Earlier quoted context omitted.
Sorry but that is an understatement. Creating a three column layout is surprisingly hard and completely counter-intuitive and it gets only harder when you want liquid columns. IE is part of the problem but many of the other browsers also had their own quierks until recently. Creating a n-column layout in CSS, in a sane way, has literally turned into a pseudo-science over the years. That wouldn't be the case if it had…
It really isn't complicated. Float three columns left with a combined width less than that of the container and you have a three column layout.
If you really think that then you have obviously never tried it.
Look here for the real solution, which is slightly more involved: