Microsoft may let Windows 7 users turn browser off

According to Chris Holmes, build 7048 of Windows 7 includes Internet Explorer as one of many Windows components that can be turned on or off via a Windows Features dialog box. In the public beta version, IE8 is not on that list.

(Credit: Chris123nt.com)

Microsoft has included in recent Windows 7 test versions an option to turn off the Internet Explorer 8 Web browser, according to testers who have used the recent builds.

According to Chris Holmes, build 7048 of Windows 7 includes Internet Explorer as one of many Windows components that can be turned on or off via a "Windows Features" dialog box. The control panel exists in the public beta version of Windows 7, but IE8 is not listed among the features that can be turned on and off.

Microsoft declined to comment on the feature's inclusion as well as the reasons behind the move. Others are speculating it might have something to do with the European Union's objection to the inclusion of a browser within Windows.

The software maker has cautioned that the EU may seek to have Microsoft allow PC buyers to choose their browser and then require Microsoft to disable certain IE code if a user chooses a non-Microsoft browser.

Enthusiast site AeroXperience has more detail on how IE can be toggled on and off and what exactly that might mean.

As we've already noted, Microsoft is making a number of changes to Windows 7 as it moves from the beta to "release candidate" stage. However, the IE change was not one that was called out in a recent Microsoft blog posting on the topic.

[getwired]

Um, this isn't news. Versions of Windows since XPSP2 have let you remove "read: hide" Internet Explorer and/or have another browser be the default, due to the Consent Decree. Surely this is no different.

[Mr. Dee]

The difference here is, build 7048 removes the browser system wide, not just the .exe file. The OS can actually function without the browser, thats the point being made here.

[DrtyDogg]

Mr. Dee: It actually just deletes the .exe file according to the link and "likely a remapping of where IE-related functions can be found for other elements in Windows so that Windows doesn?t complain about IE?s nonexistence."

[MosX]

Mr. Dee, the IE engine is still being used throughout the OS. This doesn't prove anything besides the fact that one of the executables that use the engine isn't there.

[CaribDigita]

Just because that little feature is there doesn't mean anything... Bill Gates told the Microsoft monopoly trial judge that users could un-install IE from Windows 98 too. Only he failed to inform the judge that you'll brick your computer if you do. Better just leave IE right where it is and seek an alternative all together.

[soluto]

Check out my CARTOON on this subject
http://www.pcdisorder.com/2009/03/windows-7-to-amputate-ie8.html

[sanenazok]

@soluto: I kinda don't get the cartoon...is it supposed to be that Netscape is prehistoric?

[Inconnux]

The big question is can you disable IE at a deep level. That's my biggest gripe wit IE is that it is tied so closely with the OS. Don't believe me? go to your windows explorer and type in a www address... This is what makes IE exploits so dangerous and why nobody should use it for security reasons. When alternative OS's bundle a browser it is never integrated with the OS at the same level that IE is. If IE wasn't integrated with the OS then it would be a perfectly fine browser.

[rapier1]

@lnconnux:

What you are asking MS to do is completely remove the HTML rendering engine from the OS. That will not happen in Windows any more than it will in OS X (and from what I understand KDE). In OS X you can just drag Safari into the trash *but* the underlying WebKit framework part of the OS in a pretty deep and fundamental way. While I think it would be interesting to have modular snap in rendering engines for the OS I don't see that happening anytime soon in any WM system.

[pentest]

Rapier,

You obviously have little understanding of computers.

KDE is not part of an OS. It sits on top of it.

As for OSX, I will bet dollars to donuts that it is in the window part, not the OS itself.

OS X and Linux do not depend of a web browser, Windows does.

[DrtyDogg]

Whether it is in the window manager or not is a moot argument. Without a window manager the OSes in question are no longer consumer OSes. And I would hope that anybody that can get use from a command line *nix OS would understand how to install Firefox et all.

[Mergatroid Mania]

Microsoft, if you do this you will be taking a big step toward earning my respect back.

Although IE is a perfectly fine browser, I have never agreed with its inclusion in the o/s to such a deep level. A rudimentary version ( such as wordpad is a rudimentary version of a word processor) would have been acceptable to allow people to find the browser of their choice and down-load it, but to build it right into the o/s was going too far imao.

Perhaps they should do the same thing with media player? (Although I do see a Media Features option in the window shown above).

