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Can Microsoft really build a better browser?

arstechnica.com

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Re: Can Microsoft really build a better browser?

#21

Post by stanleydrew »

dhyasama wrote: post #19
thingie wrote: post #8

And why not? IE6 was released in August 2001! Its competition was something like Netscape 4.8. Mozilla was barely alpha, and not really usable yet. In this light, IE6 was a good browser, better than any competition back then. Of course. IE6 was mostly irrelevant few years later, but that wasn't because it was crappy browser, but because it was simply obsolete (but without a replacement from Microsoft).

Microsoft decided to kill IE, with 6 being the final version, in order to integrate the browser into Windows. Five years and a few major court cases later and they changed their tune and began work on IE7.

Wow, this is very interesting if true. Is there public information backing up the assertion that Microsoft wanted to kill IE as we know it and integrate it into Windows?

Re: Can Microsoft really build a better browser?

#22

Post by code_duck »

I hope not.

For them to kill Trident and move to WebKit would be a git from heaven. of course it will never happen, though. Having a top-notch browser doesn't fit their corporate plans at all. The web platform is a threat to Win32 as it always has been, more now than ever, and it would practically be disregarding shareholder interests to promote a standards based web app platform.

Re: Can Microsoft really build a better browser?

#23

Post by dustingetz »

riobard wrote: post #17
barrkel wrote: post #14

The elephant in the room here, and one that is completely ignored by this article (AFAICT) is corporate web apps. A constantly moving target, which auto-updates silently, is anathema to the average half-baked corporate web app. They're half-baked for a reason: they have a limited budget, a limited customer set whom they mostly trust, and need to be maintained in parallel with lots of other apps by understaffed develo…

I think that's the "compatible mode" (i.e. an old IE6 engine) ?

it doesn't work all that great on my corp intranet.

Re: Can Microsoft really build a better browser?

#24

Post by jacobolus »

papachito wrote: post #20
chaosprophet wrote: post #5

Yes, Microsoft can definitely build a better browser. They just need to put their hearts to it. And cut off all support for IE. They envisioned a Chrome-OS like system before Google did, and I think they even have a team to work on it (not sure though).

Google was already working on Chrome when gazelle was announced. They didn't built it in a day.

Working on Chrome or working on Chrome OS?

Re: Can Microsoft really build a better browser?

#26

Post by dhyasama »

stanleydrew wrote: post #21
dhyasama wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Microsoft decided to kill IE, with 6 being the final version, in order to integrate the browser into Windows. Five years and a few major court cases later and they changed their tune and began work on IE7.

Wow, this is very interesting if true. Is there public information backing up the assertion that Microsoft wanted to kill IE as we know it and integrate it into Windows?

I heard it from Molly Holzschlag during a presentation at Microsoft Mix last week. There were members of the IE team all over the place and I think someone would have called her on it if it wasn't true. Or maybe Microsoft leaked the fake story as a cover for an outdated browser :)

Re: Can Microsoft really build a better browser?

#27

Post by lurch_mojoff »

stanleydrew wrote: post #21
dhyasama wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Microsoft decided to kill IE, with 6 being the final version, in order to integrate the browser into Windows. Five years and a few major court cases later and they changed their tune and began work on IE7.

Wow, this is very interesting if true. Is there public information backing up the assertion that Microsoft wanted to kill IE as we know it and integrate it into Windows?

It was fairly well publicized in the plans for Longhorn. Quick Google search produced this, probably not most authoritative, but still, source: http://news.cnet.com/2100-1032_3-1011859.html
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