BLOG: Mitch Wilson, Austin TX Web & Multimedia Developer – Austin, TX

Validate your damn code, please

Sorry, I have to rant. I'm working at 4am and marveling at the code mess big-ball-of-mud thing before me.

Designers, developers, our bosses and loved ones like to complain about browser inconsistencies. Often my four-year old says, "Daddy, why doesn't my CSS work in IE8?" This is kitchen-table discussion-material across America along with religion and taxes. You have your zealots, like me, and then you have the "Hey I just need to get this code finished, ok, I'm going to hack this page with whatever I google." Face it; we've all done it. Now we need to stop. Or stop bitching. My four-year old can get away with it. He won't learn how to validate until he's five. What's your excuse?

Here's mine. Validate the home page of this blog. I just did. 20 errors and 20 warnings. Unfortunately when you try it might not work, because my blog redirects. Oh the happiness and hypocrisy. Yes. But it's not me. It's them. Those people who give me WordPress widgets, for free -- thank you! So my blog is an exception. Everybody has them.

Everyone also has projects that should not be exceptions. Like work projects. Like projects you charge people for and then depend on. And the people, teammates, co-workers, friends, and loved ones who work on the code after you depend on things like Web standards and valid well-designed code.

You of course are the first beneficiary. If you're asking, "Why doesn't this work in IE!?!" Ask yourself, "Is my code valid? Do I use a doctype?" If either answer is "No" or "What?" then you have a problem. It's time for an intervention. Help me help you. Listen. Commit. Validate your code.

Or stop bitching about browser incompatilibites and just say, "I"m a tool and part of the problem."

How can you even expect different browsers to render your page the exact same way ... if your code is invalid? So you get a pass but browser makers don't?

I don't think so.