Microsoft Unveils New 'Edge' Browser to Replace Internet Explorer

[babyj]

But that was 13 1/2 years ago. No wonder people are uneasy about Microsoft. Windows 7 is just a patched Vista - doesn't really fix the underlying problems. Windows 8 actually did - and is their best desktop OS ever - but UI schizophrenia scares people away. Yet even Windows 8 requires more maintenance than OS X - in spite of the ever-increasing bugs in Apple OSes.

Nothing wrong with Windows 7 and the main UI issues in Windows 8 have been fixed in Windows 8.1. We're deploying 8.1 at work and users have no problems with it, most prefer it.

The Windows maintenance issue is blown out of proportion, I doubt OS X actually has less patches issue than Windows does. Microsoft tend to release a separate patch for each issue, whilst Apple tend to roll them up. Plus a lot of the Microsoft updates are for other products, rather than for Windows itself.

Not sure who you think are feeling uneasy about Microsoft, unless you're referring to senior management at Apple? Microsoft are on a roll, the new products and advancement they're putting out across the whole of their business is impressive to say the least.

 

[Renzatic]

There latest offerings are really promising though. Windows 10 looks great.

Windows 10 is awesome. It pretty much what tempted me away from going with a Mac for my next computer.

But Windows Phone 10? I've played with it a bit, and yeah, it has its merits. It does some really clever things, and its really intelligently though out. But there isn't enough there to make me want to give up my iPhone.

I think this is the biggest problem with WP. It's good. Sometimes even great. But it's not really any better than what everyone already has. There's not enough there to tempt people away from iOS or Android.

 

[jaymzuk]

Windows 10 is shaping up to be very interesting. Not that it's going to impact upon Apple much either way. MS are very much in the software business when it comes to home use, whereas Apple sell the hardware/software package, planned obsolescence included.

What will be interesting is the impact on MS profits. This iteration is being literally given away for the first year. Maybe they'll go on a push to get it into the enterprise business early this time around. I still use Windows 7 in my workplace. And before anyone mocks, it's perfectly functional

 

[Renzatic]

I wonder if Apple hadn't updated Safari for 4 years with any new features and then suddenly sprung the current Safari we'd all be impressed too.

IE11 came out just a year and a half ago.

The major reason why MS is killing off Internet Explorer is, quite simply, because the IE brand has been tainted beyond repair. 10 and 11 were pretty decent browsers, but by this point, everyone in the know doesn't want to use them due to IE's reputation.

It's better for them to cut their losses, and start fresh.

 

[TechRemarker]

Hmmm

With Chrome being the most popular browser and no end in site, hard to imagine this new browser making much of a dent. It looks nice, that is a a little more flattened version of Chrome. But the only real feature they push is that you can markup pages. That seems more like the job for an extension rather than a major feature to focus on through the end of the video.

The browser would need to not only be as good as chrome but better than chrome to convince anyone to convert. And most any improvement made by this browser could easily be replicated by Chrome. Also there will be close to no extensions at launch, and will be tough to get developers to quickly start developing for the new browser.

Finally, a deal breaker is it's only for Windows. To gain market share these days it would be to be cross platform. People who use PC's at work and Mac's at home won't wont to use two different browsers so they will simply stick with Chrome which will work on both.

I'm glad they making all these improvements and imagine it will function like Safari does on Mac in that an OS needs to have it's own browser, but the general populous will continue to use Chrome. Safari at least has a strong grip on Mobile which Windows browser will not.

 

[TallManNY]

Windows 10 is shaping up to be very interesting. Not that it's going to impact upon Apple much either way. MS are very much in the software business when it comes to home use, whereas Apple sell the hardware/software package, planned obsolescence included.

What will be interesting is the impact on MS profits. This iteration is being literally given away for the first year. Maybe they'll go on a push to get it into the enterprise business early this time around. I still use Windows 7 in my workplace. And before anyone mocks, it's perfectly functional

Windows 7 is great. I use 8 at work and every native 8 app is a totally jarring experience that I want to get away from as soon as possible. It is like my computer gets hijacked.

