I was really @ a bit of a loss as to where to put this but, some ppl will see it here so, better than naught. Just a way to take a look @ some stuff that's part(s) of IE9. Might be of interest to you. I've been running IE9 on a SP1 W7 vm for quite a while. This note is being done whilst I'm on said machine. http://ie.microsoft.com/testdrive/ And here is a Feature Overview http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/internet-explorer/products/ie-9/features Cheers, Drew Computer Issues always welcomes new clients. Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

I have an observation to share that falls w/in this (thread) Heading: W/ IE8 occasionally IE8 will hit (Not Responding) & a Message Window that basically says IE has hit a problem & will shut down & a CLOSE button; the browser then goes away & does not return. The End User has to reopen it. I have noticed that upon the same scenario w/ IE9 upon clicking CLOSE, the browser windows does NOT go away; instead a tab labelled CONTINUE w/ a Windows logo appears & anon that tab turns into the site one had (that hit a problem)... it reloads itself. Needless to say, I like this Feature. There are a few others I like...just ask me. Which are your favs? Regards, Drew CI for IT! Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

I have an observation to share that falls w/in this (thread) Heading: W/ IE8 occasionally IE8 will hit (Not Responding) & a Message Window that basically says IE has hit a problem & will shut down & a CLOSE button; the browser then goes away & does not return. The End User has to reopen it. I have noticed that upon the same scenario w/ IE9 upon clicking CLOSE, the browser windows does NOT go away; instead a tab labelled CONTINUE w/ a Windows logo appears & anon that tab turns into the site one had (that hit a problem)... it reloads itself. Needless to say, I like this Feature. "Tear Off" & Address Bar Search are funky things, too. There are a few others I like...just ask me. Which are your favs? Regards, Drew CI for IT! Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

The "Tear Off" feature of IE9 can be used rather handily, sometimes. The Address/Search (combo) Bar is quite ok, too. Putting/keeping sites or groups of sites (in a tabbed browser) on the Taskbar aides in oganization & lessens 'fussing about' reopening things. Speed & stability of W7, SP1 & IE9 all seem very good. Cheers, Drew CI for ITDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Some other features worthy of examination are: Hitting the ALT key to bring up the Menu Bar, to select from the bookmarks contained in Favorites is one way make a selection. A review of these Favorites will invariably show a multitude of entries. These can often be split into two groupings - those used infrequently, and those used much more often. A suggestion: copy those frequently accessed sites into a new folder and then copy that folder into the Favorites Bar. This has the advantage of giving a drop down list of those entries for easy selection and has the benefit of offering the option of "opening in tabs" which means that all entries within that folder can be opened simultaneously. Extra folders can also be added if this concept accords with your new way of using IE9. Regards, Pat This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights. | Please remember to click "Mark as Answer" on the post that helps you, and to click "Unmark as Answer" if a marked post does not actually answer your question. This can be beneficial to other community members reading the thread.

Pat, You make a good point about Alt... a quick, easy way to get the Menu Bar there only if & when it is wanted; although, IE8 has this same ability. And, remember Favorites can always be acccessed by hitting the STAR @ the top-right corner of the IE9 window.; different location from left side in IE8. Putting common interest sites into a folder in Favorites is smart but, again, not new to IE9. Also, there is a simpler, easier, way to accomplish this... > Open Favories list > Hit the scroll arrow beside Add to Favorites > Click on Organize Favories > In the window hit New Folder button > Name the (created) folder Now when you ADD (a site) to Favorites you can see all such (available) folders & put the site into whatever appropriate folder you want to use/choose. Cheers, Drew CI for IT Written in IE9, W7 SP1 vm Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Here's a couple of neat bits (no pun intended): Did you know... >> IE9 has tested to be 6x faster than IE8 (even on my 1Gig vm it is AT LEAST as fast as IE8 on the 4Gig Host machine) >> IE9 tests as the safest browser, too; check this out, http://www.geektown.ca/ >> When tab browsing the tabs can be moved laterally, changing the order, left to right, to whatever order you want; same as how icons can & could be arranged on the Taskbar? Cheers, Drew CI for IT Written in IE9, W7 SP1 vm Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Did you know... >> When tab browsing the tabs can be moved laterally, changing the order, left to right, to whatever order you want Yes, I really like being able to drag and rearrange Tabs, just like you could with IE7 and IE8. But IE9's transparency makes them kind of hard to see against my dark desktop background. I think I prefer their pastel colors in IE7 and IE8 as far as visibility goes. (The IE8 sky-blue Tab against power-blue Command-bar wasn't great either). Did I miss a setting? Or, do you have any recommendations for this?

Did you know... >> When tab browsing the tabs can be moved laterally, changing the order, left to right, to whatever order you want Yes, I really like being able to drag and rearrange Tabs, just like I could with IE7 and IE8. But IE9's transparency makes them kind of hard to see against my dark desktop background. I think I prefer their pastel colors in IE7 and IE8 as far as visibility goes. (The IE8 sky-blue Tab against power-blue Command-bar wasn't great either). Did I miss a setting? Or, do you have any recommendations for this?

