Microsoft releases IE 7 beta to public

CNet News.com ^ | January 31, 2006 | Alorie Gilbert

[Terpfen]

Microsoft plans to take the wraps off Internet Explorer 7 on Tuesday, releasing the new "preview" version of its Web browser to the general public for testing.

The program, still a work in progress, will be available shortly for download from the Internet Explorer section of Microsoft's corporate Web site, the company said. The company, which began limited testing in July, had promised to deliver a public beta by the end of March.

"The big update is that it's public," said Margaret Cobb, group product manager for Internet Explorer at Microsoft. "All previous releases were limited."

The latest version works only with Windows XP Service Pack 2 and includes many of the features Microsoft has been touting for months. Among them are new security and privacy protection capabilities such as mechanisms designed to combat phishing attacks, spyware and other threats.

[Terpfen]

The actual IE7 preview download is available here.You need a validated install of XP SP2 to install IE7 preview.

[steveo]

"still a work in progress," heh heh...

[Red Badger]

FIREFOX!!!!!!!!!!!

[butternut_squash_bisque]

Aren't *beta* versions notoriously unstable and quirky?

[AppyPappy]

Alphas are usually that way.

[Terpfen]

Depends on the type of beta.

I've installed the preview, and it seems to work okay. Anything marked as a public beta is generally in decent form.

[proxy_user]

And you don't need XP SP2 for Firefox. Works on Win2K, Linux, and Mac.

[Terpfen]

Yep, I'm using Firefox 1.5 with the Safire theme. Great little browser. 1.5.0.1 is coming out soon, and FF2 is scheduled for June.

IE7 is nice, but I'm not switching from Firefox.

[Red Badger]

I'm still using Windows 98..............Works just fine.......Firefox, that is.....

[Red Badger]

The best just keeps getting better.........

[BulletBobCo]

Microsoft has been touting for months. Among them are new security and privacy protection capabilities such as mechanisms designed to combat phishing attacks, spyware and other threats.

But there will still be weekly urgent security patches.

[Terpfen]

Indeed. I'm looking forward to the memory leak fixes in particular. 1.5.0.1 (I'm using an RC version) already patches one or two.

[Terpfen]

If only they were weekly. I'm sure IT staffers enjoy the monthly patch release cycle, but I'm personally tired of it. I wish Microsoft would just build in the capability to delay patch deployment on corporate networks, and release the patches as soon as they're ready.

[Redcloak]

How many more minutes until the first IE7-specific worm rolls out?

[raccoonradio]

I usually use Firefox, sometimes Opera, and sometimes IE 6.
My newsgroups are on IE so that's usually why I use it.

Then I go to do a spyware/adware scan/quarantine with
AdAware and I might get 10 to 14 of them. Guess what?
All were from the IE cache, not the others. Hmm.

[butternut_squash_bisque]

Thanks. How do you like it so far?

[hadit2here]

Aren't *beta* all Microsoft versions notoriously unstable and quirky?

There, fixed that for you. [grin]

Now just why in h*ll would I want to use an unstable beta release of a notoriously insecure web browser from a notoriously unethical, immoral, convicted monopolist company whose track record shows that they historically have not and cannot provide even reasonably functional, secure software programs? And whose notoriously insecure program is so intimately intertwined with and into the operating system code that it will regularly corrupt and trash the whole computer it is installed on-- in between the times that it is filling my machine up with viruses, trojans, worms, keyloggers, backdoors, adware and spyware, all unbeknowst to me and without my consent.

Especially when I can (and do) use a stable, reasonably secure browser program with better features and a track record of fixing bugs within hours if not days of the bug being identified -Firefox! And when that program's source code is fully available for viewing to determine exactly what it is doing on my computer when I run it? And which has many features, extensions, plug-ins and skins available for free. And the program is available for free.

And which doesn't require me to have a specific bloated, slow, insecure, bug ridden operating system installed on my computer, but will run on different versions of Windoze, and Linux, and MacOSX, etc. And runs just as any other program, instead of being intimately intertwined in the OS code itself.

Yes, beta versions are notoriously unstable- any software's beta versions. But some company's software never gets beyond the stability of the beta version. And that company is Microsoft.

So, I'm thinking, why exactly should I become an unpaid guinea pig/beta tester for a convicted monopoly's software?

[Terpfen]

For the few seconds I used it, it was alright. I updated more because it IS an enhancement over IE6 than because I planned to use it. A good rundown of what's good and bad is available right here.

[butternut_squash_bisque]

Thanks for fixing that, h. (;^)

I use Netscape v8.0, v7.2 and FireFox and they all work fine. I dumped MSIE long ago, and their crappy email clients.

[sure_fine]

read through this before going forward


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