A month ago, Microsoft announced that it is shutting down its Internet Explorer browser because it has failed to grab the market and it could not compete with Google Chrome and Firefox. IE was becoming a trademark for sloppy performance, slow browsing.

Microsoft said that it is launching a new project Spartan as its new browser. But as the it is clear from the name ‘project’ , it was clearly not the brand name of a service rather a generic project. Today, during the much awaited Microsoft build developers conference 2015, the company announced that the official new browser of Microsoft will be called ‘Edge’. It was a surprise for everyone, including the major tech players.

This is a developing story and we will keep updating it as the details emerge.

]]> https://socialmediaseo.net/2015/04/29/forget-spartan-edge-is-the-new-microsoft-browser/feed/ 0 https://socialmediaseo.net/2015/04/02/microsofts-claims-about-project-spartan-browser-proven-false/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=microsofts-claims-about-project-spartan-browser-proven-false https://socialmediaseo.net/2015/04/02/microsofts-claims-about-project-spartan-browser-proven-false/#respond Thu, 02 Apr 2015 16:28:44 +0000 http://preview.socialmediaseo.net/?p=32069 Microsoft has launched the beta version of its new browser codenamed “Project Spartan” with high claims that it will remove all the problems and sloppy behaviors which were the trademark of Internet Explorer. Spartan is only available for the latest build of Windows 10 technical preview. Unfortunately, Spartan has failed to impress. Although this may seem as an early speculation, but the beta version is enough to depict the path which the software will take. An article on Laptop Mag said that Project Spartan browser was tested along with Internet Explorer, Google Chrome and Mozilla FireFox. Spartan failed pretty badly. It has a content view problem. It does not auto-adjust with your screen and if you zoom or cover up space on your screen with extra toolbars, you will have a difficulty in seeing the content.

However, the project Spartan passed the famous SunSpider JavaScript Benchmark by getting the second position. As expected, Google Chrome got the first position. SunSpider test is the best benchmark test to check the speed of any web application because it checks for the JavaScript commands and most of the modern web apps and software run javascript.

Spartan failed the test for HTML5, the key factor in testing the performance of any browser. IE is far better than Spartan in HTML5, but surprisingly, FireFox wins in graphics rendering and content spacing test.

Microsoft will have to work a lot on its new browser, otherwise this would be another embarrassment for the Redmond giant.

Internet Explorer is practically obsolete and irrelevant in the modern fast internet world. Google Chrome FireFox, Safari and other PC and mobile browsers have crossed Internet Explorer for years. Microsoft was persistent in its effort to improve Internet Explorer. Years after years of hard work, daily updates and feedback from users couldn’t improve Internet Explorer. The company has made a good decision by finally saying goodbye to Internet Explorer.

Internet Explorer will remain in the Windows platform for some Enterprise apps, but the primary browser for Windows 10 users will be Spartan. Chris Capossela, marketing chief of Microsoft said that the company feels that by giving a new name and feel to the browser can do wonders in the user base. But apart from aesthetics, Microsoft could garner a massive popularity with its new browser.

The internet world is yet to see a good, clean, memory efficient and fast browser. Google Chrome is a memory hog and a number of users have reported that Chrome consumes a lot of RAM. Mozilla FireFox, on the other hand is not stable, crashes and creates issues for the users.

Spartan can be a game-changer for Microsoft and open new streams of revenue.

]]> https://socialmediaseo.net/2015/03/17/microsoft-finally-shutting-down-internet-explorer-bringing-a-new-browser-in-windows-10/feed/ 0 https://socialmediaseo.net/2014/04/28/warning-microsoft-reveals-new-security-bug-in-browser/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=warning-microsoft-reveals-new-security-bug-in-browser https://socialmediaseo.net/2014/04/28/warning-microsoft-reveals-new-security-bug-in-browser/#respond Mon, 28 Apr 2014 15:35:02 +0000 http://preview.socialmediaseo.net/?p=31678 Well, as if Microsoft hasn’t given us enough reasons to kick their browser to the side, now there is another eason.  Microsoft recently released a security advisory that warns about remote code executions in various versions of Internet Explorer.

