What's the best way to test cross-browser compatibility?

Question

Since the portable versions of Internet Explorer are no longer supported (and never fully worked) I'm trying to find a way to test sites in a number of different browsers.

The lag on something like browsershots.org is far too high to be practical, plus you can't test functionality.

I'm looking at using VMWare images of Windows XP with different versions of browsers installed, but it seems like a right pain.

Is there any other method of testing CSS compatibility on browsers?

Please re-read you question and edit it. It is not comprehensible in its current form. — Oded, Jul 21 '10 at 10:14
do you have any other method ... by which we can understand? — PHP, Jul 21 '10 at 10:16

score 2 · Answer 1 · edited Jan 18 '11 at 19:21

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The best way is to actually install these browsers, and really use them to test. You may use virtual machines in some cases (when you want to test Internet Explorer 6 on a Mac, for example).

edited Jan 18 '11 at 19:21

Peter Mortensen

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answered Jul 21 '10 at 10:19

Guillaume Lebourgeois

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But I can't install IE6/IE7/IE8 side by side – bcoughlan Jul 21 '10 at 10:20
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@waitinforatrain: use ie8's developer mode. That allows you to view in "ie7 mode" as well. I have a separate VM for IE6 than IE8 – Patrick Hendricks Jul 21 '10 at 10:26
@waitinforatrain There are some issues with the side by side installs, though they are generally useful. The best way would be to actually install them on separate machines. However, that can be expensive. That's where virtual machines come in very handy. I use Virtual Box to have a Linux install close at hand, without requiring a separate machine or dual booting. The same idea can be used for browser testing. – George Marian Jul 21 '10 at 10:28

score 2 · Accepted Answer · edited Jan 18 '11 at 19:20

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If running Windows, for Internet Explorer try IETester or IE Collection. They contain all versions of Internet Explorer.

edited Jan 18 '11 at 19:20

Peter Mortensen

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answered Jul 21 '10 at 10:21

Flakron Bytyqi

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score 0 · Answer 3 · answered Jul 21 '10 at 10:30

Like Flakron Bytyqi suggested, the easiest way is to use IETester or similar software. Using IETester for a year, I never saw any difference between its IE6 implementation and the rendering by real IE6.

Now, having multiple virtual machines can be a good idea, since:

You have to install three VM only,
You may test other browsers. For example, install side by side IE6, Firefox 2 and Opera 8,
There is no doubt: you are using real browsers, so everyone using the same browser will have the same result if the same browser options are specified.

Since installing three VM and buying three Windows licenses is not funny, I personally suggest using IETester, as said before, or using services of companies like Litmus (but it's true, you can't test functionality).

score 0 · Answer 4 · edited Feb 05 '11 at 12:45

Have you tried Adobe BrowserLab?

But for functional testing I'm afraid you will have to do it in browsers. If you are using Linux, you can have a Windows XP installation with (Internet Explorer 8, Safari, and Chrome) on VirtualBox on a Linux machine (Internet Explorer 8 has an option to behave like Internet Explorer 7). And do Internet Explorer 6 testing on Wine in Linux. Checkout PlayOnLinux for running Internet Explorer 6 on Linux.

What's the best way to test cross-browser compatibility?

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