[DrtyDogg]

There was a version of XP without Media Player.

[pithenumber]

@DrtyDogg
and it never sold

[tcr071]

I suppose Apple gets your respect despite including iTunes, iLife, and Safari in its operating system though.

I also suppose Linux based netbooks get your respect despite shipping with Firefox and google chat.

Fair is fair right? Or not... yeah actually not.

How about I boot up my MacBook Pro and have a screen in front of me asking which browser I want to use, which media player I want to use, which photo viewer I want to use, which movie maker I want to use, which chat application I want to use, etc etc etc.

The point of an OS is FEATURES. You would have Microsoft release an OS with both arms tied behind their back while it is perfectly fine for Apple to ship a machine TIED TO APPLE HARDWARE and loaded with proprietary hardware that won't run outside of THEIR environment. Apple is exponentially more anti-competitive than Microsoft is with their hardware/software tandem.

[Hunnter2k3]

@ tcr071
I sure don't care for Apple. Overpriced hardware, stupid decisions.
Macbook Air as a GREAT example, what a massive waste of time and money that was, get a real laptop, not a paperweight. (and even that is stretching a metaphor to the limits!)

OS makers could have a bare-bones browser, no menus, no settings, just a browser.
It opens a page from their website, so it can be kept up-to-date.
Names, homepage link, couple screenshots., direct download link.
Or they could just create a small program that wgets the most recent version.
I'd have more respect it this happened.
I hate preinstalled programs most of the time, they take up space, space i want.
Any time i get a new OS, i spend time deleting half of it, in most cases.

The main reason Microsoft are targeted in this is because they *deserve* it all.
They have made the web HELL for all us web developers for far too long now, they stagnated their browser for years.
Even worse is the fact that IE7, AND 8, is STILL far behind, and all they seem to be doing is going on about some anti-clickjacking and InPrivate mode that fails so badly...
Microsoft deserve every single lawsuit that has hit them in relation to Internet Explorer, every one of them, they get no Sympathy for me.
IE was just another one of their monopoly strategies, one of the more successful ones, sadly.

[topgunb2]

Where do you stop with including the propriety stuff, should ms stop shipping windows with explorer, cmd prompt and notepad too?

[tm_anon]

@tcr071

I've been running Ubuntu 8.10 for over 2 months. I've yet to find Google Chat anywhere on my system. Firefox is there. Of course, it can be completely removed from the system and another browser put in its place with no problems. In fact, I could replace my Windows Navigation, augment it, change it around, change its behavior or do whatever else I'd like with it.

Don't try and pull Linux into your comment without knowing exactly what you're talking about.

By the way, Apple is an OEM. The point of OS X is to sell hardware, not the other way around. The point of the slick interface on an iPod or iPhone is to sell the iPod or the iPhone, not to sell the software running on it.

MS wants to sell Windows. They couldn't care less what crap machine it's running on.

[actualtiger]

To disable WMP in XP

Start->Control Panel->Add or Remove Programs->Add/remove Windows Components, scroll down any you should see "Windows Media Player" as the penultimate item, between Update Root Certificates and Windows messenger, untick it, click Next and I think you'll find that WMP is gone.

[seven7dust]

@tcr071
Apple is a Hardware company , While MSFT is a software company !
How can you be so blind ?
I wonder wat you have to say about Dell including all
the semi-functional crapware that ships with it's systems !

[Rolker]

@seven7dust

The hardware Apple sells today is almost identical to Dell, HP, etc., which are hardware suppliers too. Apple chose to put on their machines OS X and not another OS. The difference is the OS that runs the machine, not the hardware.
And when you think about it, Apple is doing the same as Microsoft.
I think that as a PC user, I prefer my OS to have all these added futures. If I'm interested in something else (say, another browser), I can always download it and use it as my primary browser (Firefox). The same goes to Apple, it comes with Safari, but you can download others as well.
I just don't understand why it is so bad that the OS includes all these futures. Why should I have to download everything from scratch? And as I said, you always have the option to download more futures.

