Comment 15 for bug 1579879

The "Ellipses1 Firefox.png" shows what happens in Firefox 46.0.1 under Windows XP and Windows 7 64bit (the picture is taken under XP but I can see the exact same thing under Windows 7) when opening the "Ellipses1.svg" file.
The "Ellipses1 Inkscape.png" and "Ellipses1 Inkscape (outline).png" Next attached files show Inkscape in normal and outline view. The pictures are at a small zoom level because the visual results are worse in this way (here also, pictures taken under XP but same results under XP and 7).

There are two problems here: one is the legitimate choice of how to render the stroke (and my opinion is that it should be conservative, that is: paint whatever should be painted, no holes in overlaps) and the other is the evidently broken renderer that paints diamond holes or completely scrambled shapes where they should be curved.
We can probably discuss forever about the first (IMHO just looking at what others do is not entirely the correct way: we should have our own idea about what is better, then compare it with what others do and decide) while the second should just be fixed.

Besides, I can't understand how Firefox can paint straight borders in the two bottom ellipses: it seems that they make a simplification so a very thin ellipse becomes a straight line.
In any case it's always better than Inkscape's unintelligible result (maybe they did it so to avoid this situation?).