Microsoft today is launching Internet Explorer 9’s first public beta. The new release due to go live this afternoon has a major new interface design that cuts away most non-essential features: it gets rid of all but basic navigation buttons and puts the search bar, tabs and buttons on the same row. IE9’s goal is to put as much attention on the site as possible, Micrsosoft said.
MS is also focusing on accurate web rendering and will have built-in support for H L 5 features such as video as well as CSS3. A new JavaScript engine also renders pages much faster than in the past.
Microsoft is also taking advantage of some of the Windows 7 features. With IE 9 any browser tab can be pinned to the taskbar as though it were an Windows app. Machines with supported graphics hardware will also see Direct2D used to accelerate rendering certain web code. Some websites are even partnering with Microsoft to customize the interface and will change button colors as viewers reach sites like Amazon or CNN.
The beta will be available later this afternoon. Microsoft hasn’t given a release for the final version, but early 2011 sims likely.