This is quite ironic humour... earlier in this 'thread' someone mentioned a couple of things to me that I pointed out were not new to IE9. Silly & surprising but, I never knew Tabs could be moved about til I read about it in IE9 Features stated as something new & peculiar to IE9, LOL. Anyway, as for having 'colours' or a way that you see them better, I can't find or see a way to affect the Tabs specifically. You change various parts of the browser window w/ Options in terms of Themes & colours BUT, there is this about Tabs in IE9 Color-coded tabs Color-coded tabs make it easy to stay organized Having lots of tabs open at once can be overwhelming and time-consuming, especially when you try to go back and find websites you’ve opened. With Internet Explorer 9, tabs that are related are color coded, making it easier to stay organized while browsing multiple webpages. At a glance you’re able to see which tabs go together. When you open a new tab from another tab, the new one is placed next to the first tab and is color-coded to match. And when a tab is closed that’s part of a group, another tab from that group is displayed so you’re not left looking at an unrelated page. If you want to close a tab or the whole tab group, or remove a tab from a group, right-click the tab or tab group and choose what you want to do. From there you can also refresh one or all tabs, make a duplicate tab, open a new tab, reopen the last tab closed, or see a list of all recently closed tabs and reopen any or all of them. Cheers, Drew CI for ITDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Here’s how I made Pinning (sites to Taskbar) work in a valuable way for me. My Windows Live ID was originally based on a Hotmail.com address. Earlier this year I switched my personal E-mail address to Hotmail.ca. Fine but, as a Microsoft Partner & in regard to all my IT things (Connect, WWE, webcasts, in-person MS courses or other meetings, Windows 7 IT Pro Category Forum) the Windows Live ID was & continued to use the .com address. To stop having to be signing in & out for accessing sites of various sorts Pinning in IE9 provided a solution not available w/ IE8. (Refer back to “pinning of common-interest groups”) I can put all the IT/MS tech site together (tabbed browsing) signed in w/ my .com Windows Live ID, pin this & it stands as such. Then, w/ no conflict & no need to switch ID used to sign in, all other sites can be use & pinned if wanted keep completely separate from the MS partner ID sites. This concept, in principle, can be used/applied universally. IE9 is bloody brilliant. Consider this… I am running x86 IE9 on a 1 Gig W7 SP1 vm. IE9 there is @ least as fast & snappy as the x64 IE8 browser on the W7 x64 Host machine! Image the performance if it was actually on the 4Gig Host. Regards, Drew Computer Issues for your IT Solutions (Written on a W7 SP1 vm w/ IE9) Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Forgive me for repeating myself but... As we get ever so much closer to the release of a non-Beta IE9 I must say how strongly I see @ least 1 reason to be excited about IE9. Regardless of any other (cool) features & functionality, its speed is what seems so blatantly noticable. Sure I have looked @ comparative reports & charts pointing to its speed & suggesting it is better than other browsers awell & good. However, I have been running IE9 Beta on a 32-bit Windows 7 virtual machine w/ 1Gig of RAM for several months. I, also, have Windows 7 physical machines, both 32-bit and 64-bit, in the same box; these physical machines are running IE8. My deductions tend to be logic driven by my observations. Ergo, when I see IE9 (Beta) being as fast & snappy, if not even moreso, compared to IE8, even the 64-bit IE8 on the 64-bit OS w/ 4Gigs of RAM... it clearly suggests reason to look forward to IE9 for how quick it will be! And, from the onset, I have noticed the graphics are terrific... this, too, deserves all that has been said about this aspect (of IE9) and is another part that will be even more striking to see in a physical environment. (Hardware-accelerated rendering) Oh and here is 1 way I have found to make use of 'Ripping' sites out of a (tabbed) browser... this cannot be done w/ IE8. In 8, sure you can open another browser window & use Snap. But, let's say from your tabbed browser you come upon something w/ a site that prompts you to want to do some research or searching... so you open (another Tab) Bing, "Rip" it and look @ the results AND whatever related site you already had going, w/out tabbing back & forth and w/out having to open up another browser window. Certainly there are other times when it is handy & useful. Just one more thing IE9 has that IE8 doesn't. Point is, this & other things, like pinning sites, as I described in the previous entry on Dec. 18th, the value of how stuff in IE9 can be manifested is not necessarily obvious @ 1st. After a wee bit of time playing around in an IE9/Windows 7 combo the abilities one can discover & impliment become pretty darn funky. There is, in my opinion, lots to find enjoyable & worthwhile. Not long now and worth the wait. Cheers, Drew (Written on a W7 SP1 vm w/ IE9) CI for IT Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

IE9 RC is out: 9.00.8080.16413 (WIN7_IE9_RC.110204-2115) The installer is now online based, because the download is smaller. You can now set the tabs under the address bar."A programmer is just a tool which converts caffeine into code" CLIP- Stellvertreter http://www.winvistaside.de/

February 10, 2011 8:20 AM PST IE9 RC debuts with 'do not track' http://download.cnet.com/8301-2007_4-20031279-12.html?part=msn-cnet&subj=ns&tag=feedDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Official download: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/internet-explorer/products/ie-9/home?WT.mc_id=MSCOM_HP_US_F_113LMUS004274."192 GB ought to be enough for anybody." (from the miniseries "Next Generation's Jokes")

I have just gone from IE9 Beta to IE9 RC which, was released today, 10/2/11. You can get it, also, by going to http://www.beautyoftheweb.com/ ENJOY!! Cheers, DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

I must say it is very cool to see the IE9 Build Team, via Connect, did listen & take heed to criticisms & requests. 1 example, that many ppl will be glad to see, is the arrows missing from the Favorites List single sites are now there! YEA!! Regards,Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

I hate to ask, becuse some of these items may label me as "old school", but is it possible to set up IE9 to work as follows: a) One session per window (no tabs)? b) With minimal "chrome" up top (e.g., with menus but no favorites bar)? c) As with IE8 so that sites other than in the "Trusted Sites" zone can be prevented from running active anything? Also, how does IE9 handle color management? Does it manage element colors as well as those in images for proper display per monitor calibration? One day soon I really need to try this thing out for myself in a VM. Thanks for posting the info! -Noel

Noel, Thanks for your questions. I will try to reply as best I can, @ the moment: a) One session per window (no tabs)? Tab ability will be there but, just open a (new) browser window for or w/ only the 1 site you want. Keep hitting the big blue 'E'... 1 (new) browser window for 1 website. Reminds me of clients I have had that thought they could only have 1 window/website open @ a time... just teasing, no offence meant. b) With minimal "chrome" up top (e.g., with menus but no favorites bar)? Yes. Right click on the wee 'gear' (top right) & select/enable whatever you want or don't want. c) As with IE8 so that sites other than in the "Trusted Sites" zone can be prevented from running active anything? I'm not sure how much thins comes into play considering the degree of Security Features in IE9, both on the surface & under the covers BUT, provisions w/in Internet Options still remain & settings there can still be tweaked by the End User in this regard. As for "colour management", honestly, I'm not quite sute what you are asking nor therefore what to say... However, I will say due to hardware-accelerated rendering the graphics w/ IE9 are simply amazing! Certainly try it on a VM or even on a physical, production machine. I ran the Beta for months on a VM & that now has the RC on it. But, I will, w/ no hesitation or reservations put IE9 RC on my W7 x86 machine. One cannot fully appreciate the graphical aspects of IE9 on a VM. I plan to leave my x64 W7 w/ IE8, for now, since the RC of IE9 is 32-bit only. Regarding my posting info, you're welcome, glad it is appreciated. I trust the above answers are ok for you. This is interesting, too; compares IE9 (Features) to other browsers, including IE7 & 8 http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/internet-explorer/products/ie-9/compare-browsers Regards, Drew CI for ITDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

I have just gone from IE9 Beta to IE9 RC which, was released today, 10/2/11. You can get it, also, by going to http://www.beautyoftheweb.com ENJOY!! Cheers, Drew PS: By the way, this is not for the old XP operating system. It is for Vista & Windows 7Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Ok, 1st I went from IE9 Beta to IE9 RC on a vm. Now I have gone from IE8 to IE9 RC on my physical 32-bit Windows 7 machine... WOW! And to think I was impressed w/ IE9 on the vm. WOW is it ever FAST & the display, colours, brightness, sharpness, definition is really very noticable (better) & terrific! Kind of anxious to have it on my 64-bit Windows 7 someday in the near future. Any hype attached to IE9 is not undeserved or overstated, in my opinion. Cheers, DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Thanks. You pushed me over the edge to try it on one of my Windows 7 VMs... I'm happy that I no longer have to look at a favorites tab or a bunch of tool icons I never use. I'm happy that it seems faster. I'm happy that I can still have a menu bar. Call me old fashioned. Disabling Tabs gives me the one window per session look and feel I want. I'm able to disable virtually everything except from Trusted Sites. Some observations: I don't like having the search box and address bar all in one. Why aren't Window titles showing up in the title bar? Maybe there are things that can be set to restore the functionality of these things, I don't know. I'm probably missing a number of obvious things. -Noel