[seven7dust]

@Rolker
it's good for users to have everything bundled !
but since MSFT is a monopoly, it's bad in the long run !
by not making their browser {IE} compatible with certain web standards they r forcing web developers to use inferior standards set by MSFT
the web is free for everyone no company should own it
it's totally anti-competitive, Microsoft need to adhere to web standards or stop including their browser with their O.S !

but the rules r different for Apple since it's a hardware company
and most of the standards they use r open source and easily accessible
like eg-: Webkit and AAC etc unlike IE and Wma,Wmv

So Microsoft is illegally forcing it's standards on us
Windows users need to wake up and stop pretending like it's a good thing

[darthstupid]

This sounds very similar to the Policy Editor. I just hope the way they are building this that it won't adversely affect the system in strange ways. Too many programs assume too many things about a system (like the default browser is IE) that it could make a system act wonky.

[forever4now]

I hope this also implies that IE will never be "required" to access any Microsoft sites/services.

[pithenumber]

you'll still need IE for ActiveX sites

MS sites are currently ActiveX, but it seems they are shifting to Silverlight/Moonlight

[The_happy_switcher]

Let me guess, to turn it 'off' you have to press 'start' somewhere, right? lol

[alegr]

Win2008/Vista and Win7 don't have "Start" on the main menu button anymore. So what?

[Coonie1]

And for you to turn off YOUR computer, you have to click a fruit....

Get a life man....

[topgunb2]

With mac you have to plugin the power cable to charge it, without it it won't run longer (or for desktop not run at all)

[ncalishome]

Do you ever get tired of reading your own comments?

[ferretboy88]

Click the Apple when the beach ball keeps on spinning and nothing happens.

[Seaspray0]

Applerocks. The original pig with lipstick.

[russkeller]

Umm... If Windows explorer is basically using the same engine are you really removing anything other than shortcuts? Meh.

[pithenumber]

you remove IE, you still have Trident

two different things, so you are removing IE, not just the shortcuts

[alegr]

pithenumber,

Same thing with Webkit and Safari in OSX.

[random truth]

@alegr
The problem is you can delete webkit/safari in mac osx. You drag the executable to the trash. And click empty trash. If it is the only internet browser on your computer it will give you a warning. On a mac all the libraries, etc are contained in the application itself. You can also delete quicktime too. However you will lose almost all media playing ability on the mac.

[DrtyDogg]

You can delete Safari, not webkit. Webkit is deeply embeded into the OS, just like Trident in Windows, and Webkit with the Gnome desktop.

Quicktime is just as emedded. It's got it's own folder under your library directory, plus half a dozen more.

[seven7dust]

@alegr
there's a big difference between webkit and trident
webkit can be used by all everyone
while trident is MSFT proprietary Technology !
this obviously makes a big difference

[DrtyDogg]

First yes trident can be used by everyone. There is a SDK for it, you can even re-brand IE and distribute it if you want. Second: MS makes the software they can make it how they choose. Second: the fact that one is proprietary and one is open source doesn't make any difference, none what so ever.

[Seaspray0]

I agree with DrtyDogg on this one. sevendust, you're living in a glass house throwing stones. If other OS's are imbedding a web engine into the OS, then microsoft has every right to do so as well (by default, others have declared that the engine is part of their OS). If apple sells osx with safari and linux comes with firefox, then microsoft has every right to sell windows with ie. Also, there is one important fact you've overlooked. The OEM has the right to install any browser on windows for any computer they sell. It's not microsoft's responsibility to provide you a browser choice, it's the OEM's who are deciding what browser you get. So take your future complaints to dell, toshiba, sony, etc. etc. etc.

[TacticalMedic]

Luckily we are still able to download and install FF. I happen to think that IE8 is a resource hog, garnering up towards 50% of my cpu cycles.

[CrashPad63]

830d Pentium here and Im seeing at times spikes to 30 with IE8. Youve got something else running maybe in the background.

[Seaspray0]

I won't complain one bit if they offer a switch to turn it off. I can make thousands of settings and control all the other services already... one more control setting isn't going to hurt and it'll make people happy. A dos control would be nice to, like net stop ibrowser.

But do you think the EU will accept that? Naaa... then they wouldn't be able to extort more money from MS.

[Tbdsamman]

Then you must not Firefox, it's just as bad and even worse in some conditions.
I got a new laptop a few weeks ago and first thing was to install Firefox, and before even installing any plugins, it likes to randomly hang when viewing anything.
At least IE doesn't have massive memory leaks.

[OFC_Rocco]

Hum, though I personally use Fire Fox as my primary browser, IE 8 has it's uses.
So, general browsing, FF, Specific sites, IE, general goofing, Opera, Safari did not fit the bill. Chrome widely missed the mark.
To remove IE from windows is an easy task, but not advisable.

