I validade my code every time I make changes to the css or the includes and today after a few adjustments I tried validating my site but got an error. Not related to invalid code but somehow the W3 CSS validator seems to be down for the count tonight.
After googling the error I found out I wasn’t the only one getting the same error.
I/O Error: The host name [www.fayec.com] couldn’t be resolved. Details: “www.fayec.com”
Apparently the server’s connection is intermittent and while down it can’t resolve the domain’s DNS. I would never expect W3 servers to go down but hey, it seems to happen to all of us.
This is my WTH?? of the day.
During the site’s redesign I had been struggling with one issue: IE6.
All web designers know the pain it is to make a site work in IE6. There are sites dedicated to IE6 hacks to solve the many problems IE6 can display when rendering a fully valid (XHTML and CSS) page.
Apparently I am not the only one and have been reading on several blogs about a new trend of dropping IE6 support completely.
Of course one has to weigh the pros and cons of doing so and just like We Are Not Freelancers have said on their posts, there is the problem that potential clients who have not upgraded their browsers and are still using outdated software might question your skills when viewing a site that doesn’t work in IE6.
The rebuttal to that thought is that if we, designers, don’t do our part to educate clients and users about IE6’s deficiencies then we will be stuck with 30% of users still using it for many years to come.
So I have again decided to take a stand on this issue and drop support for IE6 from my contract. I still have an IE6 sheet with basic hacks but I am not going to waste precious time trying to find ways around issues that are possibly unsolvable problems created by IE6’s lack of support for valid css.
So for those who want to read more about it:
For those potential clients reading this blog and still using IE6, please know that you would be wise in upgrading to IE7 as IE6 has many security holes that can compromise your computer. Even wiser if you started using a fully standards compliant browser like Firefox instead of IE altogether.
If you would like to read more about IE6’s vulnerabilities here are some links:
IE6…Good riddance.
