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April - 2008 - issue > Tech Tracker
Internet Explorer 8 Beta released
Christo Jacob
Monday, March 31, 2008
Microsoft is set to kick off the next generation browser war with the launch of its new arm “Internet Explorer 8 Beta’. The launch comes to light as a part of its ongoing battle with Google, its next step in Web strategy, and aim to incorporate the principle of interoperability in its products.

The Beta version will be more advantageous to the developer community rather than regular users as it will help Web developers code the new HTML engine in the browser. Along with the new features like Webslice and Activities along with the new Safety Filter, it is creating a buzz among the developer community. Microsoft says that the new browser would use the most-standards-compliant mode by default in rendering web sites.

Researchers at Gartner cautioned that it might cause older Web-facing applications - especially those used in business - to break. IE 8’s default standards mode “will result in pages that don’t display correctly for some enterprise applications”. Other analysts find that creating default to a new ‘super standards’ mode that better adheres to Web standards means the browser won’t have as big an impact on enterprises as some have feared.

The European Union recently launched a new antitrust investigation on Microsoft to probe into complaints from the Norwegian browser maker Opera Software about how Microsoft ensures rival web browsers are not fully compatible with Internet Explorer.

Critics argue that Internet Explorer is inferior to rival browsers and Microsoft maintains its lead because Explorer comes standard with the company’s Windows operating system. The company is lookig forward to launch a Beta version of its Silverlight 2 multimedia technology, which will be a competitor to Adobe Systems’ Flash.

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