“This issue allows remote code execution if users visit a malicious website with an affected browser,” Microsoft said. “This would typically occur by an attacker convincing someone to click a link in an email or instant message.”

The bug affects Internet Explorer 6 – 11.

The Vulnerability enables the hackers to gain control of your system and lets them access and manipulate the data which is quite alarming considering the fact that almost 10% of all government systems still run Windows XP and perfectly vulnerable to this attack.  Microsoft has addressed the issue in a security advisory post and says “it is working on a patch” to fix the issue.

Here we go again Microsoft.  You once again have done something out of the box that might not necessarily be a good thing.  IE 10 which will be released in Windows 8 will have a Do Not Track or DNT signal set by default.  What does this DNT feature change?  For one, advertisers are in a rage about this feature because it will not allow them to track you.  For example, if you go to one website, then leave and go to another website you’ll see ads on the side of the website. You may notice that the ads pertain to the exact website you just looked at.  With IE10, you wouldn’t be able to see that advertisement because your tracking history would not be shared.  Advertisers are mad because they may miss out on custom ads or content as a result of this change.  As a longtime Adsense publisher, I’m sure I would see a significant hit from this, especially on some of my websites where the default ads are not too relevant.

From the IE Blog:

With IE10 in Windows 8, we reimagined the browser. We designed and built IE10 to be the best way to experience the full Web on Windows. Consumers can now enjoy more touch-friendly, fast and fluid Web applications with the updated IE10 engine included in the Windows Release Preview. This sixth Platform Preview of IE10 delivers improved performance and support for touch-first HTML5, as well as a new power-optimized, touch-friendly Adobe Flash Player that enables content on compatible Web sites to play in the Metro style Web browser. IE10 also sends the “Do Not Track” signal to Web sites by default to help consumers protect their privacy.

For the first time ever, Mozilla’s Firefox has overtaken Microsoft’s Internet Explorer as the #1 web browser in Europe.

According to StatCounter, a web analytics firm, Firefox dominated with a 38.11% web browser market share while Internet Explorer came in second place with a 37.52% market share.

“This is the first time that IE has been dethroned from the No. 1 spot in a major territory,” said Aodhan Cullen, StatCounter CEO. “This appears to be happening because Google’s Chrome is stealing share from Internet Explorer while Firefox is mainly maintaining its existing share.”

So really, the cause of the fall of Internet Explorer is Chrome, Google’s web browser. Which tells me that in due time, Chrome may even overtake Firefox to become the #1 web browser.

In the United States, Internet Explorer still holds the #1 web browser position.

Thoughts?

via TheStreet

As a blogger, I obviously spend a lot of time in front of my computer. Doing things like writing new articles, tweeking websites and other web projects, and providing consulting to others has caused me to use multiple browsers.

I use multiple browsers primarily because I want to see that the CSS styles I change are loading properly in the different browsers.

So this morning, my eyes were opened to a scary reality.

I realized I know use 6 different browsers and 2 different operating systems.

My list of browsers:

• Chrome – which I use about 70% of the time simply because it’s super fast.
• Firefox – I use about 25% of the time, primarily for checking Google Pagerank, SEO variables, and mostly for the Firebug addon (a must have for site design and hacking)
• Safari – falls in the 5% of the time somewhere and I use primarily to check how changes look
• Internet Explorer – again, within the 5% piece of the pie and I use for things like access wireless routers (wireless networks) and also to see how site changes look in IE.  To my unending confusion, Internet Explorer is the most used browser in the world, yet every time I open it I’m painfully reminded of why I absolutely can’t stand IE.
• Opera – I actually just started using Opera on my desktop not too long ago, and again I primarily check website changes and configuration. After all, Opera does now have 150 million users worldwide.
• RockMelt – now RockMelt is something I just got an invite to install last week. It is basically a mashup of Google Chrome and Facebook… no lie! The only problem I have with RockMelt so far is when I have the sidebars (Facebook widgets) enabled, the style sheet doesn’t adapt and my text box in my WordPress blog overruns onto the sidebars – something that is very frustrating.

