Microsoft Releases Internet Explorer 10 for Windows 7
By: Arie Slob
At the end of last month Microsoft released Internet Explorer 10 for Windows 7. The release is available in 95 languages and can be downloaded from the Microsoft web site.
Microsoft will begin auto updating Windows 7 customers to IE10 in the weeks ahead, starting with users who are running the IE10 Release Preview.
The auto updating is significant because this means that Windows Update will install it silently and automatically. This marks a significant change from Microsoft's past practices. Traditionally, the company has released new browsers only as optional updates, and further required clicking through a End User License Agreement (EULA) before installation actually took place. This was changed in late 2011, converting IE9 to an automatic ("important") update.
If you do not want IE10 to install automatically, you can use the Internet Explorer 10 Blocker Toolkit available from the Microsoft Download site.
If you are running IE9 on Windows 7, IE10 probably won't look much different. The most visible change is the integrated spellcheck with autocorrect functions. Most other changes are "under the hood". According to Microsoft the browser loads Web pages 30% faster than before thanks to better hardware acceleration and an enhanced JavaScript engine (25% faster SunSpider JavaScript benchmark compared to IE9). Because CPU usage is reduced, laptop users should find IE10 to improve battery life, too.
Another addition is the "Do Not Track"(DNT) signal which is turned on as default. The DNT signal is still in the process of being standardized, and several companies (including Yahoo) have indicated they will ignore IE10's 'Do Not Track' signal.
