Do websites need to look exactly the same in every browser?

…depends on who you talk to.

If you talk to a visual designer, such as the person who develops web comps in Photoshop but doesn’t know their way around web page markup, the answer is probably YES. If you talk to the client that is hiring the web developer to build the website, the answer is probably YES. But if you talk to a web developer, the one who knows what it takes to address all the quirks and differences of interpretation in browsers and devices, you’ll probably get a different, more realistic answer: It’s impossible!

I came across the following website which purports to have the answer to the question “Do websites need to look exactly the same in every browser?”

https://dowebsitesneedtolookexactlythesameineverybrowser.com/

That website’s answer?

Hmmm, who’s right? :)

P.S.

I looked up the domain registrar info for that domain name and it is registered to Dan Cederholm of https://www.simplebits.com … a guy who knows a little something about developing for the web :)

Comments

• Anonymous
  January 12, 2009
  The real answer is to code in Silverlight.
• Anonymous
  January 12, 2009
  Unfortunately and sadly with browsers like IE that have historically ignored web standards, the answers is bound to be NO. Food for thought?
• Anonymous
  January 13, 2009
  I think the point is that content should precede design and form. Ensuring the content is delivered to the end user is most important, while the integrity of the visual designer's presentation is secondary.
• Anonymous
  May 04, 2012
  The comment has been removed