My list of operating systems:

• Windows XP – I use Windows XP most of the time primarily because I do not have a MAC.
• Mac OS X – even though I don’t personally own a Mac, I use a lot of Mac’s throughout the week. I do IT, live streaming, and editing (Final Cut Pro is amazing…) work at my church and help other people out on their Mac’s, so I get a lot of exposure to Mac OS X. What I love more than anything is when adding Fusion or Parallels to a Mac which in essence converts you Mac into a PC – ironic huh?
• Linux – the Linux version I use, and have ever used is Ubuntu. I use Ubuntu mostly on my laptop and primarily just to try to learn more about the Linus environment.

So there is it… pretty scary huh?

I know, I just realized it this morning myself.

6 browsers and 3 operating systems – welcome to my world.

How about you?

Tell me about your world of browsers and operating systems.

Is their one particular platform that you use all the time?

Do you split your time between other platforms?

Anxious to read your responses.

There are comments coming in to my other Facebook Not Working article about how people are problems logging in to their Facebook profile.

The main problem people have been having today (September 22, 2010) is with their login.

Here’s a message that people are reporting:

www.facebook.com doesnt exsist

Obviously this is a problem because we all know that Facebook does exist, but why the error message?

And the answer… unfortunately I have no idea why you’d be getting this error message.

Someone reported to be getting this message in both Firefox and Internet Explorer.

I would recommend clearing the cache of both and then rebooting.

So is anyone else experiencing these login problems with Facebook?

Facebook is deciding to improve the performance of the Facebook Chat feature. One of the main ways they are doing this is by no longer supporting Internet Explorer 6.

This is funny, and ironic at the same time.

Yesterday, Facebook put out some info regarding the improvements made to Facebook Chat.

Primarily, Facebook wanted to respond to all of the negative feedback they were getting regarding the Facebook chat feature.

Things such as constant interruptions, moving slow and being unresponsive.

First the funny part.

This made me chuckle a bit when Facebook said this:

The biggest improvements come from changes that aren’t supported on older web browsers. After evaluating the alternatives, we’ve decided to make rapid improvements and provide the best Chat experience possible, which means we will no longer support Internet Explorer 6 browsers.

Notice these phrases – biggest improvements, rapid improvements, no longer support Internet Explorer 6.

I find that funny because to me, it’s a direct shot at Microsoft and their famous web browser.

I’m hoping that Steve Ballmar is listening and starts putting some of their cash reserves into creating (or rebuilding) the Microsoft brand.

I’ve always been a huge fan of Microsoft, I just wish they’d put some engineering power to work and start releasing amazing products again…. instead of being the doormat of the tech industry.

Now the ironic part

This is really more unfortunate than anything, because I’m really a big fan of Microsoft.

But one of the things I tell people all the time is this – get rid of Internet Explorer and use something like Firefox or Chrome.

And then I tell people that I use Chrome more than any other browser, and that Internet Explorer is probably the last browser I’d ever use.

And now Facebook is killing IE6 – how ironic…

Microsoft announced on Thursday that they will release a public beta version of IE9 (Internet Explorer 9) on September 15th but that the release will not be sent to Windows XP users, only Windows 7 and Windows Vista users will be eligible for IE9 beta.

Over 68% of Windows users are currently on the Windows XP OS.

So it looks like if you are even remotely interested in trying out Microsoft’s new IE9 web browser, then you better get yourself off of Windows XP and onto Vista or 7.

The problem, with Microsoft that is, is that the majority of Window’s fans enjoy Windows XP more than Vista and 7 – it’s just that Microsoft hasn’t been able to produce a product that people are willing to adopt on a large scale.

What are your thoughts?

via ComputerWorld

Facebook Errors: IE – HTTP 500 Internal server error

Several people are reporting the following error when trying to login in to Facebook:

Facebook Errors: IE – HTTP 500 Internal server error

The cause of the 500 Internal server error

This problem occurs because there is an error processing the ASP script, and the “Friendly HTTP error messages” are enabled in Internet Explorer, which suppresses the error details.

