I have to admit: I was a little slow on the uptake when it came to this beta. I wasn’t even fully aware of its existence till a couple of weeks ago.
Also, with Microsoft moving towards “”mindless”" computing (I think they use terms like “”intuitive”"), I’m a little weary the benefits a power user like myself will experience with their dumbed down interfaces. Especially when you consider the recent annoyances related to the ActiveX patent suits Microsoft lost–sometimes it seems better to not update.
However, the promise of something new and tabbed browsing (a long overdue feature) and I was ready to take the plunge.
And I really like it.
It’s hard to describe. It’s really different on one hand. It’s user interface is quite different, surprisingly different. But at the same time, I didn’t experience much of a learning curve outside of figuring out where a couple of buttons were moved.
One of the most noticeable omissions from IE7′s default install is the menu bar. And while you might expect to miss it (and you can turn it back on if you do), I don’t miss it at all. In fact, without it there to distract me, I don’t even think about it.
Most of the functionality I did use from the old menu bar is located in two new buttons located to the right of the tabs: Page and Tools. Page contains many of the features the View menu used to house plus a few more. Tools, as the name suggests, is mostly identical to the Tools menu of old.
The tabs are very nice. And a special thumbnail view allows you to see all of the open tabs at once and click on the one you’re looking for. I don’t anticipate using it much but it is cool.
With all of the features moved around, the only feature that wasn’t where I expected it was the favorites menu. Instead of a menu, favorites, history (and a new feeds feature) are housed in a single hidden panel available by clicking the star button located to the left of the tabs. A little different, but not a bad place for them.
So in short, IE7 is sleek. For my experience it has been very fast and stable and it seems to approach security in a more logical way that will help average users understand and deal with common threats.
Download IE7
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Until next time,
Clifton
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