The 8th version of Internet Explorer has been released and it is better than IE7. It offers the typical enhancements of a new version of a browser including...
- Tighter security features
- Faster load times for pages
- An easier to use interface
One of the most innovative new feature of IE8 is called Accelerators, which is an add-on that make things like mapping an address or emailing the page much faster. For example, if you come across an address on a web page simply highlight the text and click on the button that appears to get driving directions. There are many other Accelerators which people are building which will add many time saving shortcuts.
Another new feature in IE8 is called Web Slices which makes some of your commonly used information on the web available as soon as you get on the web. Examples include keeping track of your eBay purchases, staying up to day with the latest sports scores or the weather in your area. It is similar to a favorite (or bookmark) but it displays the page in a small drop-down window.
Overall it is a decent browser. If you are currently using IE7 you should feel comfortable upgrading. If you are an IE6 user, what are you waiting for? In my opinion, FireFox, Opera and Chrome are better browsers, but if you your used to using IE, then upgrading would be suggested.
Some of you may or may not know, it is our company policy that new sites we build will be supported on the current and previous version of all of the major browsers (IE, FireFox, Opera, Safari and Chrome) which covers over 99% of all internet users. Some of you may ask "Are you still going to support IE6 now that IE8 is out?" which is a good question because IE6 is now two versions old and falls out of our policy. The answer is we will for now because IE6 still has quite a bit of market share (it's currently at 17% and falling), but it's days are numbered. We'll be sure to let you know when we stop writing extra code to ensure that new sites we build will work with IE6.
Labels: Firefox, Internet Explorer, Web Browsers