New Website for JavaScript Sputnik Test Suite

The sputnik.googlelabs.com site allows users to test their browsers' JavaScript capabilities against the ECMA-262 script language specification. The ECMA-262 specification of the European Computer Manufacturers Association describes a platform- and provider-independent scripting language.

After the release of Sputnik in September 2009 as an open source project, one of the most requested features was conducting the test right in the browser, according to Google developer and project owner Christian Plesner Hansen in his Chromium blog announcing the new website. He describes the Sputnik test as a complement to other testing suites such as Acid3. The Sputnik test is not so much about the JavaScript execution speed then about its accuracy. Before the website went online, interested parties needed to download the test software from the Google Code project page.

The test still rated the browser conformity against version 3 of the specification. In December 2009, ECMA-262 version 5 was released and the Chrome project is currently updating the test suite to that version. A raging discussion is already ensuing in Hansen's announcement blog about Opera's stellar performance but unfortunate lack of recognition on the Web.