I'm sure 10 will be good. But yes I wonder where MS's revenue is going to come from. This browser looks good as well. But again, it will be another free product. Giving out stuff for free is fine if your are a tech startup which intends to rely on advertisements and data mining. But how can it be a viable strategy for McSft?

 

[afsnyder]

IE11 came out just a year and a half ago.

The major reason why MS is killing off Internet Explorer is, quite simply, because the IE brand has been tainted beyond repair. 10 and 11 were pretty decent browsers, but by this point, everyone in the know doesn't want to use them due to IE's reputation.

It's better for them to cut their losses, and start fresh.

No, Ik. But no one used IE all that much anyway so I grouped the last few years of "updates".

 

[Michael Goff]

No, Ik. But no one used IE all that much anyway.

Aside from around 15-20% of desktop users. But 15% of 1.5 billion is only.... 225,000,000 people. I'm sure that almost ten Australia's is nothing to somebody. And that's going by low end estimates. Some sites have it as high as over 50% of desktop users.

 

[babyj]

I'm sure 10 will be good. But yes I wonder where MS's revenue is going to come from. This browser looks good as well. But again, it will be another free product. Giving out stuff for free is fine if your are a tech startup which intends to rely on advertisements and data mining. But how can it be a viable strategy for McSft?

Windows 10 won't be free for everyone, a lot of business / enterprise environments will still be paying for Windows. At my work for example we license Windows (any version we want to use) for a fixed period, rather than purchase outright.

Though Microsoft are all about the cloud and devices, which is where they see their income coming from in the future. In other words, Windows is a gateway to selling you other stuff - whether it be the devices to run it on, or cloud services you access through it.

 

[Renzatic]

But again, it will be another free product. Giving out stuff for free is fine if your are a tech startup which intends to rely on advertisements and data mining. But how can it be a viable strategy for McSft?

Might as well ask Apple why the give away Safari. Considering its integration with other MS products, it acts as a draw to their platform, rather than a singular product in its own right.

Though if MS wants to drive Edge straight into the ground as quickly as possible, the best way to do it would be to charge for it. Opera was the last of the big browsers to go free. It's also the one major reason why it's now dead last in usage, too.

 

[AndyUnderscoreR]

Do they really not know Adobe are already using that name?

Adobe Edge is a program for building HTML5 animations, that ships as part of the creative cloud suite, I can't imagine Adobe will be too happy with Microsoft's announcement!

 

[Michael Goff]

Do they really not know Adobe are already using that name?

Adobe Edge is a program for building HTML5 animations, that ships as part of the creative cloud suite, I can't imagine Adobe will be too happy with Microsoft's announcement!

A lot of companies use Edge.

 

[Renzatic]

Windows 10 won't be free for everyone, a lot of business / enterprise environments will still be paying for Windows. At my work for example we license Windows (any version we want to use) for a fixed period, rather than purchase outright.

Though Microsoft are all about the cloud and devices, which is where they see their income coming from in the future. In other words, Windows is a gateway to selling you other stuff - whether it be the devices to run it on, or cloud services you access through it.

Windows 10 is a free upgrade for people on Win7/8, but it's not free altogether. The upgrade deal is mostly there to tempt people into getting onto one platform as quickly as possible. Since a relatively small portion of their Windows revenue comes from upgraders, they won't be losing much in the long run.

But if you buy a new computer, you're paying for a Windows 10 license on top of the base cost of the hardware, same as usual. MS is going to be making just as much money from OEMs as they always have.

 

[sickducker]

I still don't see the point of encircling things on a website.

 

[Michael Goff]

I still don't see the point of encircling things on a website.

To send a picture of said website with notes. Imagine if you were designing a web page and somebody wanted to point out some things they noticed. It'd be easier if they were able to circle the issues and maybe write out some notes about it.

 

[Renzatic]

To send a picture of said website with notes. Imagine if you were designing a web page and somebody wanted to point out some things they noticed. It'd be easier if they were able to circle the issues and maybe write out some notes about it.

It's more about saving sites in OneNote, and annotating them. Like if you're a report, and you want to grab a quick shot of it. You could grab a shot of the page, and highlight whatever caught your interest.

Either that, or for web developers doing their design thing. They could leave notes for each other saying stuff like "this :big circle: needs to be down about :draws an arrow: huuurrrrr...".