Cool, Noel... no surprise you are finding a majority of appealing things. If you do not care for the Address/Search in one, here is a suggestion. Keep Bing as an available site... if you don't want the Favorites Bar, do it this way... 1. Pin Bing to the Taskbar OR 2. Assign Bing to the Favorites Bar, then uncheck Favorites Bar BUT, enable "Links" @ the bottom right of the Taskbar... Links will be whatever is assigned to the Favorites Bar, whether the FB is set to show or not. You can, also, use "Rip" & "Snap" to keep a Search window separated. And not to seen clueless but, tell me what "Title Bar" or where you want what "Windows Titles". Sure I know to what you speak just the term, not sure what you are wanting; please explain. Poke around, read the info pages {http://www.beautyoftheweb.com} & give yourself a wee bit of time mucking about & discovering... you will find lots of things, obvious & otherwise. Thanks. DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

The top border of any window in the Windows system is called the Title bar. Here are two screen grabs showing IE8 and IE9 on the same site (www.microsoft.com). See the difference? For a person who likes to keep multiple mostly overlapping windows open, and who uses the title bars to spot which one to bring to the front, the fact that this is missing is a big deal. Sure, I can pick them from the Taskbar, where the page title is indeed displayed. But that's not the point. It's not like that space has been saved! So why not at least offer the option to display the page title and app name up there? A poor choice by Microsoft. It's called a Title Bar for a reason! And while we're at it, what about the nice stuff that used to be in the status bar? Do they think people don't actually look at this stuff? You can disable the status bar entirely if you don't like it, so why turn off the stuff we like to see there? -Noel

Hi Noel, I agree with your complaint on the status bar. Sometimes you want to see what a certain webpage is doing (loading that... running that...), and there's so much space to show it, currently wasted. Other wishes like a progress bar or the return of some status infos ("Protected mode on") are not so important to me. Something similar with the title bar. I don't miss the information there but it could be offered as an option. Why not? "192 GB ought to be enough for anybody." (from the miniseries "Next Generation's Jokes")

Another little observation: To post the previous reply here, I had to turn off "tracking protection" for this site, and to post in the Answers forum, I had to disable "ActiveX filtering". Let's hope that those tiny anomalies are only temporary, or IE surfing will transform into a science."192 GB ought to be enough for anybody." (from the miniseries "Next Generation's Jokes")

Let me tackle the "Status Bar" 1st. This has been a huge bone of contention in Connect... many ppl whinging to the IE Build Team over the lack of a Status Bar or a Progress Bar. The 'space' is there, or can be, @ the bottom of the browser window but, when it is enabled there is nothing there except a "zoom Level" changer. Anyway, they seem to want to leave this out of the browser, no matter how strongly countless ppl gripped. Whether they will ultimately offer something along these lines in the final illiteration of the browser we really are not sure but, from what they have said so far I wouldn't hold my breath. We did get them to put the arrows back on the individual Favorites websites... they are (back) in the RC whilst, they were missing in the Beta. Now, as for the row of items you showed me w/ the differing screen shots (thank you very much, by the way, for those shots) go to the GEAR icon I mentioned @ the top-right corner, beside the Favorites Star... Rt Click on the GEAR & select Command Bar. Cheers, Drew Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

No no, I don't want the Command Bar. That's why it's missing from my IE9 capture. It is WONDERFUL that they've made it possible to eliminate said bar in IE9 now. -Noel

Ooops, sorry, my error; BUT, now I do see to what you refer. Yes, that is no more & I know of no way to get it (back). I can only suggest the lack of it is in keeping w/ the effort & goal to deliver a 'cleaner' browser w/ less unnecessary clutter. Certainly some things felt to be disposable, some ppl will not want to lose. Personally, I feel w/ operating systems, browsers & many things in interfaces 2 things come into play: 1. Accepting/adjusting to change 2. The fact that it is impossible to please all ppl all the time. Things are subjective, ppl have opinions, pet peeves, 1 person likes 1 thing, the next doesn't care about that but, values something else. Myself, for example, obviously, I hadn't even noticed the title bar lacking... what doesn't bother em (one person) may concern another (you). And, in my opinion, I find the positives in IE9 far overshadow any negatives anyone may feel there are. Anyway, I'll shuddup now Cheers, Drew Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Well, I still think the Tabs are too transparent. Compared to the pastel ones in previous IE editions, these disappear into my very dark monochromatic desktop. Unlike Noel, I have set IE to open anything and everything into new Tabs. Even popups. Especially obnoxious popups. Noel, you should give it a try. The next time you're getting instructions from the msdn library, you'll find you have maybe 30 Tabs open at a time. I don't know how to do it any other way. For sure, I wouldn't want to suffer 30 open windows. Old school? You bet. :) The Search Provider list still doesn't dropdown from the Nav Bar when AutoComplete is disabled. Hmmmph. I refuse to enable AutoComplete. Old school. You bet. :) Making a desktop URL link: Dragging the icon from the Nav Bar onto the desktop unexpectedly opens a new window. And deletes it from the existing Tab bar. Yow. Even when you right-click-drag it and use its menu. This has gotta be a bug. I'll be patient. Did you notice the Nav Bar sometimes stays illuminated, and other times doesn't? Slowly mouse over it, then away, and watch. Try the glyphs too. I can't find any predictable rule to it. But I'd like to do that to my Tabs. :) btw. You can pull the entire download instead of using the online loader. Visit http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/internet-explorer/downloads/ie-9/worldwide-languages, select your choice, then right-click the Download button. Copy that link to the clipboard, then edit it (in notepad, or in your nav bar, wherever). The url following the href= is the full file. http://download.micr.....enu.exe The 64-bit download apparently contains both 32+64 bit. It's 37 MB, compared to the 32-bit download which is a mere 19 MB.

Well, I still think the Tabs are too transparent. Compared to the pastel ones in previous IE editions, these disappear into my very dark monochromatic desktop. Unlike Noel, I have set IE to open anything and everything into new Tabs. Even popups. Especially obnoxious popups. Noel, you should give it a try. The next time you're getting instructions from the msdn library, you'll find you have maybe 30 Tabs open at a time. I don't know how to do it any other way. For sure, I wouldn't want to suffer 30 open windows. Old school? You bet. :) The Search Provider list still doesn't dropdown from the Nav Bar when AutoComplete is disabled. Hmmmph. I refuse to enable AutoComplete. Old school. You bet. :) Making a desktop URL link: Dragging the icon from the Nav Bar onto the desktop unexpectedly opens a new window. And deletes it from the existing Tab bar. Yow. Even when you right-click-drag it and use its menu. Holy mackerel. I just dragged a 32-bit About:Blank icon to the desktop, and it opened a 64-bit window! This has got to be a bug. I'll be patient. Did you notice the Nav Bar sometimes stays illuminated, and other times doesn't? Slowly mouse over it, then away, and watch. Try the glyphs too. I can't find any predictable rule to it. But I'd like to do that to my Tabs. :) Oh. Some of those F12 Developer Tools settings don't persist across reboots. I sure hope that gets reconsidered. btw. You can get the entire RC download instead of using the online loader. Visit http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/internet-explorer/downloads/ie-9/worldwide-languages, select your choice, then right-click the Download button. Copy that link to the clipboard, then edit it (in notepad, or in your nav bar, wherever). The url following the href= is the full file. http://download.micr.....enu.exe The 64-bit download apparently contains both 32+64 bit. It's 37 MB, compared to the 32-bit download which is a mere 19 MB.