[t8]

Hi this is Google We are sad to hear that Chrome missed the mark. Please reply with why and we will do whatever you say to win you as a customer. You are important.

Thank you.

[CrazyChicken132]

I disagree on Chrome missing it's mark, the browser is damn near rock solid, the only time it goes haywire is with flash (there's a memory leak somewhere here) and even with that said it doesn't take the whole browser down with it, which is more than i can say for most browsers. Since 5 days after it came out it has become my default browser.

There are tons of other reason's why I use it though, expandable text boxes, moving tabs in and out to other windows or their own windows. Just to name a few

[OFC_Rocco]

I just did not like the interface or the functionality of Chrome in it's earlier stages, so i just uninstalled it and continued on...

[DaveMcLain]

I think it's a neat idea to have a place where you can easily toggle off features that you don't need in your particular computer application. What I'm thinking of is music recording/audio production. It's nice to turn off everything that's not needed just to conserve as many resources as possible. This sort of thing should be easy and if Microsoft could make it that way it would be a great new addition.

[Seaspray0]

If you're running business class versions of windows... start > run > services.msc

The microsoft management console which comes with business class windows and better gives you just what you are asking for. The console has dozens of plugin's giving you total control of everything. There's thousands of settings you can make, all controlled by a simple to use GUI.

[Jimmy_Estrada]

Thank You!

[towncar_Al]

Come on Europe know the change and removal issues in Vista. IE8 RC1 is a great browser with Microsoft offering hidden quantifications for certain banking credit cards and gift cards; you need MSN Internet Explorer8 with your Windows 7 operating system.

[seven7dust]

this is why bundling IE should be made illegal
just because I don't use IE
I don't deserve to use some banks website ?
thats the stupidest rule I've ever heard
and since yr supporting it it makes you worse !

[rapier1]

Bring it up with your bank. They're the ones requiring you to use IE.

[Seaspray0]

take it up with the bank. They are in charge of their website, not microsoft.

[t8]

Wow that would be great. No IE. Might consider Windows 7 if this is true. Tying IE into Windows made both Windows insecure, and IE slow. But the real question is "is turning it off going to improve either"?

[CrashPad63]

t8 you are such an ass.

[Seaspray0]

T8: for you, it will make it 5 times as fast. But you'll never know that since you don't use windows and only come here to shill.

[t8]

Sorry you are wrong about that. I use XP and buy my machines second hand (3 years old) from work. If I bought a new PC with VIsta it would be slower.

[t8]

If you can truly no enable IE, then IE is not part of the OS but and application and that means it is illegally bundled. We all knew it was anyway.

[ducttape36]

this is a "whole new" OS (arguably). being able to operate without IE has no bearing on previous OSes.

[centurydata]

Good Bye Microsuck! No more nonsense from you!

I'm running Ubuntu Intrepid on an HP Pavilion laptop w/ 2gb ram, 256 nVidia graphics, 7200 rpm hdd, and more! Ubuntu is totally free, running OpenOffice 3.01, and it's all totally free. What's more, I'm running a GUI interfaced Avast Antivirus, and an excellent firewall by Firestarter!

What's more: I am a heavy user: I push, and push, and push my laptop - and guess what, it doesn't crash, lock up or fail - the worst thing is that if I push too hard and open too many windows the browser firefox crashes but that's it!!!!

Good bye Microsuck - no more blue screens of death, no more gosh darn rebooting every other three hours, no more frozen screens, locked printers, etc!!

No more 299 dollar upgrades, entering stupid 25 digit key codes, etc!

[gp2792]

Who cares? Your ms experiences are from windows 95 and are irrelevant; just like your entire post!

[proxyadmin]

seriously, with that sort of specs for a laptop, you are no where near a heavy user. so stop thinking so big of yourself.
real linux users don't need client side antivirus or firewalls.

oh wait.. you are just the average noob.

[sharmajunior]

Heavy user with 2GB of RAM.....HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

I have a desktop that has 64 GB of FB DDR2 DIMM RAM. Thats a desktop I am talking about. So what would you call that?


LOL...BTW I design and test imaging applications.

[centurydata]

Good Bye Microsuck! No more nonsense from you!

