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Subject:Re: CSS with Netscape From:"Wing, Michael J" <mjwing -at- INGR -dot- COM> Date:Thu, 25 Mar 1999 12:38:46 -0600
There is a whole side to these browser discussions that is rarely brought
out. Namely, web application development.
To the average Joe/Josephine, the browser is just a viewer. Therefore,
things like CSS, animation, and W3 elements are basically for appearance.
However, for me, a browser is a "thin client'. Along with writing, I have
been developing web-based mapping applications. In this environment, the
application is built in ASP, JScript, Java and so forth and runs on the
server. The client (a browser) invokes ActiveX controls, Java applets, and
manipulates them (and the browser) through client-side scripting and DHTML.
This brings us back to the browser. Netscape has done very little
development from a programming standpoint to their browser in two years (I
suspect Opera has no document object model and does not handle scripting.).
It won't run VBscript, it won't handle query string arguments through
scripting (it will through HTML elements such as an anchor), it won't handle
in-line styles, it won't manipulate ActiveX controls (everything must be
wrapped in a Java class, and even then it is clunky to program), and the
Netscape document object model is as bare as "Mother Hubbard's cupboard". I
am almost completely bootstrapped when programming my applications to run on
Netscape. I have to resort to session variables (which won't work for
clustered servers) and other "creative" work-arounds.
Meanwhile, Microsoft's browser has a robust and large document object model.
It handles most types of scripting and ActiveX controls. This is what
Microsoft means by their browser development being restricted by standards.
If Netscape will not get off their butts and make their browser better
suited for web-based applications, they will be left in the dust as these
applications become the next major programming environment.
One caveat though, I have not examined the 4.5 DOM for Netscape yet.
Mike
Michael Wing (mailto:mjwing -at- ingr -dot- com)
Staff Writer/ Web Applications Developer
Intergraph Corporation; Huntsville, Alabama http://maps.intergraph.com
> -----Original Message-----
> From: John Gilger [SMTP:jgilger_it -at- NV -dot- DOE -dot- GOV]
> Sent: Thursday, March 25, 1999 10:49 AM
> To: TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
> Subject: Re: CSS with Netscape
>
> Take a look at Opera. It is a smaller, faster browser that complies
> with current W3 recommendations. Opera has been rated as "best CSS",
> "best browser", etc. Look on their site for links to various articles
> and reports. It will cost about $35(US) and is well worth it. You can
> download a 30 day demo at http://operasoftware.com
> <http://operasoftware.com>
>
> Hth
>
> John
>
> > IE 5
> >claims to be fully CSS2 compliant, but I have not tested it
> fully and will
>
> I've seen NGLayout (Netscape's Next Generation Layout engine)
> and if 5.0 ships
> with it I'm just about ready to be brutal over it and write to
> the standard and
> let MS twist in the wind. It does look, finally, as if Netscape
> Gets It about
> standards.
>
>
> From ??? -at- ??? Sun Jan 00 00:00:00 0000=
> =
>