Well, I still think the Tabs are too transparent. Compared to the pastel ones in previous IE editions, these disappear into my very dark monochromatic desktop. Unlike Noel, I have set IE to open anything and everything into new Tabs. Even popups. Especially obnoxious popups. Noel, you should give it a try. The next time you're getting instructions from the msdn library, you'll find you have maybe 30 Tabs open at a time. I don't know how to do it any other way. For sure, I wouldn't want to suffer 30 open windows. Old school? You bet. :) The Search Provider list still doesn't dropdown from the Nav Bar when AutoComplete is disabled. Hmmmph. I refuse to enable AutoComplete. Old school. You bet. :) Making a desktop URL link: Dragging the icon from the Nav Bar onto the desktop unexpectedly opens a new window. And deletes it from the existing Tab bar. Yow. Even when you right-click-drag it and use its menu. Holy mackerel. I just dragged a 32-bit About:Blank icon to the desktop, and it opened a 64-bit window! This has got to be a bug. I'll be patient. Did you notice the Nav Bar sometimes stays illuminated, and other times doesn't? Slowly mouse over it, then away, and watch. Try the glyphs too. I can't find any predictable rule to it. But I'd like to do that to my Tabs. :) Oh. Some of those F12 Developer Tools settings don't persist across reboots. I sure hope that gets reconsidered. btw. You can pull the entire RC download instead of using the online loader. Visit http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/internet-explorer/downloads/ie-9/worldwide-languages, select your choice, then right-click the Download button. Copy that link to the clipboard, then edit it (in notepad, or in your nav bar, wherever). The url following the href= is the full file. http://download.micr.....enu.exe The 64-bit download apparently contains both 32+64 bit. It's 37 MB, compared to the 32-bit download which is a mere 19 MB.

Well, I still think the Tabs are too transparent. Compared to the pastel ones in previous IE editions, these disappear into my very dark monochromatic desktop. Unlike Noel, I have set IE to open anything and everything into new Tabs. Even popups. Especially obnoxious popups. Noel, you should give it a try. The next time you're getting instructions from the msdn library, you'll find you have maybe 30 Tabs open at a time. I don't know how to do it any other way. For sure, I wouldn't want to suffer 30 open windows. Old school? You bet. :) The Search Provider list still doesn't dropdown from the Nav Bar when AutoComplete is disabled. Hmmmph. I refuse to enable AutoComplete. Old school. You bet. :) Making a desktop URL link: Dragging the icon from the Nav Bar onto the desktop unexpectedly opens a new window. And deletes it from the existing Tab bar. Yow. Even when you right-click-drag it and use its menu. This has gotta be a bug. I'll be patient. Did you notice the Nav Bar sometimes stays illuminated, and other times doesn't? Slowly mouse over it, then away, and watch. Try the glyphs too. I can't find any predictable rule to it. But I'd like to do that to my Tabs. :) Oh. Some of those F12 Developer Tools settings don't persist across reboots. I sure hope that gets reconsidered. btw. You can pull the entire download instead of using the online loader. Visit http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/internet-explorer/downloads/ie-9/worldwide-languages, select your choice, then right-click the Download button. Copy that link to the clipboard, then edit it (in notepad, or in your nav bar, wherever). The url following the href= is the full file. http://download.micr.....enu.exe The 64-bit download apparently contains both 32+64 bit. It's 37 MB, compared to the 32-bit download which is a mere 19 MB.

btw. You can get the entire RC download instead of using the online loader. Visit http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/internet-explorer/downloads/ie-9/worldwide-languages , select your choice, then right-click the Download button . Copy that link to the clipboard, then edit it (in notepad, or in your nav bar, wherever). The url following the href= is the full file. http://download.micr.....enu.exe The 64-bit download apparently contains both 32+64 bit. It's 37 MB, compared to the 32-bit download which is a mere 19 MB. I noticed this yesterday, too. This allows me to use /X to extract the Installer and get the CAB files for slipstreaming the IE9 into a Windows Image."A programmer is just a tool which converts caffeine into code" CLIP- Stellvertreter http://www.winvistaside.de/

This will be worth persuing when I get back to the office. I have been sorry & frustrated about having to wait to put IE9 on my W7 x64...lovong it on my W7 x86 but, the install I have would not do the 32/64 needed for the X64 OS. Previously, reckoned I'd be waiting til the Final version was released to have it on my 64-bit Win7. Appreciate the info. Thanks, DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Hey. The Tab List button that formerly existed in IE8, to the left of the Tabs, it has been removed. Didn't that cripple it. Wouldn't it be good if buttons could be customized onto the Command Bar for Find on this page and Reopen last browsing session. How about the Privacy Report that was formerly on the Status Bar? Doesn't anybody use these? At least, if the UI frame is going to be neutered in the spirit of site-centric elegance, wouldn't it be good if these unsightly options were delegated to the omnipresent Gear Button? Right click on the wee 'gear' (top right) & select/enable whatever you want or don't want. Just what functionality does that Gear expose at this point? If you want to get at those things, you still need to reveal the Menu Bar and fumble through View and Tools to find anything. It's like digging through a junk drawer. Of course, some of that clutter could go in the Gear menu. Wouldn't it be versatile if the Gear Button dropdown list could be customized by the user? Oh well. I concede. It would be impractical to fit the green Progress Bar in there. Tab List button is gone. Hmmmph.

Hey. The Tab List button that formerly existed in IE8, to the left of the Tabs, it has been removed. Didn't that cripple it. Wouldn't it be good if buttons could be customized onto the Command Bar for Find on this page and Reopen last browsing session. How about the Privacy Report that was formerly on the Status Bar? Wouldn't that fit on the Command Bar, which extends the entire width of the screen? Doesn't anybody use these? At least, if the UI frame is going to be neutered in the spirit of site-centric elegance, wouldn't it be good if these unsightly options were delegated to the omnipresent Gear Button? Right click on the wee 'gear' (top right) & select/enable whatever you want or don't want. Just what functionality does that Gear expose at this point? If you want to get at those things, you still need to reveal the Menu Bar and fumble through View and Tools to find anything. It's like digging through a junk drawer. No. A whole file cabinet with unmarked drawers, plural. That's more like it. Of course, some of that clutter could go in the Gear menu. Wouldn't it be versatile if the Gear Button dropdown list could be customized by the user? Oh well. I concede. It would be impractical to fit the green Progress Bar in there. Is this the RC? Tab List button is gone. Hmmmph.

