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W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!

By | November 2, 2010, 2:57pm PDT

The Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C) has unveiled the results of its first HTML5 conformance tests, and currently the most compatible browser is … IE9.

The current tests only cover a subset of the whole spec but the results so far put Internet Explorer 9 Preview Platform 6 at the top of the chart, ahead of Firefox 4 beta 6, Google Chrome 7 beta, Opera 11 alpha and Safari 5.0.2.

IE has always been considered by web developers to offer the poorest web standards support, but with IE9 Microsoft appears to have pulled out the stops and made a serious effort to make IE9 as standards compliant as possible.

The current test only covers seven areas of the spec: “attributes”, “audio”, “video”, “canvas”, “getElementsByClassName”, “foreigncontent,” and “xhtml5.”

Good work Microsoft!

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W3C, Microsoft Internet Explorer 9, HTML 5, Web Browsers, Channel Management, Quality, Internet, Marketing, Business Operations, Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes is an internationally published technology author who has devoted over a decade to helping users get the most from technology.

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Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

All opinions expressed on Hardware 2.0 are those of Adrian Kingsley-Hughes. Every effort is made to ensure that the information posted is accurate. If you have any comments, queries or corrections, please contact Adrian via the email link here. Any possible conflicts of interest will be posted below. [Updated: February 23, 2010] - Adrian Kingsley-Hughes has no business relationships, affiliations, investments, or other actual/potential conflicts of interest relating to the content posted so far on this blog.

Biography

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes is an internationally published technology author who has devoted over a decade to helping users get the most from technology -- whether that be by learning to program, building a PC from a pile of parts, or helping them get the most from their new MP3 player or digital camera.

Adrian has authored/co-authored technical books on a variety of topics, ranging from programming to building and maintaining PCs. His most recent books include "Build the Ultimate Custom PC", "Beginning Programming" and "The PC Doctor's Fix It Yourself Guide". He has also written training manuals that have been used by a number of Fortune 500 companies.

Adrian also runs a popular blog under the name The PC Doctor, where he covers a range of computer-related topics -- from security to repairing and upgrading.

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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
rossdav@... 23rd Nov 2010
@NonZealot
Actually this is exactly what we (not so much Apple fanboy but more anti-Microsoft) folks wanted all along!
Microsoft is actually following published standards!
We Win!
View in thread
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AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!! Suck it Apple fanboys!!!!!
NonZealot 2nd Nov 2010
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!

Looks like if you want the best HTML5 browser, you need to switch to Windows. happy
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???
doctorSpoc Updated - 2nd Nov 2010
@NonZealot - what are you talking about this is great news for everyone.. with MS FINALLY on board the web can finally move forward.. had to be brought into the fray, kicking and screaming.. but Keep it up the good work! compete by putting the best product out there and not all these underhanded bs of the past..
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Actually, the only ones screaming
Cylon Centurion 2nd Nov 2010
@doctorSpoc

Are Windows XP users who don't want to move on. See what happens when Microsoft finally puts their foot down?
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Actually, XP users can use Chrome or Firefox, no problem.
DonnieBoy 2nd Nov 2010
NT
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Adian didnt list Safari Beta (which is probably much better in conformance)
DeRSSS 3rd Nov 2010
So this article and comparison is manipulative.

All other browsers are taken in their beta version, not real life final ones.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
PlayFair Updated - 3rd Nov 2010
@denisrs

What is manipulative? What Safari Beta? Where can it be downloaded? And do you realize that the IE9 is still in Beta as well? Preview Platform 6.

Please read the article.
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Did you read the post you replied?
DeRSSS 3rd Nov 2010
@PlayFair: it states clearly that all of browsers, except Safari, are taken in a beta form.

Just because Apple does not publish betas of Safari it does not mean that these do not exist.

So comparison could be not manipulative only if final version of browsers are compared, or if Safari's beta will be available for comparison.
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denisrs is pissed that MS
John Zern 3rd Nov 2010
Kicked Apple's A$$ on this one!