I'm running Ubuntu Intrepid on an HP Pavilion laptop w/ 2gb ram, 256 nVidia graphics, 7200 rpm hdd, and more! Ubuntu is totally free, running OpenOffice 3.01, and it's all totally free. What's more, I'm running a GUI interfaced Avast Antivirus, and an excellent firewall by Firestarter!

What's more: I am a heavy user: I push, and push, and push my laptop - and guess what, it doesn't crash, lock up or fail - the worst thing is that if I push too hard and open too many windows the browser firefox crashes but that's it!!!!

Good bye Microsuck - no more blue screens of death, no more gosh darn rebooting every other three hours, no more frozen screens, locked printers, etc!!

No more 299 dollar upgrades, entering stupid 25 digit key codes, etc!

[xcal78]

Troll much?

[Seaspray0]

Wow. Because of you, linux use jumped from 0.9% to.... 0.9%. Congratulations! BTW, after reading your post, I've come to the conclusion you should write for romance novels. It just reeks with the dramatics.

[actualtiger]

What about all the non MS applications that invoke IE rather than the default browser for menu items like "Help->Check for Newer Version", "Help->Support Forums", etc. Most, maybe all of these product links have absolutely NO reliance on IE, their sites work fine with other browsers. The only reasons these programs invoke IE are that the publishers have lazy programmers and use pathetic QA processes.

If the core IE engine is removed major bits of Windows won't work, e.g. the Help subsystem and Document Explorer. I also suspect that software such as WordWeb, Babylon and others that use the IE core to deliver their respective "mini browser" features wont work either.

[DrtyDogg]

There are plenty more programs that would break if they completely removed IE from windows. Most programs that show any sort of HTML. Roxio, Steam, . . . those are the only two big ones I can think of off of the top of my head that I know are written using IE's supplied APIs but there are many more.

[bajanx]

This is stupid, the EU is stupid, and all you agreeing with the EU is stupid. Every OS i have ever used come with a browser packed in. There is nothing in any OS stopping you from using whatever browser you want to use. I currently have a PC running Vista 64. I use both IE8 RC and Firefox. Firefox works fine on my Win OS pc. Who give a rats @$$. New topic please. STUPID!!

[seven7dust]

actually your stupid
MS has gotten way with too much
anti-competitive proprietary standards and they need to stop
making rules for others
because the Web is free nobody should own it

[gp2792]

@seven nobody owns it now! That's being proven each month that FF gains market share.

[wxcc2004]

You got it. We have loads of psuedo-techno junkies making a big whoop about nothing. One way to tell a pc junkie is that they judge "work" by how many times a mouse is clicked. Microsoft has standardized things for the betterment of computer users everywhere on the face of the planet. Most spoiled internet/pc junkies don't remember the time when every microcomputer (home computer) had software make for it by the company that manufactored the it. If Microsoft wasn't a commercial success, software purchasers would have dozens of program versions to look through. Imagine not an apple or pc choice, but a apple, HP, Lenovo, Gateway, IBM, Toshiba, Sony, E-Machines, and every other brand having only software make for its own brand.

The web is not "free", either. Neither does anyone "own it" as a not knowing poster said. This is phony "debate" filled with bored people.

[jerrymacGP]

Of course Mac OS X ships with Safari. Most users would be horrified if their shiny new computer didn't even have a web browser. The big difference between Apple & Micro$oft on this matter is that while Mac users can trash Safari in favour of any other browser (and in fact our Mac originally came with IE 5 for Mac pre-installed along with Safari), without adversely affecting the operation of the computer, Windows 98 users who deleted IE found their computers stopped working. Has that changed under XP or Vista? I don't know, we moved away from the "dark side" four years ago and have never looked back. But that was the core of the monopolistic charges against M$. It's not that Windows shipped with a browser; it's that the user was forced to keep it.

[seven7dust]

Actually Since Apple is a hardware Company they can do watever they want, Include n e software they choose
because they choose wat software runs on the system
but Ms can't since MS only sell software and they also happen to be a monopoly

[rapier1]

The user wasn't forced to keep it as much as they were forced to keep the underlying rendering engine. You have the same thing in OS X though. If you delete safari the webkit rendering engine is still on your system. If you want to see how a Mac works with out it go to System/Library/Frameworks and delete WebKit.framework. For grins you may want to delete the JavaScriptCore.framework as well. Report back and let us know!