The Solution:

One solution to resolved the IE 500 Internal server error is to lower your Security settings in IE7 Tools>>Internet Options>>Security

A second solution is to clear the cache of your web browser.  This process is done different depending on what browser you are using (i.e. Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, etc…)

Finally, the initial 500 Internal server error is summarized.  You can get a more detailed analysis of the error by:

1. Open Internet Explorer
2. go to “Tools > Internet Options”
3. Go to “advanced” tab
4. Uncheck “show friendly error message”
5. Click “Ok”
6. reload page

Internet Explorer 9 Demo video uses Gmail

Wouldn’t you think that if Microsoft was going to do a presentation on Internet Explorer 9 they would use Microsoft products like Outlook, Excel, and IE in their demo video?

Apparently, Microsoft believes that Gmail presents the best platform to test out their new Internet Explorer 9 web browser.  They are trying to show the new IE9 capabilities with Java Script, and so uses Gmail as it’s testing platform.

Which is hilarious to me!  Doesn’t Microsoft have any of their own products to use?

Here’s the IE9 demo video using Gmail:

And yes, let me assure you that my first browser of choice is not Internet Explorer.  I would say that I use Firefox moreso for optimization and development purposes, and I use Chrome for pure browsing speed!

I probably, if stats could speak, use Chrome more than any other browser

Google’s European Public Policy Blog today announced that the European Union might soon be allowing over 100 million Internet users to chose their own browser.

Can you image being forced to use only Internet Explorer?  What a terrible world that must be!  The poor Europeans must be continually bogged down with viruses, crammed cache’s, and stalling browsers on a regular basis.

Here’s more from Google’s European Public Policy Blog:

“The European Commission today announced an important decision designed to inject more competition into the crucial market for Internet browsers. Under the Commission decision, more than 100 million Europeans will soon receive an opportunity to download a new browser. On both new and old computers that run Internet Explorer, a ballot screen will pop up on their computers displaying icons of the major browser makers and allowing them to choose among them with a simple click.”

Of course, Google is seriously going to start ramping up the education initiative to promote the lighting fast Google Chrome browser.  I personally believe that Chrome is, without a doubt, the fast browser available.  Especially if you’re a very predictable browser – meaning, you visit a narrow range of websites each day.

The cool thing about Chrome is that it will start cacheing these sites for you, and when you click to open them, it will be near instantaneous load time.

Stay tuned as I will definitely be tracking how the new browser war will unfold in the European Union.  Not sure who will win (probably Google), but I can definitely predict right now it WON’T be Internet Explorer!

Plus, Internet Explorer was the only web browser installed on this computer.  So after 45 minutes of fighting through the web getting stuck after nearly every click of the mouse (again because of the “slow” internet connection and because I’m using Internet Explorer), I just couldn’t take it any longer.

Google Chrome To The Rescue

So after wasting 45 minutes of my early morning hours on this slow computer, slow internet, and dealing with Internet Explorer, I installed Google Chrome (the browser).  In fact, I went so far as to install the newest Google Chrome browser which is still in beta.

Let me tell you what… after the Chrome browser installed I’ve been flying on the Internet!

Pages are loading super fast, nothing is being held up, and yes – I’m still working with a “Slow” wireless Internet connection.

What is Chrome’s secret?

Not that I’m too concerned, but I would love to know what Google Chrome’s secret is with their web browser.

I mean, how can Internet Explorer be so painfully slow, sluggish, and inefficient, and then when I install Google Chrome browser, it be so fast and efficient – even with a slow wireless Internet connection?

I don’t know what it is, but it is nothing less than amazing the different the Chrome browser has made on this computer.

It’s almost as if the Chrome browser doesn’t care what the Internet connection is, just so long as there IS a connection, it’s going to latch on and fly!

My Final Thoughts

1) The Holiday Inn Express here in Peducah, Kentucky needs to upgrade their Internet speed to something other than “barely connected” at their one and only computer in the lobby.  This is the computer that the customers are allowed to use, but it’s painfully slow and up until today, customers have been stuck with Internet Explorer.  And my guess is that every person (except me) has been frustrated and hasn’t accomplished anything they wanted to achieve on the Internet – and thus leaving a bad impression on The Holiday Inn Express.

