Figures further illustrate Microsoft’s domination in the Internet browser and related software spaces. With Windows running on approximately 90% of personal computers, it’s easy to assume that any internet browser that is packaged with it will most likely have the unfair advantage in any war with competitors. Market share of IE has been quite substantial, with its peak reaching 96% in 2002. However, as new, alternative browsers have surfaced, Microsoft is slowly losing ground, which may be the main motivator behind the new version and its new features. IE now has about 86% market share while Firefox holds more than 11%. But with that kind of exclusivity, come the dangers of being number one. Hackers, scammers, and thieves will always go after the easiest prey first, and since Microsoft and its customer base are the obvious choice, flaws in their software will be the first to be exploited. Despite its reputation for lack of response and a legacy of being extremely slow in patching flaws, Microsoft has tried its best to be proactive in their security response. I commend them for their renewed focus mainly in the past few years with the roll-out of Service Pack 2 for Windows XP along with many patches to Internet Explorer, but they still have a lot more room for improvement in this area. Five years after Internet Explorer 6 was released, the next great version hopes to expand user’s trust in Microsoft’s security initiatives while trying to keep this aging product fresh and exciting for the average user.

Internet Explorer 7 to most will seem like a drastic change, but experienced Internet users will feel at home with it’s improvement in browsing efficiency. The most drastic and most useful addition is tabbed-browsing. In my opinion, this feature is a direct attack against its biggest competitor Mozilla, which first introduced tabs with its Firefox browser. The concept is exactly the same, and leads me to believe that Microsoft is either re-inventing the wheel or flat out stealing the idea. You can be the judge, but I do like the feature, and personally think it really helps reduce clutter while browsing multiple web sites and helps keep information more organized on your desktop. The integrated search box in the upper right corner is identical to Firefox’s implementation as well. But don’t think everything was stolen to make IE7. The browser now incorporates a great security tool in its phishing prevention system. The browser will anonymously send to Microsoft the web address of the page you are viewing and report back to you if the site is trying to rip you off. I give thumbs up to Microsoft for giving back some peace of mind to the consumer. Other nice additions include a great zoom in/out viewing option, enhanced page printing that finally gives you more control, and built-in RSS for keeping your bookmarks up to date. Overall the look and feel has been greatly overhauled, and it will take some time getting used to, but I do recommend users upgrade. Mozilla will be fighting back with its Version 2.0 of Firefox, which will incorporate many of IE7’s latest advances including phishing prevention. So as the browser wars rage on, the average computer user will be the beneficiary.