[DrtyDogg]

Sevendust you are starting to sound like penguinisto. How does it make any difference what a company makes most of it's money from. Remember Microsoft is also a hardware company(Xbox, Zune, Mice, Keyboards), they just make most of their money from software. Your argument is a big fail.

[seven7dust]

@DrtyDogg
It makes a difference cause Apple sell the computers to the customer
while Ms Don't
another ex-: Dell can choose watever Software they want installed on their systems because they sell this system directly to the customer !

[DrtyDogg]

Still makes no difference, at all. Microsoft sells the software with the features they want. Take it or leave it. You have options.

[Seaspray0]

I'm not buying the "apple is a hardware company with different rules" bit. Safari, itunes, quicktime, osx, isuite.. just how "hardware" do you call that? Plain and simple.. apple is also a software company, and just like microsoft, they make an operating system (osx) and sell it to an OEM (the hardware part of apple).

[sharmajunior]

@ seven7dust

Apple is not just a hardware company. If it were a harware company then what is OSX?

It makes both harware and compatible software and chooses not to let anyone else install its OS on their machines in the fear that it might crash. This exactly is the behavior exhibited by MS machines. MS doesn't make the drivers, third parties do. If a computer crashes its not MS's fault and here is where this comes. Yes, they are a software company. MS has to cater to those long lines of customers in enterprises and corporations who have life cycles and who have to maintain backwards compatibility. Unlike Apple who can just start fresh on the next OS. But most of the enterprise users who first adopted the use of IE now have to use it because of various ACtivex Controls, apps and other protocols that run through or with the help of IE (which is deeply embedded).

About the bundling process, yes I do believe that there should be an option to take out IE. But a better option would be to let the OS ask you whether or not you want to keep the current browser bundled with the OS or would you like to go online with this browser temporarily and download a different one of your choice. Right now it sounds like all of the companies are crying to get their products to gain market share (which they are anyways). If they wanted to raise this issue, they should have done so years ago when IE was picking up and gaining ground due to not much competition around.

About Apple being a hardware company again, they can choose to put what ever they want but then why do Dell, HP and other OEM's choose MS software over Apple's. Its because Apple keeps denying them license to load their OSX on OEM machines. That's why the OEM's have resorted to using either MS software and now also offering Linux as an alternative. So like you said, Apple has every right to put their OS on their hardware but since Dell doesn't make any OS's they can put what ever they want on their machines and in this case it was Windows and customers get what ever comes with it. With Apple they get Safari, iTunes etc. With Windows its IE, WMP etc. and then AGAIN i agree that there should be a process that lets you remove IE off your system. THen again, over half the world that uses a computer would never bother to uninstall the previous browser. This can be seen with OSX users, Windows users, Linux users. What I am saying is that whatever comes with their system, they don't uninstall it because they either don't know how to or they are just lazy and what ends up happening is that for their benefit they download an alternative like Firefox or Chrome etc. I have seen this on numerous machines. I have seen OSX users with Safari, firefox, Opera etc. THey don't care to uninstall the previous one, but they would rather get another one.

[seven7dust]

@everyone
ok long arguments ! so I cant answer everything
But it's really simple Apple sell hardware and Microsoft don't sell n e thing directly to the customers, thats what I was trying to say !
the software they sell needs a Dell/Hp computer to run !
and this obviously makes a difference !

the argument is not whether Apple makes software or not
it's that MS is not directly involved with the customers
yet they seem to be making all the rules while the hardware makers r just puppets playing to their masters call !
the Intel Vista compatible case is a good example
MS have a 90+% marketshare so n e software they include will prevent competition and they also keep making rules for everyone else !
Should the web be left in the hands on a single company ?
I think not !

[TX_Biker]

I will not buy any version of Windows 7 with IE8 tied into it. I have tried to check out the IE8 beta several times and it does not ******* correctly while it continully tied up add-on programing.
MS had better start listening to us about the many problems with VISTA and IE8 before we all go out and buy a MAC!

[Mark_Anderson]

OK you do that.

In the meantime the rest of use will just download Firefox instead.

[robert1275]

That is correct. Microsoft has input this method as a stepping stone to turn off IE 8 to appease the E.U. It is not known if this step is enough or if the E.U. will require stronger or different methodologies to disable the browser.

[sharmajunior]

Yes I agree.

If the EU doesn't like it, they can go and get new computers with a different OS which would cost them millions.


Oh...WAit....maybe this way they can create more jobs....LOL