I wise man once said, "Make everything as simple as possible, but no simpler." Microsoft should heed this. Make the UI rich and consistent, not sparse and useless. -Noel

I am happy to say, thanks to the link/site mentioned by 'derosnec', that I now have IE9 on my W7 64-bit (physical) machine, as well as on my W7 32-bit machine. Needless to say, I prefer using the x64 & was a bit frustrated thinking I had to wait (a while) to have it on there cus the 'beautyoftheweb' site only had or offered the x86 version. Now, people in the 'thread' are giving opinions which, is super and I am going to be bold enough to give mine... I ran IE9 Beta since 1st available and reported, along w/ others, to the IE9 Build Team via Microsoft Connect. Things (there) were being criticised, discussed, analyzed, requested and praised. Some things liked, some things, not so much; some things felt to be missing or thin some people wanted added or changed. With many things, what one person likes, another does not. But, there was an effort to make this new generation of browser (IE9) fast, secure, clean, uncluttered and user friendly. So here is the (my) opinion part. After working w/ it for quite a while, picking @ it, 'dissecting' it, finding fault w/ it, comparing it, extensively reading reports and outside testing, I will say or suggest this... There is a tendency to look for or find negatives in (new) things whilst missing the positives. The immense good in IE9, both superficial & under-the-covers far overshadows any subjective details. What IE9 does, can do & how well it manages & accomplishes things is admirable. Safe browsing, speed, some funky Features, its strength regarding Java, the graphics due to hardware-accelerated rendering, et al ( and there is lots more ) all contribute to make this probably the finest browser available. I feel the 'big picture' is what is important and if one approaches IE9 in that light it is hard not to appreciate its virtues & quality and to, maybe, come to like & respect it. Certainly, "each to their own", "can't please everyone" and "old dogs/new tricks "but, for me & likely, now or in time, many others, see IE9, overall, as a fine piece of work. I emphasize the above is an opinion not, an argument. Regards, Drew Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

I have to say overall I give it a 9 out of 10, and I think it's a great improvement over IE8. I'm still testing its color management capabilities, and I'm sure workarounds to my nits will present themselves sooner or later to take it the rest of the way to a perfect 10. Maybe I'll even write one. :) Any idea when the release of IE9 is supposed to occur? As a rule I'm willing to run beta software for testing in VMs, but I'd prefer not to upgrade my main desktop until the actual release build is available. -Noel

A good opportunity for an IE launch would be the MIX conference for web developers, April 12-14th (http://www.microsoft.com/events/mix/). "There’s no better place to hear about the future of Silverlight, Internet Explorer, Windows Phone, ASP.NET, and technologies like HTML5 and CSS3." "192 GB ought to be enough for anybody." (from the miniseries "Next Generation's Jokes")

A good opportunity for an IE launch would be the MIX conference for web developers, April 12-14th (http://www.microsoft.com/events/mix/)."192 GB ought to be enough for anybody." (from the miniseries "Next Generation's Jokes")

Noel, 1st, I fully agree about Betas on or NOT on production machines. When it was Beta IE9 I only put it on a vm. I am, however, content to have the RC on a physical machine. 2nd, I have not been able to get an exact release date for what I'll call a GA. But, it will be Q1 of 2011 or very soon. Now that the RC has been offered, the 'GA' will not be far behind. The suggestion by 'sanmartin' may well have some merit; I have previously suggested a personal thought that SP1 & IE9 would not be far apart timewise. I have some contacts w/in Microsoft from whom I am still trying to pin down THE date. If & when I do come up w/ something specific, I'll make it known. 3rd, yes, it's a great improvement over IE8 & in that same light I'll, again, offer this... This is interesting, too; compares IE9 (Features) to other browsers, including IE7 & 8 http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/internet-explorer/products/ie-9/compare-browsers I wish I could, aslo, insert some of the independant speed test/comparision test results I've seen; they, dramatically, show IE9 well ahead of the rest. Cheers, Drew Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Previously I mentioned about the speed of IE9 Beta on a 1Gig x86 VM vs IE8 on a 64-bit 4Gig physical machine. Here is a little 'story' you may find interesting. In the city I use Shaw Extreme & a 64-bit 4Gig machine running Windows 7 w/ IE9... things are fast. I work @ a stable outside the city on weekends. Nothing like cable is available there rather the internet is a wireless signal from a tower in the vicinity. When I took my laptop out there I expected things to be somewhat slow compared to in town and they were. However, this laptop, running Vista w/ 1Gig of RAM, initially had IE 8... upon using it @ the same location, out @ the stable, BUT, now w/ IE 9, I really don't do much 'waiting' (for things) anymore; the increase in speed due to having IE9 instead is that much better & that noticable. Quite impressive IE 9 is! Cheers, DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

is loading of XML files slow for you or fast? IE9 Beta rendert a white screen, IE9 RC displays the XML, but with 100% CPU usage and the IE9 freezes."A programmer is just a tool which converts caffeine into code" CLIP- Stellvertreter http://www.winvistaside.de/

Andre, Honestly, thusfar, I have not found anything that slows or impedes the functionality or performance w/ IE9; certainly nothing has made it freeze or driven CPU usage up high.Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

get a larger XML file 2-4MB and open it with IE9 and IE8. IE8 is thousand times faster."A programmer is just a tool which converts caffeine into code" CLIP- Stellvertreter http://www.winvistaside.de/

Duely noted.Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Just felt like saying... the more I use IE9, the longer I am w/ it, the more my enthusiasm & respect for it grows. Regardless of how others may feel I find myself really enjoying how it works & what it can do & how well. Very fast, stable and the abilities when in consort w/ Win7 are very cool and becoming increasingly handy, appealing & appreciated as time passes. 1 thing proving to be useful & getting used quite a lot is the "Tear Off" function. Since the RC I have left IE8 taillights & dust. There is 1 thing about it I believe to be ridiculous... having the same Right Click menu attached to the GEAR AND the STAR. It being w/ the GEAR is fine & makes sense. Having it redundantly w/ the (Favorites) STAR makes NO sense...having it there & having it BOTH places is just plain silly, in my humble opinion. I voiced the same to the IE Build Team via Connect who responded by saying "It's by design"; well the design is flawed & I responded by saying, "Just cus it's "by design" doesn't make it right or my point any less valid". Personally, I have no qualms or hesitation or reservations about heartily recommending IE9 to anyone, clients or otherwise. And this includes recommending it over other browsers. Happy Clicking, Drew CI for IT Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

have you tried loading a larger XML file?"A programmer is just a tool which converts caffeine into code" CLIP- Stellvertreter http://www.winvistaside.de/

I believe you referenced this, pointed it out, already, earlier in this thread, if I recall correctly. But, good, in case anyone had missed it, previously. Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Did I mention I am REALLY keen on IE9?; very impressed. I have been enthusiastically turning people on to it. That's it :) Cheers, Drew CI for ITDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

