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A IE-esk browser for testing on a Mac?

Bern

Bern

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 10, 2004
1,854
1
Australia
Is there such a browser for Mac that would be useful for testing your websites on to ensure IE compatibility?

I understand IE uses a lot of arbitrary code and probably the best course of action would be to test a site in IE on a pc, but if that is not always readily available is there a Mac browser that would closely represent IE?
 
vniow said:
.... Your best bet is to test it under Windows in some form, dual-booted, virtualised, emulated or on a PC itself.

Sorry...
Click to expand...

Yeah I kind of suspected that would be the case... damn MS! :eek:
 
Yeah, IE for OSX is very different from the PC version. Find a friend with a PC, emulate/Boot Camp it, or buy a cheap PC. Not many other options...
 
Well here's perhaps another tactic?

If I create a site which windows compatible browser other than IE would be best to view a site created on a Mac?

I realise most people out there use IE, but I would like to put a "best viewed using * * " I also understand that for maximum viewer satisfaction I should always test my sites in IE to check compatibility, however I would like to still be able to say on my sites what windows compatible browser (other than IE) it would best be viewed on simply because it was created on a Mac using Safari.

Does that make sense? :eek:
 
vniow said:
You coud always try IE for OS X...

But I know its not quite the same as the PC version.
Click to expand...

It's more than "not quite the same"... it might as well have a diffent name and be produced by an entirely different company, by a group of engineers who have never seen a single line of IE for Windows code.
 
Bern said:
Well here's perhaps another tactic?

If I create a site which windows compatible browser other than IE would be best to view a site created on a Mac?

I realise most people out there use IE, but I would like to put a "best viewed using * * " I also understand that for maximum viewer satisfaction I should always test my sites in IE to check compatibility, however I would like to still be able to say on my sites what windows compatible browser (other than IE) it would best be viewed on simply because it was created on a Mac using Safari.

Does that make sense? :eek:
Click to expand...

How complex are the things you're trying to achieve? If you're doing a layout that is even remotely standard, I'm sure there's a CSS template out there that works just fine in IE.

But you should recommend Firefox. That way you can test how it looks on the Mac, and assume it will look the same on Windows.
 
There was a website/service awhile ago that emulated websites online to check compatibility. Do a Google search, I'm afraid I can't remember the name. I have a bunch of different computers with a bunch of different OSs to test, but that's not the ideal situation for most people. VPC for PPC, dual boot or parallel for Intel. Be your best bet.

Or rent a PC at the library.
 
There are pay sites like BrowserCam (24 hour free trial though) that can do this.

There are also a few free sites...ieCapture is one I've seen...not terribly user-friendly though.
 
How about you stop worrying about Internet Explorer. Whoever uses that browser doesn't deserve to have a decent browsing experience. I've stopped making my sites work in IE (and no, I'm not making them not work, I'm just not putting any more work into it to fix it for that piece of crap) and have gotten a lot of complaints, to which I only send a link for Firefox. The more people you switch that way, the more fun it will be to develop web applications for the next century.
You don't have a different site for people who can't read big words, so why have one for people who can't install a quality browser.
 
sebisworld said:
You don't have a different site for people who can't read big words, so why have one for people who can't install a quality browser.
Click to expand...

Tell that to your client when you build him a website that looks like garbage to the 85% of people who can't install a quality browser. Then start looking for a new job.
 
Democrat622 said:
get shiira, and in preferences, go to advanced, select ie 6.0 windows
hope this helps!
Click to expand...

It doesn't help at all. That setting allows the browser to advertise itself to the world as MSIE 6.0, but it still renders things like Shiira.
 
WildCowboy said:
It doesn't help at all. That setting allows the browser to advertise itself to the world as MSIE 6.0, but it still renders things like Shiira.
Click to expand...

qemu is a free emulator fast enough to run IE.
 
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