Gecko vs. Trident: Browser Issues
When you design a more complex website you might discover that your website looks a bit different in different web browsers. At QW Consulting we work hard to make sure the design looks consistent across different browsers but sometimes, even after all the work, there are still differences. As long as those differences are slight, well, that is okay. If they are major, that is a problem. So, why is that and, for that matter, how do web browsers even work?
Well, let's start with how browsers work. When you type a URL into your browser or click a link, you make a request to the web browser. The web browser attempts to locate the server where the page you are requesting lives. After finding that page, the server returns a set of code to the browser. This code includes your content (wrapped inside mark up tags such as HTML) and the design code (such as CSS).
The browser then displays this code using a rendering (or layout) engine, such as Trident, used by Internet Explorer, and Gecko, used by Mozilla. Trident and Gecko interpret that code and present their interpretation of the code on your screen.
Interpretation is the key word since Gecko and Trident interpret the code differently. In particular, the design code called CSS (which is code that formats the text and images on your website) is not displayed the same across different browsers. As a result, the design changes - sometimes slightly and sometimes so radically it doesn't even look like the same website.
Making matters worse, Trident was recently upgraded for Internet Explorer version 7. While this version of Trident is remarkably better (and more similar to Gecko), there are major differences between this new version of Trident and the old version of Trident still in use in Internet Explorer 6. In other words, you have three masters to serve when designing a website: the new Trident, the old Trident and Gecko. Are you starting to see why web design isn't all that easy?
Why are these three the masters you must serve? Well...as of April 2009, Internet Explorer version 6 accounts for about 15% of web traffic, while version 7 of Internet Explorer accounts for 23%. Firefox meanwhile accounts for 47%. Your exact browser statistics on your website will be different, but these stats offer a good guide of what to support. It is worth noting that by this time next year, Internet Explorer version 6 probably won't be worth supporting. For now though, it is safe to say that to have a good website design that is accessible to as many people as possible, your website best work, at minimum, in Internet Explorer versions 6 and 7 and Firefox.
At QW Consulting, we have worked with these three browsers (and others) on hundreds of websites. We know what works and what causes the differences in great detail. As a result, we have practical experience taming the beasts that are the Trident and Gecko rendering engines; we know how make sure that your website design is consistent across these three popular browsers (and other browsers too). After all, we want all of your website visitors to be able to read and use your website, despite which browser they choose to use.
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