That's the best laugh of the day as denisrs keeps telling us that There isn't a company in existence that can beat Apple at anything!!!!!!
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MS only beat others with Safari beta not being present
DeRSSS Updated - 3rd Nov 2010
@John Zern: and, by the way, you ruined the thread with your misuse of formatting tags.

Now I will try to correct it with my closing tag; after my message, the following will return to normal.
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@denisr: So how good does the Safari beta look?
NonZealot 3rd Nov 2010
I presume you've used it or you wouldn't be blathering about how much better it is than IE9.
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IE9 best? not so fast - HTML5 test suite is still being developed...
~doolittle~ 4th Nov 2010
http://news.cnet.com/8301-30685_3-20021606-264.html
"The HTML5 test suite is still being developed. The number of tests and the results on these tests will change. The results in this document may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by others documents at any time. It is inappropriate to cite those results as other than work in progress and unstable."

It would be nice to see how it fares once the HTML5 suite is finalized.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
kenosha77a 2nd Nov 2010
@NonZealot

What are the "Foreign content" category requirements? I don't understand that category at all?

Is it a language translation specification or what? Just curious.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
shellcodes_coder 2nd Nov 2010
@NonZealot
agrees happy
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Actually, it shows that MS has been backed into a corner, and have no
DonnieBoy 2nd Nov 2010
choice, but to support HTML5. But, in any case, give them credit for doing better than anybody else. You can bet that Google, Mozilla, and Apple will be working their buts off for the next round.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
De-Void 2nd Nov 2010
@DonnieBoy - if what you say was true, then MS would have done a piss-poor job of implementing HTML5, would be adding all manner of MS-specific tags and properties and would be bottom of the class in these test results.

The FACTS, however, reflect a very different reality - that MS is absolutely comitted to making IE the premier web browser for Windows. Not only is IE9 shaping up to be one of the most HTML5-compliant browsers available, but its performance is lighting a fire under Google, Apple and Firefox's seats.

Whoadthunkit?
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No, MS realized that they can not do that. They realized that they had to
DonnieBoy 2nd Nov 2010
do it right, in order to stem the market share losses. They were backed into a corner, they had to give up on Silverlight, and do HTML5 right. Give them credit, they busted their butts and got it working.
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Another thing, this really means that Silverlight and Flash are going to
DonnieBoy 2nd Nov 2010
die. With this level of support for HTML5, developers will be accelerating their use of HTML5.
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This isn't a zero-sum game
Michael Alan Goff 2nd Nov 2010
All three can be around and do well.
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Don't be stupid, theres lots html5 won't do and Silverlight isnt just
Johnny Vegas 2nd Nov 2010
for the web. Silverlight's target universe is expanding, not contracting.
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Guys, it looks like MS has thrown in the towel and REALLY decided to do
DonnieBoy 2nd Nov 2010
HTML5 right. That will mean there is not much reason for Flash or Silverlight. Right now, nobody uses Silverlight. Microsoft figured that out.

Well, it does look positive, we will have to wait in see.
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Isn't time you threw in the towel, DB?
John Zern Updated - 3rd Nov 2010
You can make all the excuses you want, try to claim victory from defeat, as we really know that's whats behind your posts is the fact that ie9 beat Chrome in HTML5 catagory, and you're trying to make it some sort of "victory" over MS.

Bottom line, Silverlight isn't going away, IE9 is HTML5 complient, and Google's Chrome isn't,

Why is that such a bother for you? So what if people pass up Chrome for IE9 (or something else)?

Maybe Google will take this as a lesson, get their support for HTML5 up tp speed?
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What John Zern said
mibjr 3rd Nov 2010
This tirade/drama about Silverlight/MS is getting pretty old, pretty fast and has absolutely nothing to do with this article.

