Expression web 4 sp2 - mozilla and webkit schema support

Question

Hi all,

I am new to web development and coming from a desktop development enviroment it feels like herding cats. How long have you had to put up with this nonsense (multiple browsers, different schemas to do the same job, random features of markup and css etc etc) anyhoo..

I am using Expression web 4 sp2 and it marks webkit and moz code as not part of the current schema as errors.

My settings are: xhtml 1.1, html5, css3 draft

What do i need to change to get it to recognise webkit and moz code as this is required for websites to work in what is allegedly the real world!

Rupert

Thanks 

---

the problem is not what you don't know it's what you think you know that's wrong

Answer 1

"How long have you had to put up with this nonsense (multiple browsers, different schemas to do the same job, random features of markup and css etc etc)"

Ever since IE1 and Netscape 2 coexisted (1995) And there were probably more clashes before that.

 

"What do i need to change to get it to recognise webkit and moz code "

Nothing.  Ignore the errors.

 

-moz,  -webkit, -ms, -o etc are all non-standard manufacturer's prefixes which EW may (or may not) mark as errors. (-moz-border-radius is marked as an error [which it is unless you support Firefox 3

and earlier], but -moz-linear-gradient is not marked as an error).

Bear in mind that CSS3 and HTML5 are still changing ("css3 draft" gives a hint to that) - as an example the recommended syntax for linear-gradient changed between Windows 8 Preview and Windows 8 RC1.

 

---

Ron Symonds
Microsoft MVP (Expression Web)

www.rxs-enterprises.org/fp

Answer 2

Since the very first web page that included anything more than plain
text was created. Its better now that you only have to deal with vendor
prefixes rather than completely different mark-up like <layer>
that Netscape used instead of <div>.

Assuming you mean -moz and -webkit and other such vendor/browser
specific prefixes it marks them as invalid because they are. So are -ms
and -o. For example if you use:

    background-image: -webkit-linear-gradient(#fff, #000);  
    background-image: -moz-linear-gradient(#fff, #000);  
    background-image: -ms-linear-gradient(#fff, #000);  
    background-image: -o-linear-gradient(#fff, #000);  
    background-image: linear-gradient(#fff, #000); 

The
first one will target safari/chrome, the second mozilla/firefox, the
third IE, the fourth Opera and the last on is the only one that will not
be marked as invalid since it uses the W3C version which is supported
now by some of those browsers listed without the vendor specific
prefixes. Problem is that there is no "standard" yet published by the
W3C (technically there never is but once published as "recommended" it
becomes the "standard".)

Welcome to the world of dealing with the
internet. Unlike your previous desktop development there is NO fixed
canvas with a specification from one single vendor whether that vendor
is Apple,  Microsoft, Google or whatever you are developing for. To add
further complications there are other devices and not just phone/mobile
browsers but also game consoles, set top boxes, smart TVs and dvd
players that all have their own proprietary browser experience.

What
you are expected to do is know why something is being marked as invalid
and make you own professional judgment based upon testing in actual
browsers to decide whether or not to use something that is not per the
published specification. Once the specification is published you won't
need or at least shouldn't need vendor specific prefixes. Frankly, I
rarely use them and when I do it is with the full knowledge that it will
look different based on the user agent. Take a look at http://by-expression.com/post/2012/09/07/CSS-3-Horizontal-Menu.aspx There you will see screen shots of various browsers.  The source code used in the resulting menu (http://wiserways.net/tutorials/css3-horizontal.html)
will show you that vendor prefixes were used to achieve those results
because none of them supported radial gradients using the W3C syntax at
the time the tutorial was written.

So the short answer is you
change nothing. What you do is consider that anytime you get those red
squiggles take it as a sign that you need to test in real live browsers.
In the meantime you have the same issue as those that come from print
design. The web is not print (or a desktop) with a known canvas that you
can control using a set of fixed properties.

---

Free Expression Web Tutorials
For an Expression Web forum with without the posting issues try expressionwebforum.com

Answer 3

 Hi all,

I am new to web development and coming from a desktop development enviroment it feels like herding cats. How long have you had to put up with this nonsense (multiple browsers, different schemas to do the same job, random features of markup and css etc) anyhoo..

Oh, about 17 years or so, since the first Netscape and IE. And it's only gotten worse, with five major PC browsers, and at least as many more proprietary tablet, smartphone, game console, etc. browsers. Welcome to the "real world" of modern Web development.

What do i need to change to get it to recognise webkit and moz code as
this is required for websites to work in what is allegedly the real world!

Actually, it's not. Neither HTML5 nor CSS3 is currently supported by IE6, IE7, IE8, which still, despite everyone's wishes, are used by thousands of users in the world. And, even for those browsers which do support some features, as you have seen, the support is not universal, requires proprietary code, and is implemented differently in different browsers. And there's not a thing you can change to alter that.

Many of the appearance features (rounded corners, gradients, shadows, etc.) offered by HTML5/CSS3 can be accomplished using traditional (X)HTML and graphics (see this, with rounded corners, shadows, and no HTML5/CSS3 anywhere; just 100% valid XHTML, save for the 2 errors caused by the Better Business Bureau markup for their icon ;-). Or, you can use HTML5/CSS3 as progressive enhancements, testing on non-supporting browsers to ensure that they degrade gracefully.

As an MCP application developer, I understand the frustration, and the longing for a single target to aim at, but you might as well get that notion out of your head, because it just doesn't exist in the world of Web development. Herding cats, indeed. Get used to it, if you plan to continue in Web development. It's just the nature of the beast. Always has been, and probably always will be...  ;-)

cheers,
scott

---

Please remember to "Mark as Answer" the responses that resolved your issue. It is common courtesy to recognize those who have helped you, and it also makes it easier for visitors to find the resolution later.