BROWSER Internet Explorer...

Internet Explorer 8

Internet Explorer 8 public beta 1 was released March 5th 2008.

Microsoft has annonced that Internet Explorer 8 will interpret web pages according to strict W3C standards by default.

Previously, Microsoft announced that IE 8 would use the "IE7 standard" as default, and that interpreting web pages according to strict W3C standard would be a secondary option. This created strong reactions in the web developer community, as the "IE 7 standard" does not completely conform to W3C.

However, Microsoft have now reversed this decision, and it looks like Internet Explorer 8 will be truly standards-compliant.

IE 8 has full support for CSS 2.1. In addition, it fixes "many cross-browser inconsistencies such as get/set/removeAttribute, default attributes, Attribute object and the < Q > tag.
New features:

Activities provide quick access web services. Users can look up and send information from the Web. On a restaurant web site, for example, the user can click within the page to get maps, news, and information about the restaurant, blog about it, or share it on Facebook.

WebSlices is an RSS-like feature that allows users to subscribe to content directly within a page.
Internet Explorer 7

Internet Explorer 7.0 was released in November 2006.

Internet Explorer 7 provides improved navigation through tabbed browsing, web search from the toolbar, advanced printing, easy discovery, reading and subscription to RSS feeds.

New features:

* Advanced printing (automatically scales a webpage for printing)
* Instant Search box
* Favorites Center
* RSS feeds (automatically detects RSS feeds)
* Tabbed browsing (view multiple sites in a single browser window)
* Quick Tabs
* Tab Groups
* Page zoom

See W3Schools' month by month statistics.
Internet Explorer 6

Internet Explorer 6.0 is the standard browser in Windows XP. It was released in August 2001.

Windows XP is built on Windows 2000 and is the successor to Windows 98, Millennium, and Windows 2000.
Internet Explorer 5

Internet Explorer 5 was the first major browser with XML support.

Version 5.5 (July 2000) for Windows 95, 98, NT 4.0, and Windows 2000. Support for XML/XSL, CSS, printing (print preview) and HTC behaviors.

Version 5.01 (November 1999) Primarily a bug fix for 5.0.

Version 5.0 (March 1999) The first major browser with XML support.
Older Internet Explorer Versions

The oldest versions of Internet Explorer are no longer in use by any majority of users. Web developers will ignore them. Their functionality is outdated.

Version 4.0 (released in 1997) is used by less than 1%. It has respectable CSS and DOM support, but no XML support.

Version 3.0 (released in 1996) is now used by less than 0.1%.

Version 2.0 (released in 1995). It is too old. Nobody uses it.

Version 1.0 (released in 1995). Does anyone remember it?
Internet Explorer for Macintosh

Version 5.1.7 is the latest version of Internet Explorer for Mac OS 8 and 9. It was released in July 2003.

Version 5.2.3 is the latest version of Internet Explorer for Mac OS X. It was released in June 2003.

Note: version 5.2.3 requires special features in Mac OS X. Mac OS 8 and 9 users must download and install version 5.1.7.
Microsoft Internet Explorer Downloads

Download Internet Explorer for free at: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/ie/default.mspx.

Download the latest security updates and bug fixes at: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/ie/getitnow.mspx

Internet Explorer for Mac is no longer available for download!

In June 2003, the Microsoft Macintosh Business Unit announced that Internet Explorer for Mac would undergo no further development, and support would cease in 2005. Microsoft ended support for Internet Explorer for Mac on December 31st, 2005. Accordingly, as of January 31st, 2006, Internet Explorer for the Mac is no longer available for download from Microsoft. It is recommended that Macintosh users migrate to more recent web browsing technologies such as Apple's Safari.