14 DAY TRIAL // When building Internet Explorer 9, Microsoft put the “all around fast” concept at the core of development efforts. After all, performance is one of the strongest selling points of Windows 7. And if it works for Windows 7 and rival browsers, then it’s also bound to work for the next generation of IE9.
It became clear from the earliest stages of the IE9 project that this version of Microsoft’s proprietary browser is in a different league compared to previous versions of Internet Explorer.
“When you talk to customers, there are many things they consider important when browsing the web. One of the things that comes up most frequently is speed,” noted Microsoft’s James Pratt.
“They want their browser to be fast, just like the applications on their PC. In Internet Explorer 9, being all around fast means the sites you care about the most feel like native applications to your PC. So how do we think about tackling a challenge like speed?”
The software giant has stressed the boost in speed for JavaScript and for HTML5 applications which are hardware accelerated and leveraging the GPU along with the graphics APIs in Windows 7 and Windows Vista SP2.
But it’s also important to note that the IE team’s work with increasing IE9’s speed is not limited to JS and HTML5 apps.
The video embedded at the bottom of the screen offers insight into just how IE9 has been tailored to real world scenarios when it comes down to performance.
“The video talks about a number of concepts, from faster JavaScript to full hardware acceleration. Later this week, we’ll take a closer look at these concepts, showcased through some of the great sites that feel like native apps on IE9,” Pratt added.
Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) Build 9.0.7930.16406 is available for download here.