CODEWITHSUNDEEP
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Harley Jackson
Harley Jackson

Reputation: 333

IE: Conditionally set Document Mode based on Compatibility Option

I'm working on a legacy system that has a mishmash of browser dependent features (don't ask). The plan is to revamp everything to be current, but in the meantime, I need to figure out a way to make the following happen:

If the user has Browser Mode set to compatibility mode for this site or in general, I need to make the Document Mode IE8. This specific case I'm looking into, I'm using IE10. When you switch to IE10 Compatibility mode, the "page default" for the Document Mode is Internet Explorer 7. If I could just make the page default Internet Explorer 8, I think that would solve my case for now.

When I try to use in the header, it ALWAYS forces to IE 8 compat mode.

I realize this is a very strange way to do things, and it's only temporary until I can properly fix the insanity....

Upvotes: 0

Views: 351

Answers (1)

Lance Leonard
Lance Leonard

Reputation: 3285

Which IE8 mode do you want? IE8 Standards mode or IE8 "use the <!doctype>" mode? If the former, set x-ua-compatible to IE8. If the latter, set it to EmulateIE8. (The various options, in gory detail, can be found here.

(The first value specifically chooses IE8 standards mode as the target mode; the second will pick IE8 standards mode if the page contains a standards mode <doctype> or IE5 quirks mode if the page doesn't contain a <doctype>.)

The key is knowing which legacy document mode that you need for the page. Figure that out and target that mode specifically. (Use the Emulation tab of the Developer Tools to switch between modes until you find the one that works.)

Note that if you deploy the page to an Intranet (right click, choose Properties, and then check out the Zone value), you may wish to add a Mark of the Web to the page so that it opens in the Internet zone and avoids the various defaults that behave otherwise.

Upvotes: 1

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