It's a real shame that Extension development has passed into the hands of those that use DW rather than staying the domain of "real" developers. Since the release of so-called "productivity" extensions that allow just about anyone to create an extension the number of IE only extensions has gone through the roof while NN4, NN6, and Opera extensions only get a cursory nod from the majority. As a web site and web-systems developer of some years I've been waiting for something to come along that'd provide me with decent components to just chuck in and it happened - sort of. The trouble is that most IE only extensions are about as much use to me and my peers as a chocolate teapot unless I'm doing a one-off intranet for a company that uses IE5.5 across the board and lets face it this isn't the major bulk of the work of the majority.

OK I know that IE5 does things "so much better" than other browsers but is that really a professional answer to the question "why have you only done half a job?" I don't think so. I'm not suggesting that what we have is bad, just that it's not good enough. I'm also not suggesting that ALL extensions should be for all browsers either because often they are Javascript (or rather jscript) driven and these things just aren't possible in non IE browsers but there are some extension developers (you know who you are) that only develop for IE when what they've developed would also be very possible in other browsers with only a little tweaking. These people call themselves "Professional Extension Developers" - I'd suggest they are far from it.

If I'm to be asked, there would be no Netscape or Opera. I'm sick of trying to make sites working in all browsers. Netscape users are turning to MI every day. It's not the question about who do you like more, Microsoft or Netscape, it's the question who's got better product. Netscape is not following web standars, mostly because it's dead. Version 6 is a shame and that's probably the last one we'll see.
Yes, I agree that we are still in position that we must create sites for both browsers but not for long. Is it OK if Microsoft is left as the only one? No, but that's how it is and how it will be unless somebody makes browser that works well. Opera is not even close to be competition.

Right, I've got home from work, I'm not so wound up now and I feel I should explain a little because I'm sure of the 15 people that have viewed my post, 14 have quite rightly decided that answering it is beneath them. These 14 are probably a bit narked and these 14 are the 14 that shouldn't be. My rant which was the start of this thread started because I'd done lots of good PHP stuff today that, considering it was Monday, all went screamingly well and at the end of the day I had a fully functional content managment system with file uploads, etc, etc that all worked fine but needed sprucing up a bit menu-wise and so on. So I went hunting for some nice extensions and found loads of sites by people proclaiming themselves to be professional extension developers. On pretty much all of these sites I found users of DW who'd used professionally built extensions to build and package a load of old tat that they'd then decided to release to the world working on the self-ingratiating attitude of "well it works on my machine and it does what I want - therefore its an extension I'll release it and call myself a pro developer and waste everybody else's time and bandwidth looking at it".

Having trained for many years in one of only 7 professions that carries a Royal Charter in the UK and who's governing body really lays down the law about what is and is not professional in terms of finished product and service before I moved into the Web field, I view the term professional and all things said to be professional with great respect. I also abhore those who claim to be professional and clearly aren't. There are those in the DW community who are professional namely Massimo, Waldo Smeets, Paul Boon, Jag, Tom Muck and probably a dozen or so others .... and there's a list as long as Robert P Wadlow's arm that aren't.

My point here is that if you're good then you're good, if you're not then don't release some old crappy extension that a hundred other people have already written saying that you're a pro developer. If you need to run your flag up the pole to see who salutes it in this community then you also need to get your head out of your ass and look around a bit cos then you'll realise that you're looking at your flag all by yourself and giving those who truly are professional a bad name.

In direct response to some of your points....

1) "....there would be no Netscape or Opera. I'm sick of trying to make sites working in all browsers." - so am I but I'm also aware that when I'm building a site for a paying client and they're paying top dollar for something then they expect to get it.... and when their server stats show that 80% use MSIE and they're getting 5000 user sessions a day thats 1000 people a day who can't see an IE only site and will go somewhere where there's a site they can see and never return. Todays world is very competative, if the hat you wear is a site builder's hat then again you need to do the whole job not half of it - you owe it to your client before your client owes you the fee - do half a job and the client may not be around long enough to pay your invoice. This is what distinguishes Web designers with 6,7,8 years experience in the field from 12 year olds that have just been taught the basics at school and can knock up a site for their next-door neighbour for fifty quid.

2) "Netscape users are turning to MI every day." - possibly - but what percentage of these are doing so because designers are failing their client's target audience by not catering for non-MS software and what percentage of these stats come from IE friendly sites? Don't believe everything you read and give me a set of figures and I'll massage them to fit the point I'm trying to make too. Also remember that installing any verison of Windows after windows 98 on a machine in China is a civil offence and China is 33% of the world population and rapidly converting to capitalism... there's a lot of people with a lot of money out there and soon they'll be able to spend it anywhere they like.

3) "It's not the question about who do you like more, Microsoft or Netscape, it's the question who's got better product." - better for what exactly? This depends on your standpoint, for example which browser is "better" for all those millions of Linux users out there? There is no IE for Linux but MSIE5 is available for HP-UX and Solaris? Have you tested your sites with these MSIE versions? Do you even know the differences and similarities?

4) "Opera is not even close to be competition." - you obviously haven't looked at Opera 5 and obviously haven't noticed that Opera 5 for Linux masquerades as IE5, NN4 and NN6 and you obvioulsy haven't got a clue about the fact that in many (but not all) repects its treatment of <DIV>s is far superior to any NN version you'd care to mention. I've only scratched the surface here but I strongly suggest you drag your old PentiumII out of the attic, dust it off, download any version of Linux for free, install it (I'll give you advice if you get stuck - this offer does not apply to everyone) and download Opera 5 and see what you get when you visit so-called IE only sites.

As an aside you might like to take into account that after the Nimda and Sircam attacks many corporate insurers are refusing to cover future financial losses caused by data loss from MS-based machines, I could name (but won't) two major banking corporations in the City of London's financial district that are making the move away from MS (both to UNIX-based systems) in order to protect their assets and the assets of their shareholders.... I was talking to one of the guys orchestrating the changeover for one of these banks last Thursday.


Which do I use??? I have two MS boxes and two different UNIX-based boxes with a total of 12 different browsers installed if you add them all up.