the page and lock it to the browser versions that he client uses, the client can then upgrade the software as they wish and not worry about breaking the pages because the new browsers will be able to switch their rendering to the older render system and keep the intended look of the page.

this will end up being a boon for web developers who have to deliver long term applications to clients.

It will also be a boon for independent web devs who work in the wild of the Internet because when corporations are free to update their browsers with out fear of breaking their investments, the movement to newer, more standards compliant browsers will be accelerated.

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