Modern webbrowsers, accessibility and usability.

[kgun]

I wrote this thread

Are you prepared for web 2.0 programming?

some days ago.

I think some points from that thread deserves an own post in the accessibility and usability sub forum. If you have read my posts, you would have seen that I have used IE 6.0 up to now even if that browser is full of bugs, especially CSS bugs and implements DOM in its own proprietary way. AJAX and similar technologies are becoming more and more important as companies and surferes requires more from their web experience. The XMLHttpRequest Object is the W3C reccomended standard for asynchronous communication with the server in AJAX web applications. Microsoft has implemented their own standard, but may be IE 7.0 is DOM and XMLHttpRequest compliant. I have not had time to test it.

My impression is that IE is lagging behind FireFox and Opera on DOM scripting and AJAX related technologies. If a browser does not implement the W3C standard, you have to find hack's around it by feature and browser sniffing in your code. This takes resources.

In the above thread I defined a WEB 2.0 compliant browser. As far as I can see, there are only two in february 2007, FireFox and Opera. I have just downloaded the last version of all three browsers, so I do not have the full overview of their functionality. Other memebers may know more and should correct me if I am wrong. But as far as I can see, IE have no support for multiple CSS stylesheets like FireFox and Opera. Let us take an example, DigitalPunkt in my signature.

Without implementing extra CSS style sheets the page can be viewed in a lot of different versions in Opera. Choosing view + style, you have a lot of options. Some of them are:

1. Author mode.
2. User mode.
3. Acessibility layout.
4. Emulate text browser.
5. High contrast (B/W).
6. High contrast (W/B).
7. Hide non-linking images.
8. Nostalgiga.

The accessibility and text version are so good, that there is no need to implement separate CSS style sheets for this browser and this page.

In addition Opera now have their own web search box and their own directory. On the menu bar, you can choose among a lot of different SE's and commercial sites, like Google, eBay, Amazon search etc.

Conclusion:
Without installing external toolbars and software components, the Opera 9.1 browser sets a standard. If you know people with disabilities, you should urge them to download and use Opera 9.1. Then a lot of accessibility problems will be eliminated. Opera is also in the front on mobile surfing and last but not leat on security.

"Opera is indeed the safest browser in the world. You have no way of convincing Opera 8.5 to allow JavaScript code to access a different server than the one it is loaded from".
Source: Brinzarea, Bucica, Darie and Chereches-Tosa (2006) "AJAX and PHP" page 84.

[Dinghus]

Are you really expecting MS to fall in step? C'mon. Their arrogance is only outstripped by their poor programming skills.

Look at IE7. They push it out to everyone and it doesn't work for most people. Even calls to their help desk end up with the answer "delete it".

They are clueless but powerful and they think everyone else needs to conform to their standards. This is why I don't think building sites in full CSS only (vice tables) is wise at this time. Too much work and too many versions of IE to get it to work on for very little payoff.

[kanjigirl]

As a web designer who's just finished a full makeover of a 70-page, totally table-based site with little or no CSS implemented, in my opinion the next time someone wants to work on its layout it's going to be *much* easier for them because the site is now valid HTML and CSS. It's much cleaner, much smaller and would be far simpler to edit than the table-based monstrosity I started with. Most pages are about 1/10th to 1/4 as long as they were before.

IE7 has not given me any problems; in fact I had to go back and change all of my conditional comments to "if lte IE 6" because IE7 pretty much worked (surprisingly) with little additional editing. I'm finding it, at least for this project, similar in execution to Firefox and Opera.

Debbie

[weslinda]

To quote Microsoft:

While Internet Explorer 6 handled XMLHTTP requests with an ActiveX control, Internet Explorer 7 exposes XMLHTTP natively.

In regards to IE 7:
I've been using it for a while now, with no issues and great functionality. It is a much more compliant browser than IE6 and is a marked improvement. Outside of the corporate world, I feel a number of people will pick up IE 7.

Using a table in the site isn't the issue. I've found bigger problems in an undertaking I'm now working on that has pages with over 100 font tags, list items left open, and nested content and tables.

Tables aren't bad, how poor designers chose to use them is.

Follow standards and your site will be great, tables or not.

Kgun: I'm unsure of what you are discussing regarding using two style sheets. I do it all the time and have no issues. I don't cross the same items in those sheets unless I've set them up for seperate media types, but I'm not sure what issues you're having. Perhaps you could go in more depth on this topic.

[kgun]

Originally Posted by weslinda

Kgun: I'm unsure of what you are discussing regarding using two style sheets. I do it all the time and have no issues. I don't cross the same items in those sheets unless I've set them up for seperate media types, but I'm not sure what issues you're having. Perhaps you could go in more depth on this topic.

Read my other post. There you find an example of what I mean. It is as you say, different style sheets for different uses / users like:

• Text.
• Low vision users.
• Mobile devices etc.

It is assumed that the style sheets are linked correctly. I give an example in that post. You know how to do it, but others may not.

If you separate content from styling and JS code in separate files, that you also should for SEO, Opera may find good enough soloutions with one stylesheet for some sites / pages.

[weslinda]

But you can't fault IE for not being able to understand someone else's mistakes. I'm not sure why you pointed out the issue with IE.

Opera will never be a major browser, they just don't bring anything realllly unique to the table, and they don't have the money to make themselves known.

Most of the world uses IE because that is what is installed. Most techies use FF because they are anti-microsoft, and want a browser that works better.

I really think that Microsoft is getting unfairly slammed with IE7, I think it is a solid browser, no, not perfect, but I haven't found one yet that is.

[kgun]

Have you tried the last version of Opera and seen some pages in the different:

Views + Styles

that I mentioned in my introductory post. Try the text and accessibility option, and you should understand what I am talking about.

I can not see that IE or FireFox have the same functionality today, but may be I am wrong.

I have not deleted / slammed IE. I use all three for different purposes.

[kgun]

If you find this thread, there is an important related thread here at WPW:
Using IE6 and IE7