Although HTML5 is gaining momentum and will be widely adopted, Silverlight is being currently being used by many companies and will not be going anywhere for a while. If you want, take a look at some case studies on this site:

http://www.microsoft.com/casestudies/Case_Study_Search_Results.aspx?Type=1&ProTaxID=15441,15442,21148,21552
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
xSteven777x 3rd Nov 2010
@NonZealot Ya i'm gonna switch the whole operation because an os has a browser that has good html5 specs which basically no one uses. WOW GOOD IDEA.
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Adian didnt list Safari Beta (which is probably much better in conformance)
DeRSSS Updated - 3rd Nov 2010
@NonZealot: so this article and comparison is pointless.

All other browsers are taken in their beta version, not real life final ones.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
PlayFair 3rd Nov 2010
@denisrs

Please read the Article. IE9 is still in preview as well.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
jf79 5th Nov 2010
@NonZealot pffft... grow the f*ck up plz.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
rossdav@... 23rd Nov 2010
@NonZealot
Actually this is exactly what we (not so much Apple fanboy but more anti-Microsoft) folks wanted all along!
Microsoft is actually following published standards!
We Win!
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
jbravo556 2nd Nov 2010
It's all about how you configure a test. If you create a test that is tailored to IE9's strengths, then of course it will win.

Point your IE9 to this page: http://html5test.com/ and see how it fares. Safari scores 208. You would be lucky if your IE9 scores more than 100.
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So your excuse is...
LiquidLearner 2nd Nov 2010
@jbravo556

Use some random benchmark created by some random guy, rather than the one created by the people actually writing the standard? I'm sorry, I'll stick with what the W3C says, since they are the ones who write the spec anyway.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
Bob_DaBoob 3rd Nov 2010
@LiquidLearner
The W3C doesn't have a lot of credibility in my opinion. Before Firefox started kicking IE's butt, 95% of the websites run by W3C members didn't conform to W3C standards, mostly because of using IE specific features. It doesn't say much for an organization that doesn't follow their own standards.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
tonymcs@... Updated - 2nd Nov 2010
@jbravo556

Safari can't even render a line of text to the same width as the others.

So let me get this straight. You don't want to believe the organisation which sets the standards and tested the browsers, you'd rather use an anonymous website - I can see why
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
Qbt 2nd Nov 2010
@jbravo556

Kinda like the Acid test? Oh wait, I'm sure that is somehow different...
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Acid test is quite different...
doctorSpoc 3rd Nov 2010
@Qbt - acid test, tests conformance to CSS and java script standards etc and HTML 4.. looks like this HTML 5 test just test that browsers have added facilities to accommodate new HTML 5 tags and features.. really it's a delta of HTML 4..
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
Qbt Updated - 3rd Nov 2010
@doctorSpoc

Completely missing the point... For years people have used the Acid test as a way to beat MS over the head, but now that IE9 is beating other browsers in a different test that similarly only uses a subset of the spec (yes, a different spec), it suddenly doesn't count because, well, it is a subset of the spec. Duh.
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That test is filled with irrelevant things
Michael Alan Goff Updated - 2nd Nov 2010
Have you even bothered to read some of those, like MPEG-4 and Geo-location? It shows every single video format, every single audio. Won't there be one Video Format to rule them all?
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Another thing
Michael Alan Goff 2nd Nov 2010
Chromium scored 241 and 9 bonus points.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
CobraA1 2nd Nov 2010
@jbravo556

"It's all about how you configure a test."

Indeed it is.

"If you create a test that is tailored to IE9's strengths, then of course it will win."

Except these tests come from the people who write the standards, not Microsoft.

"Point your IE9 to this page: http://html5test.com/ and see how it fares."

Html5test is pretty opaque about their testing methods. I don't know that the tests aren't tailored to reflect their own biases.

. . . although, just so everybody knows, Microsoft themselves are actually working closely with the W3C to create many of the tests.

The W3C tests should, however, be far more comprehensive than any of the small scale tests we have seen so far, and thus should present a far more accurate picture than html5test or acid3.
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You are absolutely correct
NonZealot Updated - 3rd Nov 2010
@CobraA1
I don't know that the tests aren't tailored to reflect their own biases.

