Web Design with HTML and CSS

Why browser testing is important

Lesson 9, Browser Compatibility 199

Given an unlimited budget, many clients might choose to support the IE6 audience, but if
budget and time is limited, you should clearly explain the available options and trade-off s to
your client. For example, to support IE6 or to spend the same time and money to optimizing
their site to take advantage of modern browsers and the growing mobile device market. As
you will see in Lessons 11 and 12, we will help you frame that argument in our discussions of
designing for mobile devices and using modern techniques, such as HTML5 and CSS3.

Browser Statistics

Locating an accurate number of the web browsers currently in use today is diffi cult. Individual

websites can gather accurate information on their user’s browser version (we discuss this

Lesson 1 in the “Web Analytics” callout). However, websites don’t necessarily release this data;

therefore, the estimates that you might fi nd online are guesses based on available data. Visit a

some of the sites listed below for an accurate estimate; remember that the fi gures listed may not

apply to your target audience.

Resources

http://www.statowl.com

This is a useful site because it also tells you the operating system and browser version you are

currently using.

http://gs.statcounter.com/

Includes interactive graphs to help you understand browser trends over time.

http://w3counter.com/globalstats.php

W3counter off ers simple to read and up-to-date browser statistics.

http://www.w3schools.com/browsers/browsers_stats.asp

The statistics from the w3schools.com site are not necessarily representative of the “average” web

user, but they have been collecting data for years. Their site also off ers additional information on

how to interpret statistics.