I have high hopes for IE9 changing the web color-management landscape. I think it will have been the last straw... Up to now the strategy, knowing IE 8 and earlier ignore color profiles in images, has been to prepare web images using the sRGB profile, then either publish them with an embedded sRGB profile tag (or perhaps even with no profile), since these things will give the most consistent results across the most browsers. Now (once IE9 is released), one wonders whether publishing web images in the Adobe RGB color space might be the better approach moving forward, rather than producing sRGB or even untagged images. Adobe RGB will feed most modern wide gamut monitors all the colors they can show accurately, and at the same time it doesn't make quantization problems (seen as posterization in smooth areas) too much more noticeable. Again I say BRAVO! to Microsoft for finally getting on the color-management bus in their browser! -Noel

Uh, ok Noel. That was a bit over my head. But maybe you can help me with something a little more basic. Like viewing black & white text on the Answers site with IE9 Documents Mode. Here's my recent post, complete with screenshots and closeups. b&w text. Any thoughts?

this is the new DirectWrite/Direct2D rendering. I hate it, too."A programmer is just a tool which converts caffeine into code" Want to install RSAT on Windows 7 Sp1? Check my HowTo: http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=150221

Derosnec, the magnified examples you showed appear to portray the difference between ClearType and some other form of font smoothing. I don't see what you're seeing on IE9... They're definitely different, but from where I sit the font is if anything actually easier to read on the answers.microsoft.com site in IE9 than in IE8. Have you tried tuning cleartype? Click Start and type in cleartype, then when Adjust ClearType Text comes up, click it. Caveat: I'm viewing IE9 in a VMware virtual machine. The video driver is pretty sophisticated, but I wouldn't bet it's providing the same services a real driver would. I will update my main workstation only when IE9 actually releases. I'm looking forward to that. -Noel

Noel, I think you got a little carried away with your closeup. And actually, the small left-hand IE9 text of yours does look non-uniform and inferior. But it's hard to tell from that small sample. And it doesn't really demonstrate the particular letters I discussed, where the issue is quite obvious. The non-uniformity is primarily noticable on vertical sections of letters. Most of the letters you've shown are curved or stand at angles. In my example (from the other post), the top group is IE8. The bottom group is IE9. As I stated there, for IE9 on the bottom row: the letters b i n u they're all too skinny, yet that capital I is fat. The problem substantially goes away when I force it into IE8 Browser and Document Mode via F12 developers tools. This is happening on two systems of mine, and they are entirely different in their video cards, screens, and resolutions. This screenshot was captured from Joeu's post, directly above mine there. You should easily be able to find it. If you'd like to show the equivalent example, I'd be grateful. I'd like to see how your video looks. Thanks, I think.

Noel, I think you got a little carried away with your closeup. And actually, the small left-hand IE9 text of yours does look non-uniform and inferior. But it's hard to tell from that small sample. And it doesn't really demonstrate the particular letters I discussed, where the issue is quite obvious. The non-uniformity is primarily noticable on vertical sections of letters. Most of the letters you've shown are curved or stand at angles. In my example (from the other post), the top group is IE8. The bottom group is IE9. As I stated there, for IE9 on the bottom row: the letters b i n u they're all too skinny, yet that capital I is fat. The problem substantially goes away when I force it into IE8 Browser and Document Mode via F12 developers tools. This is happening on two systems of mine, and they are entirely different in their video cards, screens, and resolutions. That screenshot was captured from Joeu's post, directly above mine there. You should easily be able to find it. If you'd like to show an equivalent example, I'd be grateful. I'd like to see how your video looks. Thanks, I think.

I have to agree, there's definitely a difference. However, with particular ClearType settings I'd say the two aren't too far off in readability. By the way, I have 100 ppi monitors; the pixel density of the display may make a difference. On fooling with ClearType I noticed that the IE9 algorithms seem much more sensitive to ClearType settings changes. I was able to make the Answers forum text look pretty horrible by choosing some extreme ClearType settings. Normally such changes don't affect readability nearly as much. It's almost as if with IE9 there's no attempt to place each letter on an even pixel boundary. Was there a need to reinvent font handling for some reason? -Noel

Here's a comparison that more closely models yours: Depending on what you like, the IE9 RC text may actually have a very slight edge in readability, though the color effects seem a little too strong. I call it pretty much a wash at 100% original size. -Noel

Here's a comparison that more closely models yours: Again, I'd say the IE9 RC text has a very slight edge for readability, though the color effects seem a little too strong. -Noel

Thanks. That more closely approaches the point I was making with my snapshot above. Had you saved it as a .png (instead of the .jpg format you apparently used), the added precision would have made our screenshots practically identical. For me, that non-uniformity is very troublesome. Especially with the small fonts used in these forums. It is as though someone cut letters arbitrarily from various newspapers and magazines, and pasted them all onto the same page. I wonder why the Answers site is so much more affected by it? ...and since you mention it. I really don't need IE9 exaggerating the chromatic aberration effect. (click the pic) :P

There are no significant JPEG artifacts in my image. And our two images differ quite a bit in that your IE9 version has virtually no coloring. Actually, I perceive the IE9 font as being more consistently spaced, if anything. Note the way the 'd' and 'i' seem too close together in the word "edit" in IE8, where they're more evenly spaced in IE9. I suspect the IE8 rendition places each character in a way that's aligned with the pixels, where the IE9 method seems to be plotting them in a fashion where there is no particular pixel alignment per character. There are clearly differences between different 'e' characters, for example. Perhaps we're seeing the difference between optimizing for CPU and GPU operations. Regarding the additional coloration... It's possible I haven't quite got the ClearType tuning just right yet, but I'm with you - I dislike CA / color fringing. I'll fool with that some. -Noel

Just FYI: Official release date announced. "On Monday March 14th we will celebrate the developers and designers who are making a more beautiful web for all of us. We will release the final version of Internet Explorer 9 for download beginning at 9 p.m. Pacific." (http://windowsteamblog.com/ie/b/ie/archive/2011/03/09/a-more-beautiful-web-launches-on-march-14th.aspx)"192 GB ought to be enough for anybody." (from the miniseries "Next Generation's Jokes")

And so the countdown begins... Guess we all knew, following the RC, it would not be long. Still nice to, actually, have an actual date. Thanks, sanmartin for the info. Cheers, DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

It seems I may have sung the praises of IE9 a bit too soon, re Color Management. It interprets the color profile in published images, but it completely ignores the profile of the monitor and assumes it's sRGB! I didn't discover this before, because I run an sRGB reference system, and actually use the sRGB profile for my monitors. http://blog.harald-muehlhoff.de/post/2011/02/12/Microsoft-Internet-Explorer-9-Release-Candidate-still-doesnt-properly-support-color-management.aspx Even Windows Photo Viewer knows how to do this right. Why would the IE9 team ignore this important aspect of color-management? Is it because they didn't want to tackle color management of the elements within the web pages as well as the images? -Noel

T minus 8 hrs... The final version of Internet Explorer 9 will be available beginning 9PM PT on March 14th. T minus 2 hrs... Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

T minus 8 hrs... The final version of Internet Explorer 9 will be available beginning 9PM PT on March 14th. T minus 1 Hour Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

