Browser Compatibility

Compatibility Issues

There are compatibility issues to consider. One must ask if the client's browser supports:

• Frames
• JavaScript
• Background Sound
• ActiveX Components
• Cascading Style Sheets
• Etc.

While Opera, Navigator and Internet Explorer conform to the HTML standards, Netscape and Microsoft are competitors in the marketplace. Thus they are not going to freely conform to each other's product extensions.

Which Version

As browsers mature and evolve, new features and capabilities are added to them. Some older versions of browsers do not support Java. Interpretation of the HTML code varies from version to version, even within Internet Explorer.

Solution

The solution to the compatibility problem is to adhere to an HTML standard by validating your code and using the browscap.ini file that comes with Microsoft's Internet Information Server.

browscap.ini is a file which contains a detailed description of browser capabilities, arranged by browser manufacturer and version.