Acid2

Article summary

Acid2 is a webpage that tests web browsers' functionality in displaying aspects of HTML markup, CSS 2.1 styling, PNG images, and data URIs. The test page was released on 13 April 2005 by the Web Standards Project. The Acid2 test page will be displayed correctly in any application that follows the World Wide Web Consortium and Internet Engineering Task Force specifications for these technologies. These specifications are known as web standards because they describe how technologies used on the web are expected to function. Acid2 tests rendering flaws in web browsers and other applications that render HTML. Named after the acid test for gold, it was developed in the spirit of Acid1, a relatively narrow test of compliance with the Cascading Style Sheets 1.0 (CSS1) standard. As with Acid1, an application passes the test if the way it displays the test page matches a reference image. Acid2 was designed with Microsoft Internet Explorer particularly in mind. The creators of Acid2 were dismayed that Internet Explorer did not follow web standards. It was prone to display web pages differently from other browsers, causing web developers to spend time tweaking their web pages. Acid2 challenged Microsoft to make Internet Explorer comply with web standards. On 31 October 2005, Safari 2.0.2 became the first browser to pass Acid2. Opera, Konqueror, Firefox, and others followed.…

Key claims

1. publication date: 1998 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
2. release date: 2005-04-13 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
3. release date: 2005-04-13 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
4. release date: 1998 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
5. release date: 2005-04-13 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
2. The record states that the publication date is "1998". What evidence would count against this claim?
3. The record states that the release date is "2005-04-13". What evidence would count against this claim?
4. The record states that the release date is "2005-04-13". What evidence would count against this claim?
5. The record states that the release date is "1998". What evidence would count against this claim?
6. The record states that the release date is "2005-04-13". What evidence would count against this claim?
7. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
8. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1376123382