Viewing site in different browsers

[Alan Cole]

Can someone point me to the website that allows you to see how your site
will look in different browsers and different platforms.

Trying to get the hang of CSS layout but need to test things on other
platforms.

Thanks.

Al.

 

[brucie]

In alt.html Alan Cole said:

Can someone point me to the website that allows you to see how your site
will look in different browsers and different platforms.

download the browsers. any claims that a program or system can show you
how your site will appear in a particular browser are at best inaccurate
and at worst totally false and misleading.

Trying to get the hang of CSS layout but need to test things on other
platforms.

secondhand computers are very cheap but if its not an option get /real
people/ on the platform you what to check to have a fiddle with your
sites. a screencap from a browser not even used by a human doesn't mean
shit.

 

[Leif K-Brooks]

Can someone point me to the website that allows you to see how your site
will look in different browsers and different platforms.

There's really no substitute for trying it yourself. Even if the page
looks all right, you don't know what might happen when it's scrolled,
hovered, clicked, or interacted with in other ways.

But if you really can't test it yourself, use one of these services:
* http://www.danvine.com/icapture/ (free; limited to Safari)
* http://www.danvine.com/iecapture/ (free; a few Windows browsers)
* http://www.browsercam.com/ (costly, free trial; lots of browsers)

 

[Alan Cole]

In alt.html Alan Cole said:


download the browsers. any claims that a program or system can show you
how your site will appear in a particular browser are at best inaccurate
and at worst totally false and misleading.


secondhand computers are very cheap but if its not an option get /real
people/ on the platform you what to check to have a fiddle with your
sites. a screencap from a browser not even used by a human doesn't mean
shit.

I know, I use a mac and need to test things on PC's.... I do get others
who do use PC's to check things for me, but it's not the same as seing
it for myself... Unfortunately I can't afford to buy a PC at the moment,
even a 2nd hand one.... Maybe one day.

Al.

 

[kchayka]

There's really no substitute for trying it yourself. Even if the page
looks all right, you don't know what might happen when it's scrolled,
hovered, clicked, or interacted with in other ways.

Not to mention how the page adapts to different window and text sizes.
Those 2 things are never accounted for in those screencap services, but
can be a source of much quirkiness, especially when browser overflow
behaviors kick in.

 

[Jan Faerber]

Try to understand how the different browsers work.
Find a chart with quirks and standard modes for those browsers.

Sometimes you can install only one version of a browser.
To install the other version means to deinstall the installed one.

IE is the most used browser.
Test the pages in less used ones if you want to understand what makes the
difference.

I know, I use a mac and need to test things on PC's.... I do get others
who do use PC's to check things for me, but it's not the same as seing
it for myself... Unfortunately I can't afford to buy a PC at the moment,
even a 2nd hand one.... Maybe one day.

It's OK.

 

[Mark Parnell]

Sometimes you can install only one version of a browser.

Such as?

 

[Alan Cole]

IE is the most used browser.
Test the pages in less used ones if you want to understand what makes the
difference.

I do, I generally use Firefox, but also test in IE, Opera, iCab,
Omniweb, Netscape, Safari and Camino... The main problem is that all of
these are on a Mac, so even then i'm only testing for the minority. I do
e-mail a few friends that have PC's and get them to look at things for
me, but its not as good as seeing it for myself as they don't really
know what I want it to look like!

I suppose I shall have to get a PC one day!

Al.

 

[Barbara de Zoete]

I do, I generally use Firefox, but also test in IE, Opera, iCab,
Omniweb, Netscape, Safari and Camino... The main problem is that all of
these are on a Mac, so even then i'm only testing for the minority. I do
e-mail a few friends that have PC's and get them to look at things for
me, but its not as good as seeing it for myself as they don't really
know what I want it to look like!

There are two things you can do with that fact:
1. You upload a screencap of the page, showing how it should look
according to you;
2. You can ask if the look and feel are pleasand and if all functions
well, because if both answers to those questions are 'yes', who cares what
you wanted it to look like? No one will know that it is perhaps different
from the original design, if it is different.

I suppose I shall have to get a PC one day!

The way I see it, there is absolutely no need for that.

 

[Jan Faerber]

Such as?

When the top poster thinks just getting one PC will bring more browsers to
him he can have one version of IE and one version of Netscape.
Installing dual boot systems with different browser versions will cause
permanent restarts of the other boot selection.

 

[Leif K-Brooks]

When the top poster thinks just getting one PC will bring more browsers to
him he can have one version of IE and one version of Netscape.

Multiple versions of IE [1], multiple versions of Netscape, multiple
versions of Mozilla, multiple versions of Opera, multiple versions of
Lynx, multiple versions of Konqueror... I could go on.

[1] <http://www.quirksmode.org/browsers/multipleie.html>

 

[Els]

When the top poster thinks just getting one PC will bring
more browsers to him he can have one version of IE and one
version of Netscape.

I have one pc, with 5 versions of IE, 2 versions of Netscape, 3
versions of Opera, one Firebird and one Firefox, one Mozilla...

No problem

 

[Steve Pugh]

When the top poster thinks just getting one PC will bring more browsers
to him he can have one version of IE and one version of Netscape.
Installing dual boot systems with different browser versions will cause
permanent restarts of the other boot selection.

I have a single boot Windows machine with three versions of IE, one
version of Netscape (but I've had up to five versions on previous
machines), Mozilla, Firefox, Opera (I've had up to three versions
previously) and Lynx (and previously I've had many more browsers). The
only browser that makes it at all difficult to install multiple versions
is IE and there are ways round that -
http://labs.insert-title.com/labs/article.aspx?ID=795

Steve

 

[Toby Inkster]

Jan Faerber said:


Such as?

Internet Explorer is the obvious example, but there are hacks to get
different versions to live side-by-side. (These hacks aren't perfect, as
going to the "About" dialog in each version will reveal!)

Often different versions of the same browser will try to keep your
settings in the same place. This can occasionally cause problems.

 

[Toby Inkster]

Multiple versions of IE [1], multiple versions of Netscape, multiple
versions of Mozilla, multiple versions of Opera, multiple versions of
Lynx, multiple versions of Konqueror... I could go on.

One partition of my testing machine (polonius):
http://examples.tobyinkster.co.uk/lots-of-browsers

I have other partitions with every major release of IE from 2.0 to 5.5 and
a Linux partition with Konq 3.1, Opera 7.23 and Moz 1.4. And my main
(Linux) desktop has Opera 7.6tp2, Opera 7.53, Moz 1.6, Lynx, Links,
eLinks, w3m, Dillo, Nautilus, Firebird 0.6.3, Netscape 4.8 and perhaps
some others I can't remember.

 

[Jan Faerber]

[1] <http://www.quirksmode.org/browsers/multipleie.html>

I would be very careful with that.

 

[Jan Faerber]

One partition of my testing machine (polonius):
http://examples.tobyinkster.co.uk/lots-of-browsers

I like that one:
http://html.janfaerber.com/images/lots-of-browsers

 

[Toby Inkster]

I like that one:
http://html.janfaerber.com/images/lots-of-browsers

A little odd, yes. But I assure you it's not a composite. Must have been a
screen redrawing problem just prior to taking the screen shot.