Old browser compatibility for by web demonstration site.

Wish to demonstrate the quality of my work to potential employers

[MarcMiller]

It another thread which can be found here [webmasterworld.com...] , I asked the question what it takes to make yourself employable in the web design business. I got responses of two kinds once saying all that's really needed is some good demonstration sites either on a CD or the Web. The other response was to know HTML, JavaScript, and CSS beyond reproach. So I am endeavoring to learn how to do both for I wish to be employed as a web designer. I am building a site which is presently starting to take shape as a design that renders well in Firefox and Internet explorer 6. However it is not rendering at all correctly in Netscape 6, on Mozilla and is slightly degraded in Opera 7. It is done with CSS positioning and no tables. So how well a lie site have to be compatible with old browsers to demonstrate my potential to employers.

I am also interested on opinions on if there is any particular coding style that would impress potential employers. I am using an internal stylesheet which I can make into a separate stylesheet if necessary. Will most employers be sophisticated enough to find my CSS no matter where I put it.

[Robin_reala]

My first interview for a web dev job almost fell apart because I'd not tested my portfolio in IEs less than 6, and the computer they had available only had 5.0 on it. Still, I pulled it back by recognising what was causing most of the problems (box model bugs) and explaining what I'd do to fix it (*phew*). So probably the best to do is prepare for the worst. I think it's unlikely that any prospective company will test your designs in NS6 but a recent Opera might be used. Luckily Opera's not too hard to get working if you stick to standards compliant coding.

As for coding styles, usually I've found that keeping it as clean as possible is a plus (that way employers can see how you've structured your code better). Keeping your CSS in a seperate stylesheet is a bit of a nonissue recently for a single page demo, but you might as well, as that's the way you'll be coding in a job. If they can't find it then to be honest they're not the sort of people you're looking to employ you (imho).

I'd also recommend researching the sort of sites an employer makes before you get there - my previous company specialised in financial information so a candidate that came into an interview already knowledgable about how to make data tables accessible (etc) tended to be looked on more favourably than a candidate who didn't.