Should I be developing for Internet Explorer 8?

Question

I'd like to install it on my development machine for when it comes out. But I'm afraid projects in between won't be right, and applications will be cumbersome to test. I am using VWD 2008 Express. Also not sure whether or not to use an RC1.

Thanks.

edit:

This is for an Intranet which I know will only have IE. Thank you again.

Answer 1

You should never be developing for a browser, but you should be testing with it. Internet Explorer 8 is in release candidate status, which means that the final release will render consistently (barring any glaring errors).

Answer 2

Yes, I think you should start including IE 8 into your testing as there are some notable differences to previous rendering engines.

However, I would recommend that you install any browser that is under development (or those that are not part of your core testing) on a virtual machine.

As a side, you should also include Chrome into your testing as it is gaining significant adoption.