Graded Browser Support

It seems like every time I turn around we are re-evaluating how we write to our level of browser support. In chatting with Chris Griego the other day, he shared with me the following that he posted on our internal Wiki. I thought it was worth sharing so that we can reference it from time to time. Here’s what Chris posted internally:

Graded browser support is a concept borrowed from Yahoo! that promotes using different levels of support for browsers versus supporting a browser or blocking it completely. Graded Browser Support provides an inclusive definition of support and a framework for taming the ever-expanding world of browsers and front-end technologies.

A-Grade Browsers are fully supported in terms of content access, style, and behavior. These browsers are fully tested in QA.

X-Grade Browsers are assumed to be compatible. These browsers are never tested in QA, but if an issue is brought to light, it receives a fix.

C-Grade Browsers are those not in wide usage with significant support costs. These browsers should receive content but are not expected to achieve the full style or behavior that A-Grade browsers do. QA may randomly test these browsers to ensure the content is accessible. Issues found are taken on a case-by-case basis. Where possible, these browsers may even be blocked from loading CSS and JavaScript files.