I'll bite. ;) > AFAIK, a lot of savvy users continue to use Netscape 4.7.8 and 9 and > stay away from the 6 versions.
There have been a lot of complaints since the release about 6 being unresponsive or otherwise unpleasant. I'm not going to offer my opinions on 6 either way, since I haven't used it extensively, but the bottom line is that NS4 doesn't offer any advantage except familiarity. It's the slowest, least standards-compliant, most bug-ridden browser out there. It's not that it's bad- it's not (I definitely spent a fair bit of bandwidth championing it over the version 3 browsers)- it's just that everything else is better. <http://hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/reference/browser_chart/index_mac.html> Note that support for stylesheets and dHTML should really be "S"- it's buggy & dependent on javascript settings. > Huh? "doing the developer a favor"?? How about website builders do > themselves and *us* a favour by making their pages "viewable (fast) in > any (reasonable) browser"? 1. Developing a backwards-compatible site takes time, effort and money. On a cable modem, installing a new browser is free and takes less than 15 minutes. 2. "Fast" = small file sizes. When a developer has to redirect your older browser, or add in detection routines, or whatever, it increases the time it takes to get to your information. 3. Limited CSS support means that if a developer wants to support Netscape 4 users, she's often forced to rely on tables for layout- which truly hurts accessibility for folks using browsers like Lynx, aural browsers, cellphones, etc- folks who may not have a browser choice- and noncompliance with standards will cause enough issues with new browsers to eventually force a redesign, as NS4 machines slowly die out (which is what happened with NS3). 4. I'm all for "Viewable in any browser." But it's different from "a good experience in any browser." It means that a developer can't take advantage of many of the more exciting technological developments. For example, IIRC Netscape 4 shipped with Flash 4 player. The current version is Flash Player 6. Developers currently have the option to: - create Flash documents limited by the old technology. - create new Flash documents with static, noninteractive .gifs (because .png support is limited, too) for older browsers, creating a diluted experience for the user (a popular choice, and the one I alluded to in my last post). - encourage users to take the minute and a half to download the new, free plugin. Which option ultimately gives both developer and user the most feature-rich, dynamic experience possible? Black & white TV was just fine. I remember liking the sort of "clunk" of changing channels. But if NBC had said, "we want you to have the richest viewing experience possible, and we're sick of limiting ourselves, so we'll trade your BW set for a color one with remote- free," I sure would have accepted. But what if I didn't? If it was a standing offer- I could get my free color set at any time, and if every new television made was color as well, it would be pretty hard to complain to people about how characters in NBC shows had stopped wearing high-contrast clothes. No more public posts from me on this- not on this list, anyway. :) -BEN -- PHYS: two hundred seventh ave, number seventeen, ny ny 10011 PHON: eight seven seven, six one nine, eight five two four PAGE: bengoesbeep at vesana dot com CHAT: aetherchild (aim/yim/msn) -- The iMac List is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | - Epson Stylus Color 580 Printers - new at $69 | & CDRWs on Sale! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> iMac List info: <http://lowendmac.com/imac/list.shtml> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/imac-list%40mail.maclaunch.com/> Using a Mac? Free email & more at Applelinks! http://www.applelinks.com
