
IE8 Blacklist: forcing standards rendering opt-in - danw
http://www.isolani.co.uk/blog/standards/Ie8BlacklistForcingStandardsRenderingOptIn
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Hexstream
"This list updates automatically, and helps users who aren't web-savvy have a
better experience with web sites that aren't yet IE8-ready."

What nonsense. It's IE8 that should be web-ready, not the other way around.
That's pretty legendary arrogance right there.

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halo
I think people moan too much. This is a reasonable compromise where most sites
will continue to render in standards mode (which is a good thing for web
standards) while older sites largely continue to work in IE8 (which is good
for browser uptake, users and developers of older sites). You can't please
everybody all of the time, but this is the best solution I can think of. Is
the alternative that older sites are broken out of the box with IE8 and users
actively avoiding it because many sites don't magically work in IE8 somehow
better?

Rather than forcing every site to switch, only /a tiny minority/ of sites will
be caught in the crossfire and be forced into IE7 mode incorrectly, and those
who are can remedy this relatively easily whether via the HTML5 Doctype
switch, a META tag, IE8 header tag or even contacting Microsoft to get it
fixed. Instead of requiring /every site/ to it, we're talking about an utter
minority of sites accidentally getting broken in exchange for it fixing a
large proportion of problems.

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thwarted
What is to keep an organized attack on a site's display method in IE8 by
overuse of the 'compatibility mode' button when it's not appropriate?
Especially since tech-un-savvy users will then see a site in compatibility
mode when they didn't do anything in their browser, and they'll assume the
site is busted?

Also, at which point do we stop assuming the majority of users are not tech-
savvy? How much longer do they have to catch up? Everyone knows which hole the
food goes in, no one makes special easy-to-eat food for the food-un-savvy
crowd.

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lisp_padawan
this is getting beyond belief, so I'm going to have to support the flaky weird
rendering quirks of IE6 (since so many people still use it), IE7, IE7
Compatibility Mode (which seemingly isn't actually compaitible) _AND_ IE8!?
And that's hoping that IE8 'standards' mode is reliable enough to lump in with
all the real browsers (mozilla,webkit,opera,etc).

Here's a fucking idea to help booster the economy - how about MAKING people
upgrade from IE6. BOOM! Hundreds of thousands of web developer (wo)man-hours
saved, increasing efficiency across the whole web-based IT sector.

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gabrielroth
> Here's a fucking idea to help booster the economy - how about MAKING people
> upgrade from IE6. BOOM! Hundreds of thousands of web developer (wo)man-hours
> saved, increasing efficiency across the whole web-based IT sector.

Under normal circumstances that might be a good idea. But given the output gap
in the economy, the last thing we need would be less work for web developers.
If the government wants to stimulate the web-design sector, it should
introduce a hundred new rendering engines, each with a slightly different
interpretation of the CSS specs, and then give out grants to businesses to
make their sites compatible.

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lisp_padawan
ah yes, I see what you mean, didn't fully think it through did I? - I was kind
of hoping that all those suddenly free programmer hours would be funnelled
into creative programming and start-up ventures, boosting the economy sans
government spending...

~~~
Xichekolas
Another interesting example of the those who view _job retention_ as the means
to economic stimulus versus those who view _job creation_ as the prefered
means to that end.

I tend to agree with you. Funding make-work projects benefit the workers
involved (and tangentially the businesses they buy from), but innovating and
spawning whole new companies/industries seems like a better use of our time
and effort.

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tdavis
_sigh_

I remember lobbying for this change along with many others when we did it in
the first place. Then I was completely shocked when Microsoft actually
listened. Now I am completely unsurprised and depressed by their latest flip-
flop (MSFT has a history of depressing me, which is why it isn't surprising).

The way to move the web forward is obviously to take 2 steps forward and 1.5
steps back, right? Right?!

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briansmith
Include "X-UA-Compatible: IE=edge" in your responses and you will never have
to worry about this issue. It is easier than complaining about it.

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CalmQuiet
So microsoft would still like to operate as if it could rule the web the way
it rules operating systems?: by fiat. And responds to outrage and outcries by
_tweaking_ its fiats?

Firefox, Google Chrome, and even Apple cannot help but be pleased at the
continued MSIE machinations to abuse power.

