Microsoft have made their latest version of their Web browser, Internet Explorer 7, available for download.
The build-up to the release has been considerable, as the product has been available as a beta download for the last 14 months.
To many, Microsoft’s browser has become less relevant as alternative browsers have become more stable and accepted – primarily the open source Firefox and to a lesser extent Opera.
Feature Catchup
The other browsers have been innovating features that their users couldn’t imaging living without, such as Tabbed browsing, where new browsing sessions are opened in a tab across the top of the screen rather than littering the desktop with new windows. With ie7, Microsoft has finally caught up and has built it in.
Other features included to match the same level of functionality, are reading RSS feeds and building in a search box to the browser that they call Live Search. There has been some controversy over the search, as it defaults to searching on Microsoft’s own service. It is understood that this was the only option right up to just before the final release, when other search options were added.
Phishing warning
Built into ie7 is the knowledge of sites that are known for phishing – sites that lure the innocent user into providing personal information, often banking details, that are then used for criminal purposes. When an ie7 user goes to one of these sites by mistake, the Web address bar is turned red and a message is displayed.
Beware! spoof versions
Some naughty Trojan writers have used the release of ie7 to attempt to spread their evil seed to the world. They sent out a spam email using the [email protected] email address, pointing people to a link that launched a Web site made to look like Microsoft’s own download site.
It’s been a long, long wait, but it looks like the release of Microsoft’s new operating system, of Windows Vista is finally set to happen soon. 
With Microsoft now saying that just has to add the finishing touches to the overall quality and performance of the eagerly awaited operating system, the company looks set to meet it targets. 
“We had been sceptical of the launch schedule after Beta 2 shipped with problems in May, but the team seems to be making great progress in addressing issues of performance, reliability and compatibility,” he wrote in a research note. 
With Windows Vista steaming over the horizon at a rate of knots, users are being encouraged to see if their steam-powered Windows machines will be capable of running the new bells’n’whistle bonanza of the new OS. 
Unchuffedly (or perhaps that would read better as, “in a less than chuffed manner”), we dutifully shuffled back to the Microsoft site and downloaded the user-unfriendly sounding “
But it wasn’t all good news as we caught sight of some yellow warning triangles further down the page. 
Drivers
Looking down to the final warning tab entitled ‘programs,’ we were presented with a refreshingly short list considering that our machine is stuffed to the brim with programs old and new. 
The buzz has been around for months and finally we get to hear the pricing. Retail pricing will be $249 and it will hit the shops in 14th November in the US. 
Along side this will be the Zune Pass subscription service, which for $14.99/month will give access to “millions of songs.” The downside on this one is that once you stop paying, your stop getting access to the music. 
There’s going to be a ton of accessories available at launch, which are listed at the bottom of the 
The BBC has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Microsoft. Areas of the potential investigation and collaboration that the non-exclusive agreement includes, covers “search and navigation, distribution, and content enablement” (what ever that means in English). 
Microsoft has been creeping into the BBC’s online media for a long time now. It first came to light when we broke the story near the start of 2004 that the 
Currently blossoming on the Ugly Tree and ripe for plucking is the new i-mate JAQ PocketPC phone.
As far as we know, i-Mate haven’t officially split from HTC, but the company seems to be following O2’s policy of sourcing Windows smartphones from other manufacturers as well as HTC – a decision perhaps prompted by HTC recently releasing phones under their own name.
Quite a hefty beast at 122x71x22mm and weighing 160 grams, the i-Mate JAQ comes with a 2.8″ 320×240 pixels, 65k colour display, Bluetooth and InfraRed, but there’s no WiFi or 3G in sight, neither is there an onboard camera, which strikes us as a serious omission.
Microsoft is looking to shove its king sized oar into the massive successful user-generated video phenomenon with the launch of an online service to take on the likes of YouTube, Google and Yahoo. 
With Microsoft’s vast reserves of cash to fall back on, it’s not surprising that Bennett is chirpy about their prospects, “It’s really early days in online video; this is still act one.” 
Slated for an October release is the swish O2 Xda Stealth PDA phone, clad in ‘ebony black’ and featuring a slide-up numerical keypad. 
The front panel is dominated by a 2.4 inch touch screen supporting a resolution of 320 x 240 pixels and 65,000 colours. 
A SD card slot takes care of expansion needs, while the 1300 mAh Lithium Ion battery provides a claimed 150 hours of talktime and 4.5 hours of standby time. 
Microsoft is officially launching its updated next-gen, ‘Live Search’, search engine today as the company tries hard to catch up with market leaders Google and Yahoo. 
In line with its rivals, Live Search will also feature a new social search service called QnA, where surfers can pose questions and get answers from other users. 
Microsoft’s new search engine – with its Google-a-like super-simple homepage – has been in public beta testing since March at Live.com, which is also shaking off its beta status this week. 