There are a number of browsers out there. Internet Explorer comes with almost any computer running Windows. It will get you online, and for most people that’s good enough. If you are running IE, do you know what version it is? IE6, IE7 and IE8 are all being used right now. With the security issues being exposed, keeping your browser updated is pretty important. To see which you are using, go under Help -> About [browser name]. Firefox users tend to keep up to date a little better with half of all Firefox users updating to 3.5 within a month of its release. IE and Firefox combined make up the lion’s share in the browser industry. There are many other browsers, including Safari, Chrome and Opera.
Browser usage on this site. Your results may vary.
Who cares what browser I use?
Nobody. But you should care what browsers your visitors use. Each browser has its own quirks and methods of displaying your website. Cross browser testing has always been one of those things which were and still are a very important part of the web design process. Cross browser testing has always been an important part of the web design process. Now cross browser compatibility testing is even more important because many modern websites use XHTML and CSS coding.
So why are cross browser checks important?
Well just imagine that you have just passed your design though various phases and are now happy with how everything looks. This happens until you open up your browser in chrome or opera and go crazy because everything now looks broken and scattered. It is imperative that your website works across a multitude of browsers since people visiting your website will be using the browser of their choice and various operating systems. For instance you will have a person using a Mac operating system with a safari browser, so if your design does not look good in it you are going to loose a prospective client. A good way to check cross browser compatibility is to check it across a few popular browsers such as IE 6, 7, and 8, Firefox, Safari, Opera, Chrome and the iPhone.