 

[Monique1]

But there isn't enough there to make me want to give up my iPhone.

How about an unlocked smart phone (without contracts) for a fraction of the cost? One you own from day 1?

Then add a cheap month-to-month service plan which you'll find all over the place. Oh, and add some microSD storage whenever you want or replace the battery because you can actually go into these phones.

Don't get me wrong. Apple's products have unparalleled build quality and they stand behind what they sell. And yes, I know about the lack of apps for Windows phones. But honestly, how many apps does one really use regularly? I've managed to find replacements for the ones I gave up. Most just as good, a few better (and a some that suck admittedly).

But no phone is worth $950 and I refuse to be held hostage anymore by a carrier for 2 years just to get one.

 

[Michael Goff]

It's more about saving sites in OneNote, and annotating them. Like if you're a report, and you want to grab a quick shot of it. You could grab a shot of the page, and highlight whatever caught your interest.

Either that, or for web developers doing their design thing. They could leave notes for each other saying stuff like "this :big circle: needs to be down about :draws an arrow: huuurrrrr...".

Good point. I hadn't thought of that.

 

[Tech198]

blazing fast i agree at getting exploited quickly.

 

[EvilEvil]

Looking great. It's good see Microsoft working hard on improving their software again. Now if only Apple would do the same.

 

[Renzatic]

Snip

To me, WP sits in an uncomfortable middle between iOS and Android that makes it a tough sell. For the low end, you have some Android phones that are just as cheap, work almost as well, but have a ton more apps and heavier amount of developer support. For the high end, you have some good Android phones, and of course, the iPhone. They work just as well, but have a ton more...yeah.

It's a situation where being merely really good isn't good enough. It needs to offer up something that makes it a compelling alternative. Something that truly differentiates it from everything else out on the market.

...and that might be that continuum thing that's been shown off today. We'll see how that goes.

 

[mikefla]

Oh Lord get ready for this. So when you can't fix your crap you just give your crap a new name. Yeah ok....

-Mike

 

[DeepIn2U]

With Chrome being the most popular browser and no end in site, hard to imagine this new browser making much of a dent. It looks nice, that is a a little more flattened version of Chrome. But the only real feature they push is that you can markup pages. That seems more like the job for an extension rather than a major feature to focus on through the end of the video.

The browser would need to not only be as good as chrome but better than chrome to convince anyone to convert. And most any improvement made by this browser could easily be replicated by Chrome. Also there will be close to no extensions at launch, and will be tough to get developers to quickly start developing for the new browser.

Finally, a deal breaker is it's only for Windows. To gain market share these days it would be to be cross platform. People who use PC's at work and Mac's at home won't wont to use two different browsers so they will simply stick with Chrome which will work on both.

I'm glad they making all these improvements and imagine it will function like Safari does on Mac in that an OS needs to have it's own browser, but the general populous will continue to use Chrome. Safari at least has a strong grip on Mobile which Windows browser will not.

(underlined)

If Google keeps bringing in new changes that soon cannot be reverted back ... like that stupid animated bookmark star and the new Bookmarks layout - GRRRRRRRAAAATTATATATATAT! Hating on it majorly like in-laws! Then Either FireFox will win or this Browser just might.

It all depends on ease of use, speed while using it, backwards corporate site compatibility and future HTML5 and new codec standards. Features will come and looks like Microsoft has been listening quite well. Don't be too surprised at it's success. We'll see soon.

 

[Thunderbird]

Can't wait for Windows 10.

I'm still on 7 and looking forward to the upgrade. Edge looks nifty. (can't stand the name though).

 

[mikefla]

Windows 7 is great. I use 8 at work and every native 8 app is a totally jarring experience that I want to get away from as soon as possible. It is like my computer gets hijacked.

I'm sure 10 will be good. But yes I wonder where MS's revenue is going to come from. This browser looks good as well. But again, it will be another free product. Giving out stuff for free is fine if your are a tech startup which intends to rely on advertisements and data mining. But how can it be a viable strategy for McSft?

They are simply trying to stay relevant and in the game...They have no choice but to give it away since they produce mostly crap these days anyway. This is what you get when you outsource everything....

-Mike