Browsers support

Public sector web sites have a responsibility to be inclusive and not to exclude groups of users. This means that browser testing should be as inclusive as possible. However, this needs to be balanced against increased testing times and costs because the list of browsers, versions and platforms could be endless. 

As general rule, all EUROPA pages should be tested - and any issues resolved - with the browsers and platforms used by 2% or more of EUROPA users. This does not imply that other systems or browsers are not supported. However, the 2% is a useful threshold to keep the balance between usability and efficiency. 

Browsers and operating systems used by less than 2% EUROPA users are not required to be tested. Less popular browsers that support standards are assumed to work. However, assistive technology (screen readers or any other alternative web browsing systems) and Linux operating system should be tested even if they account for less than 2%. 

Web mobile is rapidly growing and therefore web sites might also be tested with mobile devices. However, there are such a large number of varying devices that may render this impractical. Code to standards and develop a dedicated web site for those sections that could be of interest for web mobile users, could be a valuable alternative. W3C has published the Mobile Web Best Practices recommendation which helps designers ensure that all web content is compatible with mobile devices without adaptation.   

 

There are several websites that provide global statistics for browser usage, however these figures may not be representative of the users of EUROPA. Information on the most popular browsers accessing the EUROPA website is available from the web analytics server. 

Browser	Firefox	IE	Chrome	Safari	Opera
Platform	All	Windows	Windows & Mac	Windows & Mac	All
Full support	Latest versions	7, 8, 9	Latest versions	5.x, 6.x
Partial support	3.x	6			12.x

Full support means that all content must be readable and all functionalities must work. Presentation of content must not vary substantially.

Partial support means that all content must be readable and important functionalities must work.  Degradation to presentation must not prevent users for accessing content.  A dedicated CSS may be provided. 

This list, based on the lastest EUROPA browsers statistics, is reviewed twice a year. Last revision: 31/03/2013.

To test how your website works on different browsers and devices, you may use our dedicated Browsers test environment.

People with disabilities, whether temporary or permanent (such as hearing, visual, physical or cognitive impairment) use a wide range of alternative approaches, different from traditional mouse-and-screen-based browsers. To understand and test less known approaches used for browsing read the section on accessibility evaluation tools and assistive technology.

To get an idea of how your website works on different mobile devices, you may wish to use mobile devices emulators.

 

You should check that the content, functionalities and display work as foreseen. However, there may be minor differences in the way that the web site is displayed. The aim is that users do not notice anything appears wrong.  

When testing web site functionality, you may test the navigation, forms behaviour, JavaScripts, browser back button, cookies, embed content, keyboard browsing, etc.

Some content can be unavailable to users who navigate with some browser options disable. Therefore, you should also test your website to make sure that it works with scripting, plug-ins, images and CSS turned off. Keyboard browsing must be tested and be fully operational. Display with the accessibility features offered in different platforms such as high contrast or text/links colour changes should also be tested.

 

Use our Browsers test environment to check compatibility with different browsers and platforms.