Microsoft's IE8 Beta 2 emphasizes privacy

Shaon published 28 Aug 2008, 06:46 in software - 299 views

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Microsoft Corp. moved a step closer to releasing an update of its Internet Explorer Web browser with the introduction Wednesday of its preliminary IE8 Beta 2 version .

Depending on the success of the beta version, Explorer 8 could be finished by the end of the year, although a firm release date has not been announced.

Privacy and security enhancements are key elements of Explorer 8. The latest version incorporates a number of new tools, including one that some have dubbed "porn mode." Using InPrivate Browsing, Web surfers can begin a private browsing session from a new tab button. In this mode, evidence of any visited Web sites, browsing history and Web "cookies" disappear when the user closes the tab.

Microsoft said InPrivate Browsing is for those times when you're shopping for your wife's birthday present but don't want her to know. Others are a bit more cynical about its potential uses.

Security features get more robust with InPrivate Blocking, which allows users to see in advance what content is being delivered from third parties when visiting a Web site. Users can then block content from sites they don't know - advertising, for example, or perhaps something more nefarious, like third-party software that tracks users' movements.

Users can also choose a default setting that automatically blocks third-party content.

"There are sites that you've visited that you didn't know had a line of sight on you," said Dean Hachamovitch, general manager of Internet Explorer. "This is the only way to make sure sites don't get information about you."

Explorer 8 can also uncover malicious software, or malware, that may be hidden inside Web sites.

Other features help Explorer compete with Firefox 3 from Mozilla:

-- A new tool called an accelerator: E-mail a Web address, define or translate a word, begin a blog, or map an address by defining the text and right-clicking.

-- A more user-friendly browser: The search bar can be programmed to display popular Web sites like Wikipedia and Amazon .com in addition to Google and Yahoo.

-- An updated tab system: When a user opens a tab from an existing site, the two related tabs are color-coded. If the user mistakenly closes out of a tab, the new tab button can restore recently closed pages. The browser is also more stable, so that when a page crashes, only that tab goes down and the user doesn't have to restart the browser. The browser also features one-touch bookmarking straight from the favorites tab.

-- Web Slices: Pull up part of a Web site and just monitor that portion of the page - for example, a stock ticker or weather update.

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