Microsoft will make the latest version of Internet Explorer, the world’s most popular web browser, available for download from 4pm (GMT) today (Thursday).
Microsoft claims that the new Internet Explorer 8 (IE8) is faster, more user-friendly and more secure than previous versions.
Steve Ballmer, the Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft, said: “With Internet Explorer 8, we are delivering a browser that gets people to the information they need, fast, and provides protection that no other browser can match.�
One of the key new features of IE8 is “Accelerators�, which allow surfers to perform common tasks, such as looking up an address on a map, without navigating first to a separate website. Web users can also keep an eye on their favourite sites by using “Web Slices�, which are stored in the redesigned favourites bar and flash when a site is updated.
Internet Explorer is currently used as a main browser on around 67 per cent of the world’s computers. This represents a decline from a peak of around 91 per cent in 2004, since which time rival browsers such as Mozilla’s Firefox, Apple’s Safari and, most recently, Google’s Chrome have started to eat into IE’s market share.
Internet Explorer’s dominance has attracted criticism and controversy in equal measure, not least with the European Commission, which in January announced its intention to investigate Microsoft’s practice of bundling Internet Explorer with its Windows operating systems, stating: "Microsoft's tying of Internet Explorer to the Windows operating system harms competition between web browsers, undermines product innovation and ultimately reduces consumer choice." Microsoft has already been fined over $1 billion by the Commission for bundling Windows Media Player in with its operating system.
On the internet, IE’s dominance has also caused problems, as the browser’s ubiquity has made it a favourite target for hackers preying on its programming vulnerabilities. If Microsoft is to claw back some of its lost market share, it must convince people that the new IE is more secure. Microsoft claims that IE8 offers the best security features among leading browsers, and that Internet Explorer 8 blocks two to four times as many malicious sites as competing browsers.
Internet Explorer 8 will be available as a free download from 4pm (GMT), at http://www.microsoft.com/ie8
Browse with more privacy
Surf the web without saving your history, shop for that special gift with confidence knowing your family won't accidentally find out, or use a shared computer without leaving a trace. Help protect your privacy with new InPrivate Browsing and InPrivate Filtering features.
InPrivate Browsing
When checking e-mail at an Internet café or shopping for a gift on a family PC, you don't want to leave any trace of specific web browsing activity. InPrivate Browsing in Internet Explorer 8 helps prevent your browsing history, temporary Internet files, form data, cookies, and usernames and passwords from being retained by the browser, leaving no evidence of your browsing or search history.
You can start InPrivate Browsing by opening a new tab and selecting Browse with InPrivate or selecting it from the Safety button on the top right corner of the browser window. Once you complete this action, Internet Explorer 8 will launch a new browser session that won't record any information, including searches or webpage visits. To end your InPrivate Browsing session, simply close the browser window.
InPrivate Filtering
Today websites increasingly pull content in from multiple sources, providing tremendous value to consumer and sites alike. Users are often not aware that some content, images, ads and analytics are being provided from third party websites or that these websites have the ability to potentially track their behavior across multiple websites. InPrivate Filtering provides users an added level of control and choice about the information that third party websites can potentially use to track browsing activity.
InPrivate Filtering is off by default and must be enabled on a per-session basis. To use this feature, select InPrivate Filtering from the Safety menu. To access and manage different filtering options for Internet Explorer 8, select InPrivate Filtering Settings from the Safety menu. To end your InPrivate Browsing session, simply close the browser window.
Note: Because InPrivate Filtering is designed to watch for and block only third-party content that appears with a high frequency across sites you visit, no content is blocked until such levels are detected, nor is any such content blocked which is served directly by the site you are visiting. Depending on your web browsing activity and sites visited, the amount of time it can take before such content is automatically blocked can vary widely. However, at any time, you can customize which third-party content is blocked or allowed in the InPrivate Filtering Settings option from the Safety menu.
Enhanced delete browsing history
Now when deleting browsing history, you can choose to preserve cookies and temporary Internet files for sites in your Favorites folder. This helps to protect your information and privacy while preserving your data on your trusted favorite sites. Your preferences and cookies are preserved, helping you to get to your trusted sites faster with greater confidence.
