thinair Boulder, Colorado. elevation 5400 feet.

Please use a better browser

Dear Web Surfer,

Many web developers work hard to ensure that their sites function properly and look dynamite in a variety of browsers. Unfortunately, some web browsers make the job much more difficult. When sub-standard web browsers dominate the market, the whole web suffers. Those who create web pages and applications must confine their designs to the weakest but most dominant browser.

You can help improve the situation immediately by simply choosing to use a web browser that provides better support for web standards. Please help to re-create a competitive environment for the web.

Windows, Linux, MacOS X: Mozilla and Opera
MacOS X: Safari
Linux: Konqueror

Here is a variation on this request:
The door is ajar

update: As of November 11, 2003, The Web Standards Project has a different view about how to make the web a better place. They recommend reporting browser bugs to the creators and suggest we move beyond the browser upgrade campaign.

Now that the playing field is more level, it is time for site builders to make more of an effort to educate themselves on ways to take advantage of the gains that have been made.

I find their case fairly compelling, and share their encouragement that web designers raise the bar on their design. Nevertheless I still maintain that you, dear web surfer, can improve matters by switching browsers today.

Thanks,
-Eric

ps. If you're a fellow web designer, please take the time to learn some new tricks from The Web Standards Project. But please also consider adding an auto-detecting link on your pages to spread the word. Details are described in the Great Browser Upgrade Campaign.