WebKit passes third Acid test

Recovers from trip

By Phil Manchester • Get more from this author

Posted in Applications, 1st October 2008 22:53 GMT

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WebKit - the framework that underpins Apple's Safari, Google's Chrome browser, and its Android phone platform - has become the first browser to pass the full Acid 3 test.

The Acid tests are designed to check how compliant a browser is with the web standards laid down by the Web Standards Project (WaSP). Acid 3, reckoned to be the most stringent test, was introduced earlier this year and WebKit is first of the industry's browsers to yield a good result under the test.

It had failed earlier on one count - to render smooth animation - until last week. The improved result has been attributed to "speedups in JavaScript DOM and rendering."

The achievement puts WebKit ahead of other browsers in the race to meet the Acid 3 test - although other leading browser builders have rejected the test as irrelevant. Chris Wilson, platform architect for Microsoft's Internet Explorer, has stated that while Acid 3 is "a collection of interesting tests," it is not Microsoft's goal to comply.

And don't all you open-source lot start tutting and muttering "typical Microsoft" either. Mozilla's Firefox 3 team has also dismissed Acid 3 saying: "None of the issues on the Acid 3 list are important enough." ®

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