Re: Backwards compatibility of new selectors (was: Color models and CSS2 in general)

Liam Quinn wrote:
 
> The CSS1 Recommendation states that "A ruleset that starts with a selector-
> string that is not valid CSS1 is skipped." [1]  Since the ~ and /
> characters are not permitted in a CSS1 selector-string unless escaped by a
> backslash [1], a selector such as /MATH ~ P/ will cause the entire ruleset
> to be ignored in CSS1 browsers.

Anybody actually try this with IE4 or NS4 to make sure that they
*do* ignore them?  And why make this particularly difficult... it
is certainly possible to do this without adding funky characters.
You're relying on proper error behavior - always a bad thing to do
(no matter what the spec said).  I found the spec to be pretty difficult
to decipher at times - I probably wasn't alone.
 
> If by "first generation" you mean claiming to support CSS1, then I think
> there's a much more serious problem:  Users with first generation agents
> are going to be pretty upset when they find out their browsers don't
> really support CSS1.

Not an argument for breaking bc.  As above - the spec is not easy
to follow.  It is not suprising that nobody has it right.  

> >In fact the syntax for CSS2 had better
> >be forward and backward compatible.
> 
> I believe it is.  The forward-compatibility requirements of CSS1 are very
> well thought out.  Too bad browser vendors haven't implemented them.

This is a very poor way of looking at the world.  There are realities
to deal with which don't go away just because they're ignored.

Doug
-- 
Doug Rand				drand@sgi.com
Silicon Graphics/SSO			http://reality.sgi.com/drand
Disclaimer: These are my views,  SGI's views are in 3D

Received on Tuesday, 2 December 1997 15:29:55 UTC