14 DAY TRIAL // With the last pre-RTW development milestone of Internet Explorer 9 released recently, there was little focus on yet another IE9 Build also made available for download.
However, those that visited the IE9 Test Drive Center and made it to the downloads section have undoubtedly come across not only the Release Candidate (RC) bits, but also the eight Platform Preview for the browser.
Both development milestones are key in the evolution of the next generation of Internet Explorer, according to the software giant.
With the RC and PP8, Microsoft has wrapped up the feature set for Internet Explorer 9 as well as the browser’s underlying platform.
Here is what the Redmond company has to say about PP8: “Platform Preview 8 showcases performance and interoperability enhancements and represents platform complete for Internet Explorer 9.”
When I chatted with representatives of the IE team ahead of IE9 RC downloads going live, they told me that the Platform Preview release strategy for Internet Explorer 9 would continue despite the availability of the first and only RC build.
IE9 PP8 may be platform complete, but this flavor is not feature-complete. Undoubtedly, early adopters that have tested previous Platform Preview Builds are already used to such releases.
The IE9 Platform Previews are designed to offer developers the possibility of test driving the core of IE8’s successor. For early adopters that want to take the feature-complete IE9 out for a spin, Microsoft offers the Release Candidate.
Indications from the IE team point out that IE9 RTW (release to web), the final Build of the browser is extremely close.
In this regard, users should grab IE9 RC and see what the RTW will offer them, and developers should at least start planning to get their websites ready for the new major iteration of IE.
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Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) Release Candidate (RC) and Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) Platform Preview 8 (PP8) are available for download here.