Internet Explorer is the world's most popular Web browser. Security, ease of use, and improvements in RSS, CSS, and Ajax support are Microsoft's priorities for Internet Explorer.
The latest version
of the browser includes support for:
-Accelerators - which allow supported web applications to be
invoked without explicitly navigating to them.
-Web Slices - which allows portions of page to be subscribed to and
monitored from a redesigned Favorites Bar.
-InPrivate privacy features.
-Smart Screen phishing filter.
How the journey started: Internet
Explorer through the years
Internet Explorer: powering the internet since 1995!
Microsoft’s
Internet Explorer has come a long way since its introduction in 1995, when it
was released together with the Windows 95 Plus! Pack. Internet Explorer 1.0
transformed the world by making it easy to get online, accomplishing what no
other browser had done before: making the Internet accessible for the masses.
You
can trace Internet Explorer’s roots all the way back to a web browser developed
in 1987 called Mosaic, which was the first web browser to use a graphical user
interface. The technology and trademarks behind Mosaic were eventually licensed
to a company founded in 1990 called Spyglass. And in 1995, Spyglass licensed
the source code for Mosaic to Microsoft and Internet Explorer was born.
Since
then, Internet Explorer has grown to become the most widely used web browser
around the world.
Internet Explorer 1.0 (1995)
Used
on Windows 95, IE 1.0 was only slightly more than 1 megabyte in size and sure
you could surf the internet, but not much more. In fact, you could forget about
accessing video or music files, reading newsgroups or even viewing graphics.
Internet Explorer 2.0 (1995)
Released
within the same year, IE 2.0 was the very first cross-platform browser that
supported both Windows and Mac. It brought with it support for JavaScript,
frames, cookies, giving web developers and designers tools to design secure and
media-rich websites with tracking abilities.
Internet Explorer 3.0 (1996)
IE
3.0 revolutionized the world by offering Internet Mail, News 1.0, displaying
graphics and playing audio files. In the six hours of its release, there
were more than 32,000 downloads. By the end of the first week, more than 1
million copies of the browser were downloaded.
Internet Explorer 4.0 (1997)
Released
in 1997, the Internet came to life when menus expanded with a click and images
could be dragged around. IE 4.0 also included an option to enable “Active
Desktop”, which displayed Internet content on the desktop itself and was
updated automatically as the content changed.
Internet Explorer 5.0 (1999)
IE
5.0 helped ushered in a new era of e-commerce with its expanded programming
capabilities.
This
was the first browser to support bi-directional text, an important feature for
international users who’s languages are written from right to left!
Internet Explorer 6.0 (2001)
IE
6.0 had all the fun stuff, with the Images Toolbar, Auto Image Resize, Print
Preview and Media Bar. It was the most widely used web browser during its
tenure, surpassing IE 5.0. At its peak in 2002 and 2003, IE6 attained a total
market share of nearly 90%.
Internet Explorer 7.0 (2006)
IE
7.0 made Internet surfing safer with a phishing filter, stronger encryption,
and a “delete browsing history” button to easily clear private data. It also
introduced tabbed browsing, allowing users to do more things faster and easier
with the browser.
It
was the browser that truly delivered the Web 2.0 experience.
Internet Explorer 8.0 (2009)
Released
in 2009, IE 8.0 remains one of the most secure browsers on the market today,
introducing revolutionary security and privacy features such as InPrivate
Browsing and SmartScreen phishing protection.
IE
8.0 also introduced a bunch of new user features like web slices, accelerators,
automatic Tab crash recovery and inline search within pages. Users rejoice!
so
here is the browser of the future
I
have just installed Internet Explorer 9, which is now available for download.
First think that i noticed is that it’s a faster browser than Internet Explorer
8. Pages seem to load faster, and IE itself is lighter on its feet and more
agile. The second thing is that Microsoft made major changes to the look of IE
and moved major components around. The Favorites Center is now on the right
side and pop-up blocker notifications display from the bottom of the
application window. The IE icon on the taskbar has a large E symbol, and the
letter is a lighter shade of blue.
Discover Internet Explorer 9: A more beautiful web
All-around fast
-Faster and more responsive websites.
-Hardware-accelerated text, video, and graphics
-Installs faster, starts faster
Focused on your websites
The
new browser frame makes any website shine.
Simplified
yet enhanced, the user interface brings sites forward. Characteristics of each
website are reflected throughout the browser, allowing you to be more immersed
in each site you visit.
SmartScreen Filter
SmartScreen
Filter helps combat these threats with a set of sophisticated tools:
-Anti-phishing protection—to screen threats from
imposter websites seeking to acquire personal information such as user names,
passwords, and billing data.
-Application Reputation—to remove all
unnecessary warnings for well-known files, and show severe warnings for
high-risk downloads.
- Anti-malware protection—to help prevent
potentially harmful software from infiltrating your computer.
Pinned Sites
With
Pinned Sites, you can get to your favorite sites directly from the Windows
taskbar—without having to open Internet Explorer first.
Each
site that's pinned to the taskbar has a Jump List. Pinning a site takes
seconds: click the icon to the left of the web address in One Box, or the tab
for the website, or the website's icon on the New Tab page, and then drag it to
the taskbar.
One Box
Whether
you want to navigate to a website or start a search, you have a single place to
go in Internet Explorer 9—One Box.
Surfing and searching—all in one place
With
One Box, surfing or searching the web is a snap. You can start typing a web
address and AutoComplete anticipates what you’re looking for to help you get to
your websites quickly.
Microsoft
said that the Release Candidate version is going to automatically be updated to
the final version, so a direct download should be available starting with March
14.