The author of html5test.com is a webkit developer.
http://rakaz.nl/about
Some of the more famous projects Ive contributed to are: Geeklog, Nucleus CMS, Zenphoto, Mozilla, KHTML and WebKit.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
kahless62003 3rd Nov 2010
@CobraA1
Actually the tests were supplied by Microsoft and are running on a server donated by... Microsoft.
Probably means nothing of course...
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
NonZealot Updated - 3rd Nov 2010
@kahless62003
Actually the tests were supplied by Microsoft

And the standards were mostly supplied by Apple. Probably means nothing of course...

Hint: it matters not who provided what. If standards compliance is your goal, it only matters that you are compliant with W3C standards and tests. IE9 does better on W3C's HTML5 conformance tests. That is a fact.
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Well, any way you look at it, this is great for HTML5. In any case IE9 did
DonnieBoy 2nd Nov 2010
VERY well.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
shis-ka-bob 2nd Nov 2010
@DonnieBoy
Will you give a number please?
I'm seeing Firefox 3.6.12 at 139, Chrome at 231 and Safari at 208.
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What BS. that's not even an html5 compliance test.
Johnny Vegas 2nd Nov 2010
take your FUD elsewhere troll.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
De-Void 2nd Nov 2010
@jbravo556 - I prefer to trust the suite of tests defined and carried-out by the W3C against all browsers than a random hodge-podge of tests created (by goodness only knows who) to push an agenda rather than actually contribute to driving HTML5 compliance.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
Scubajrr 3rd Nov 2010
@jbravo556 Like you said. "It's all about how you configure a test." So in a test configured to support Safari's strengths of course Safari does better.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
NoAxToGrind 3rd Nov 2010
@jbravo556

Yeah, the W3C is all clueless. Pfftt....
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
herry.k 3rd Nov 2010
@jbravo556

I see you're questioning the test that was put up by W3C.
Nice.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
NonZealot 3rd Nov 2010
@jbravo556
The hilarious thing about this is that all the Apple zealots scream and shout and yell and cheer and clap because the multi-national, multi-billion $$$/year mega-corporation that contracts out the manufacturing of their bulk consumer goods tell them that HTML5 is the best thing in the world and that their browser is the most conforming. Then, when the actual standards body releases an actual conformance test and it turns out that the competition's browser actually does a better job, suddenly the HTML5 standard isn't all that important any more. The truth comes out folks. While Apple zealots would like W3C certification for Apple's HTML5 implementation, it turns out that this isn't actually what is important. It turns out that the important test of proper HTML5 implementation are tests that are created by Apple fans that are designed to make Safari "win". W3C standards are less important than passing tests like http://html5test.com .

Interestingly enough, if you do a tiny bit of research into Niels Leenheer, you will find that he is one of the WebKit developers:
http://rakaz.nl/about
Some of the more famous projects Ive contributed to are: Geeklog, Nucleus CMS, Zenphoto, Mozilla, KHTML and WebKit .

Gee, no bias there!!!

And finally, for the most damning evidence, you only have to read the bottom of the html5test web page to find this nugget:
Apart from the main HTML5 specification and other specifications created the W3C HTML Working Group, this test also awards points for supporting related drafts and specifications.

Ah, so this isn't a test of the HTML5 "standard", it is a test of a bunch of stuff that an admitted webkit developer happens to feel is important.

Got it.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
Loverock Davidson 2nd Nov 2010
This is to be expected. Microsoft has really focused on their goals with IE9 and that is compliance and compatibility. The reviews for it have been glowing. So I ask you this AKH, does IE9 still not excite you even with this information? LOL! Its ok, you can admit it, you like it.
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RE: W3C: And the winner of the HTML5 conformance test is ... IE9!
shellcodes_coder 2nd Nov 2010
IE 9 will rock

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