T minus 8 hrs... The final version of Internet Explorer 9 will be available beginning 9PM PT on March 14th.Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Well, it's installed and looking good. It wanted to shut down a bunch of stuff or reboot , so I chose the latter. No problems whatsoever on my Windows 7 x64 system. -Noel

Well, every single issue I had concern for remains uncorrected. For example, mouse over and away from the nav bar, and sometimes it stays illuminated, sometimes it doesn't. Is there purpose in this I haven't discovered? Or is it the kind of amateurish lack of detail consciousness we get from www freeware. I hate having to wonder that. The search-provider dropdown doesn't work when auto-complete is disabled. Making a shortcut onto the desktop by dragging the nav bar icon causes that page to be ripped from the current browser window. Yikes and grrrrr. The tab-list button is permanently gone. The green progress bar is gone. The tabs are too transparent to read against a dark monochrome background. The font rendering in the Answers site seems somewhat improved. Or maybe I'm just having a clear-vision moment. But it's definitely still not as good as IE8. An easy experiment to see this: Open this page, and then duplicate the tab. In this duplicated 2nd tab, open F12 developer tools. Change both the Browser Mode and Document Mode to IE8 and wait a moment for the page to refresh. Now scroll each tab's page down to the very bottom. Finally, toggle back-and-forth between tabs and compare. What do you see? On my test systems, I guess I'll keep IE9, just to stay up to date. But for my real systems, I'm sticking with IE8. I'm sure you guys will gurgle nothing but accolades here. Whatever. btw. I had a miserable time re-editing this post, as has been characteristic of IE9 beta and RC. You know, the raw html thing.

Editing has always been hit or miss here, even with IE8. I agree there are some rough edges, but it's a .0 release. I don't like that the page title is gone utterly when tabs are turned off, and color-management is only half implemented. Microsoft acknowledged these things when I submitted my feedback, but the development and test pipeline is long. Regarding the changes in the way it works, well, clearly Marketing people have been involved, and they've changed the UI. You either roll with the waves or you go down to meet the coral reef. Hey, "other" browsers have steadily been taking market share away from IE. What did you expect them to do? -Noel

Editing has always been hit or miss here, even with IE8. I agree there are some rough edges, but it's a .0 release. I don't like that the page title is gone utterly when tabs are turned off, and color-management is only half implemented. Microsoft acknowledged these things when I submitted my feedback, but the development and test pipeline is long. Regarding the changes in the way it works, well, clearly Marketing people have been involved, and they've changed the UI. You either roll with the waves or you go down to meet the coral reef. Hey, "other" browsers have steadily been taking market share away from IE. What did you expect them to do? -Noel

I don't have any problem re-editing posts with IE8. With IE9, if I refresh the page first, and carefully wait for the green progress bar to come to completion, then it works fine. Reply to that. Bean-counters did not cause the nav bar illumination issue, or the other things I mentioned. That's just unfinished. And disrespectful. Why make excuses for it? We just got some new bling at the cost of basic functionality. And that's practically a tradition. edit - OMG. Look at this page and tell me I'm not hallucinating. So next, I switched to IE8 mode and it is b&w. I just had to make sure. Jeeeeez. "Coral Reef". Yeh Noel. That's the main color splotch I'm seeing there. Coral. There's also some green. Blue too. But mainly coral. Like you say.

I don't have any problem re-editing posts with IE8. With IE9, if I refresh the page first, and carefully wait for the green progress bar to come to completion, then it works fine. Reply to that. Bean-counters did not cause the nav bar illumination issue, or the other things I mentioned. That's just unfinished. And disrespectful. Why make excuses for it? We just got some new bling at the cost of basic functionality. And that's practically a tradition. edit - OMG. Look at this page and tell me I'm not hallucinating. So next, I switched to IE8 mode and it is b&w. I just had to make sure. Jeeeeez. "Coral Reef". Yeh Noel. That's the main color splotch I'm seeing there. Coral. There's also some green. Blue too. But mainly coral. Like you say.

Well, I started this thread or opened this can of worms, depending on how 1 cares to see it so, I will say something. But, 1st, I'll insert the following excerpt from my MSDN newsletter & written by its Editor... Since the initial unveiling of IE9, the team has released a total of eight Platform Previews, a Beta, and a Release Candidate. This release cadence reflected the team’s commitment to providing you with early access and to incorporate your feedback during development. The end result is a browser that’s fast, clean, trusted and interoperable. What’s amazing about IE9 is the work that’s been done around performance. The IE team has done an incredible job ensuring that your sites run super-fast. This is achieved through full hardware acceleration of graphics (like SVG and HTML5 canvas) and text. There’s also a new JavaScript engine in IE9 that interprets, compiles, and executes code in parallel and takes advantage of multiple CPU cores, when available. By leveraging the power of the whole PC, IE9 enables you to build a new class of web experiences that feel like native applications. IE9 provides rich, interoperable capabilities for web developers. With broad support for site-ready HTML5, CSS3, SVG, WOFF, ECMAScript 5, geo-location, and more, IE9 ensures that web developers can build applications with the same mark-up that works across browsers. And when things don’t work exactly as planned, we have an updated set of powerful developer tools to provide you with the information you need to trace a problem to its source. Now, on w/ my comments, feelings, observations & opinions...all subjective & personal: I am impressed w/ IE9. I like its Features & functionality, speed, cleanliness, graphic handling, safety & security and the amount of personal choices available i.e. what can be seen or enabled or not. Maybe what I do & or expect is different than others; maybe my positive view to IE9 is the exception (to the majority) but, somehow I doubt that. Maybe it's the particular way I have things set up, colours I use or whatever but, I find no problem seeing things. Sometimes editing these threads has been 'sticky', even when was IE8. Frankly, I'm really not missing or caring about the lack of a status or progress bar. I do, still, think it absolutely silly & senseless that the same Rt-Click menu is attached to BOTH the (Favorites) Star & the Gear. As for this statement, "But it's definitely still not as good as IE8.", there is no way I can agree w/ it. Hands down 9 is faster, cleaner, safer & more secure and offering better performance that IE8. This brings me, nicely, to my next point... 1st, there oft seems to be a real tendency to arbitarily bash new products from Microsoft but, w/out dwelling on that, mostly it stikes me as another 'old dogs-new tricks' thing, again. I recall when XP arrived people clining to 98 or other prior OSs cus they were better or they liked them better (w/out trying the new) or they were used to them or stuff didn't run on XP; new versions of Office come & people bash 'Ribbon Technology'; I heard the same sort of things when other new IEs came along and in regard to Windows 7 (in spite of XP Mode, too). I could cite many examples of this phenomenon, over the years, w/ people vs. evolving technologies. Certainly, there are & will be differences in old & new things yet, in spite of that, there IS improvement in the new compared to the old. I've said it before & I'll repeated it... "Get over/past it and get used/adapt to it", whatever the old & new IT its are. Myself, I, of course, used IE8 (which was better than 7 & 6, etc). I have tested IE9, from the onset, learned it & come to make it work for me such that my daily computing experience is even nicer, more pleasant & relaxed, efficient & 'User Friendly' than it ever was. Finally, aside from my individual take on things, on many levels & for many reasons, this browser, IE9, is an outstanding item from Microsoft and, at least currently, the best browser available. Thanks, Drew CI for ITDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