2) If you haven’t already, you have to get away from Internet Explorer because if that’s the only web browser you’ve ever used, you have no idea what you’re missing.  And if you’re just wanting a super fast Internet browsing experiencing, the download Google Chrome immediately!  It doesn’t matter what Internet connection speed you have, all Chrome needs is a connection of any kind and it will fly!

WOW – I never realized how fast Google Chrome was until this experience!  So I guess I should ultimately say “thank you” to the Holiday Inn Express for this experience.

“An error occurred while registering your site”

This happened to one of our readers, and here’s how we resolved the Facebook Connect Playground error:

For this error to get resolved, you must clear the cache of your browser so that no pre-disposed form data is present. Depending on your browser (you can reply and let me know if you need help) will depend on exactly how you go about doing this.

I’ve written a “how to” for clearing cache on Firefox here >> .

Otherwise, for Internet Explorer go to “tools > internet options > click delete in browsing history > then select all check boxes”

For Safari go to “the circle settings icon in the upper right hand corner > click “reset Safari” > select all checked boxes”

For Chrome “click the wrench icon in the upper right hand corner > click on “clear browsing data” > clear all history

For all of the options above, you’ll probably have to re-login to everything, but this should clear out all the browsing cache.

And then go back and retry registering your site at Facebook Connect Playground >>

Ready to increase your Internet speed instantly by 50% and be blazing on the web?

Here is one easy tweak to both Firefox and Internet Explorer that will – and you tell me if it doesn’t – increase your Internet speed instantly!  When I made these changes in both Firefox and Internet Explorer, the speed increase was phenominal.

Here we go – Firefox first and then Internet Explorer:

Firefox tweak for increasing Internet speed:

Type “about:config” into the address bar (ignore warnings).  In the filter field, type “network” and scroll down to “network.http.pipelining” and set it to TRUE, and set “network.http.pipelining.maxrequests” from 4 to anything from 8 to 12.

I set mine to 10, and then restarted Firefox.  Immediately, I saw flash heavy pages like the new Yahoo homepage load with a snap!  Again, let me know if you DON’T find this tweak to dramatically increase your Firefox browsing speed.

Internet Explorer tweak for increasing Internet speed:

Although I recommend you switch to Firefox, I know a lot of people still use Internet Explorer.  So when I tested out this tweak on IE, I was simply amazed at the increased speed and efficiency of the Internet – and that’s saying a lot for Internet Explorer.

IE internet speed tweak:

Go to Start and type “regedit“.  In Regedit, navigate to “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows”

Right-click on Windows and create a new key called “Psched“, then right click on the right and create a new “DWORD” entry. Name it “NonBestEffortLimit” and set the value to zero (0)to disable reserve bandwidth.

Go ahead and close your registry editor and then restart Internet Explorer.

And that’s it.  Let me know in the comments section if you have any problems, if you don’t immediately see an increase in Internet speed, and / or if you have any other tweaks to increase internet speed in any of the browsers on the market (IE, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Opera, etc..)

Thanks to Ryan at MakeUseOf.com for the insight as well…

What’s ironic here is that this announcement, and sudden push to Firefox from Yahoo comes just after the marriage between Yahoo and Microsoft.

Here are some screen shots that TechCrunch put together:

I guess what really bothers me about this is how does Yahoo and Microsoft expect to really gain any traction by pulling beuracratic garbage like this.

Don’t they understand that the power of Firefox comes from the “open source” environment surrounding the browser?

So I’m assuming that this “push” to Firefox is somewhere in their contract.

What do you think about this?

Let me save you some trouble right from the beginning – you need to have Google Chrome 3.0 to take advantage of the new themes – so go here to get 3.0 first.

I know – 29 new themes for Google Chrome sounds awesome right?  It is.. but let’s not forget about Mozilla – they claim to have over 20,000 themes for their FireFox browser.

I think the next custom browser announcement should be coming from Microsoft for Internet Explorer.