AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH! I have ranted numerous times about the horror that is Microsoft Internet Explorer (the most recent is here). Simply put, if you are using IE, then you are probably not viewing huge chunks of the internet as it was intended. You are certainly not seeing this blog the way it was intended. For reasons that remain a complete mystery to me, Microsoft simply does not care that their browser renders pages incorrectly. For the longest time, I thought it was my fault... something in my CSS or HTML is bad. But every browser I check... EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM... renders the pages exactly right. They may look a little different, but they are at least laid out correctly. If this is my fault, then why does it work properly on all these other browsers, including Internet Explorer for the Macintosh?!?
So, when I receive a comment at BlogExplosion like this:
"I like the site and words but the format needs work too much scrolling to the left and right to read."
I go absolutely insane...
If people don't like my blog and leave a low rating or a comment about hating it BECAUSE OF THE CONTENT, that's fine and I have no problem with it. Everybody is entitled to their opinion. But to have people's experience be tainted with Microsoft's sloppy-ass browser that causes horizontal scrolling WHERE THERE SHOULDN'T BE ANY... well, I go nuts. It's not fair to me. It's not fair to my visitors. It's just not fair. But, since Microsoft has a monopoly on the way the internet is displayed because of their huge dominance with Internet Explorer, it doesn't matter. I'm going to have to be the one to try and figure out what's going wrong. Fair or not, it's my problem.
At least I know what I'll be doing this weekend. If you are using Internet Explorer on a Windows machine and want to see what the site looks like when rendered correctly on the top-five Mac browsers (no horizontal scrolling!), then follow the link below where I've put up thumbnails (or you could always go get a better browser, and see for yourself):
Apple Safari:
Mozilla Firefox:
Camino:
Opera:
Internet Explorer Mac (believe it or not):
There are many other Mac browsers I could try (like OmniWeb) but since most of them use the Safari Webkit engine, they would assumably look the same as Safari. I don't have a screen capture of IE under Windows, but if somebody wants to send me one so I can show people how the layout renders improperly, that's great. Of course, if anybody knows how I can fix the horizontal-scrolling problem, that's even better!
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I’ve thought that you intended the horizontal scrolling…
I use Mac at home and Win at office,and I know that difference, so it happens on purpose, I guessed.
Unfortunately I don’t know how to fix it, but I can send you the screenshot.
Just thought you’d like to know that your blog doesn’t render correctly for me either in Opera (PC) 😛
I really enjoy your blog, you have such a cool lifestyle. I’d love to travel as much as you do.
I use Netscape. I have tried a bazillion times to get Mozilla (I have an iMac running OS 10.1.5, but it never works. I do the whole download, then I get the bouncing Firefox icon in my dock…and it keeps bouncing forever until I can catch it and trash it. Can you help? (P.S. Found you via Blog Explosion.)
Katie: THANK YOU! A clue! It seems as though the problem has to do with the left-side menu from the looks of your screen snapshot. At least now I have a place to start! As for traveling… well, it is fun from time to time, but it’s not easy to be constantly away from home, friends, and family all the time.
Karen: Usually when there’s a problem like that, it’s because the application requires MacOS X 1.3. But, when I check the Mozilla site, it claims that Firefox is compatible with 1.1, so I’m stumped. Have you tried asking in the Firefox community forums? http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewforum.php?f=38
I use Netscape, and I have no problem viewing your site.
Mac with Safari here. Blog is perfect.
Blog looks fine in firefox 1.0 I understand how hard it can be though to get everything to work cross-broweser. I pretty much gave up in IE quite sometime ago.
I CAN’T believe it works for you in IE Mac!!! That is the ONE browser/OS combo that I can never satisfy. In fact, I wanted to play those MSN online games once and http://www.zone.msn.com wouldn’t load correctly in IE. How’s that for irony?
The format and the scrolling looks fine to me and I don’t have any trouble navigating. And that’s because I use Firefox.
Internet explorer is pathetic, I dumped it and so should every weblogger/webdesigner.
Windows rules OK!!
This may draw a blank, but in #content, try changing ‘margin-left:225px;’ to just ‘left:225px;’ – if memory serves correctly I had the same problem myself some time ago and that fixed it.
Aah I knowwww but I’m a creature of habit and I’m scared to changgee! People have told me to use mozilla though.. I think I might just make the big change when I get a new computer.. fresh start lol.
It’s a known problem with how margins and padding is handled in CSS by different browsers. It’s a real mess when one have to design sites that work perfectly right in Mozilla but looks like a bad hangover in IE.
don’t know what you’ve done, but now in IE the page goes off the *top* of the page, and you *can’t* scroll up to see it. Currently on your index page all you can see is the bottom of the Ft Lauderdale entry, and nothing above it. Scrolling I can live with, but not being able to scroll up to the top I have issues with 😉
Mozilla Mozilla! Just try to download it again if you’re having problems. Worked fine for me.
urgh, IE is so stupid sometimes. Mozilla all the way for me… By the way, I love that image! The blue E is very well suited to being a nasty little monster
The nasty little monster seemed apropriate given that it was spawned by the ultimate corporate monopoly monster. 🙂
Mac with Firefox — works grand. My blog sucks in IE, too. Looks pretty everywhere else so I’ve given up!
I presume you’ve fixed the problem now? Because I’ve just tested your site in IE and it looks ok. Though I was using IE6 on Linux (run under Wine) so maybe the perfection of linux bleeds over to fix IE… :o)
I am still playing with the CSS and HTML. But, thanks to Neil (how many times have I said that?), the odd horizontal scrolling bit seems to be fixed(?). I can’t really tell because I am truly blessed and don’t have access to Windows just now. I plan on taking a closer look this weekend and making sure it’s all good for people using IE.
Hiya, just passing through and I was reading your post. I use IE on a PC and your page comes up perfectly fine for me. I think the PC users need to change their settings. I’m at 1024×768. This could be what’s causing the problems for some IE users.
Your site seems to be fine in IE now 🙂
IE is evil, and those that use it have been assimilated.
By the BORG.
Resistance is futile… unless you are one of the good guys.