News: Microsoft Preview IE9

Microsoft has previewed its latest version of Internet Explorer, IE9, adding new features to arrest its slide against competitor browsers such as Safari, Firefox and Chrome.

The new version offers technology already available in some of those other browsers, such as SVG (scalable vector graphics) capability, faster speeds via background compiled Javascript, and the unexpected inclusion of HTML5 integration, which allows users to perform such feats as watch YouTube witho

ut using Flash. It also uses graphics hardware acceleration techniques so that rich, graphically intensive sites can render faster while using less CPU.

“Our focus is providing rich capabilities – the ones that most developers want to use – in an interoperable way,” said Dean Hachamovitch, general manager for Internet Explorer in a blog post back in November. “Developers want more capabilities in the browser to build great apps and experiences; they want them to work in an interoperable way so they don’t have to re-write and re-test their sites again and again. The standards process offers a good means to that end”

Thanks to The Guardian for the heads-up