I switched to IE8 mode and it is b&w. I just had to make sure. Jeeeeez. If that's the case, your ClearType is not working properly in IE8 mode. That's how ClearType works, by mixing opposing colors at the microscopic level in the LCD. You know you can tune that, right? Just select one of the rightmost blocks in screen 3 of the ClearType Text Tuner. That said, the ClearType colors seem a bit strong in IE9 as compared to its predecessor. Personally, I'm tickled to finally be able to rid the browser window of the extra chrome I never liked anyway. IE9 has taken steps in the right direction. -Noel

(click the pic) Noel, I just tried to reply to your post, twice, and this broken-editor appeared. No buttons, see? I had to exit and come back. People have been reporting this since IE9-Beta. Regarding cleartype, that page is definitely b&w in IE8 mode. I have never had cause to tinker with any ClearType settings ever. Not with IE8 or IE7, or Win7 or Vista. If you're seeing colors splotched on all your IE8 and IE7 text screens, then I think you've adjusted your settings out-of-whack. I'll be glad to upload a b&w IE8 shot, if you want to debate it. It's ridiculous. Those color splotches don't belong there. @Drew: Please don't be so defensive. I said the font rendering on the Answers site wasn't as good as IE8. Did you look at this page to see? In general, I really like IE9. But these things I mentioned are major disappointments for me. If they're not for you too, then I think you're not really using it to browse. If you're not saving url links for those programs and documents you download, then you're simply missing out. It's a great way to document where you got them from. Save those links in the same folder for later reference. Just drag-n-drop them from nav-bar icon. Easy in IE8 and IE7. Miserable with IE9. If you don't mind that sometimes your nav bar is illuminated, sometimes it's not, well, you're not looking at it. You must not care to know the actual urls. And you probably wouldn't mind other video anomolies in IE9 either... ahem. Coming back to this page, the Answers site is often running v-e-r-y s-l-o-w. Try browsing around there while signed-out, you'll see. Then you will wish you had that green progress bar. Without that visual clue, it's hard to tell what the heck is going on with the delays. So, make excuses if you think that somehow promotes IE9 and Microsoft. What do I care? But don't say I'm bashing, or unwilling to try something new. I was just as excited as you. But now that it's here, I'm not going to lie to myself. Don't worry though. I'll delete these posts soon enough anyway. Except that first one way above. I can't. It's locked-in because that other account of mine got banned yesteday. You see I've deleted all the others I posted here during these past few months. I'll get around to deleting these I posted today. I don't want to spoil your IE9 sales-pitch with my criticisms.

I have never had cause to tinker with any ClearType settings ever. Not with IE8 or IE7, or Win7 or Vista. If you're seeing colors splotched on all your text screens, then I think you've adjusted your settings out-of-whack. You think wrong. You've either somehow deconfigured the colors, your GDI setup is broken, or you just never noticed the colors in other apps. You might even have a display driver bug. And before you accuse me of having something out of whack, let us not forget who's complaining and who says their display looks good. On my displays, the colors are not splotched all over. The text looks fine at 100% original size, nice and smooth and fully formed. Normally the colors are SUPPOSED to be there microscopically. You're not seeing them in some of your screen grabs because of something unique about YOUR system! Go look up how ClearType works if you don't believe me. IE9 seems to have turned the color up a little, as compared to other apps. But not a whole lot. The text in IE9 looks very nice if you have your system set up properly. It might even be an improvement from where I sit. Listen carefully: If you're seeing colors you don't like, you NEED to run the ClearType Tuner. Click Start, and type ClearType in the box to get started. -Noel

Noel, I have an easier solution. IE8. And if you see color splotches in that IE9 TechNet screenshot above your post, then your video is whacked-out. It's b&w to me. Compare that to the Answers site shot earlier. No Noel. My ClearType settings are not somehow only discriminating against the Answers site, only in IE9 mode. That's ridiculous. And if you recall, Noel, I was not complaining of this color splotching with IE9-Beta or IE9-RC. It was you who originally mentioned the color fringing with IE9. I agreed IE9 seemed to exaggerate the chromatic aberration effect. But edge fringing is not splotching. This is new with RTM. And the other two forum editor issues I mentioned, there are plenty of reports about that since IE9-Beta. But go ahead and gurgle up praise and worship. I'm done with this thread. You can have the last say. Bye.

As so often in the past derosnec, your attitude distorts the appearance of other peoples views & motivations & misses their points & cleverly attempts to kill the value & validity of what they are saying & expressing. Your words, often, though, obviously chosen carefully border on being rude, nasty & insulting... and is likely why much of your stuff gets removed & why there have been efforts in the past to ban you from this Forum. I do far more w/ a browser & browsing than what you are suggesting in an effort to diminish the merit of my comments. I allowed for subjectivity & various people's perspectives, configurations & usage. Nothing from me is or was a sales pitch for MS, nor have I ever been slow to lay critism, fault or blame of them when it is deserving or appropriate. MY wording was purposely tactful & diplomatic. As opposed to someone being harsh, judgement, demeaning & acting 'holier-than-thou towards intelligent IT people & meaningful End Users. Basically telling folks they have stuff all wrong, don't know what they are doing, that they are not reading or looking @ things or accusing & condemming... 'people' & (good) communication skills are important, even in a forum. It's sad but, your behaving like you seem to think you are god's IT gift to the Earth. It irritates people & vastly weakens your case & credibility. Being confrontational & authoritarian does not sit well w/ most humans. Your aggressive arguing does not jibe w/ the pleasant debate/discussion others here intend or conduct. & by the way, you are %100 out to lunch suggesting I am deluded or "lying to myself" nor was I being "defensive". Best, until you get banned from here again, you do not direct any futher comments or discussion @ me. It is probably getting close to people like Noel & I filing reports against you & requesting you be banned from this Forum, again. Might be cool to stop trying to push it. Lastly, you were told twice that these threads sometimes lost their 'toolbuttons' even before IE9. Ironically, might be YOUR listening that is "out -of-whack". Thanks, DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

As for this statement, "But it's definitely still not as good as IE8.", there is no way I can agree w/ it. there oft seems to be a real tendency to arbitarily bash new products from Microsoft Drew, that was taken totally out of context. Again, I said the font rendering in the Answers site was better with IE8. And I resent your associating my criticisms with MS bashing. That is really a cheap shot, Drew. And now you call me rude? Huh. I'm not going to go through all this line by line Drew. Go ahead and hit the abusive button. That will surely make the color splotches disappear. Those color splotches you avoided commenting on. Click this. Extra lines. Just now. Compliments of IE-you-know-what. Click this too. It's Mervyn Zhang's thread. He has credibility. Even if I don't.

I was saying nothing about colour. That was Noel to whom you were giving grief about that topic. I try to avoid discussions w/ you. Endured enough from you months ago. It should come as no surprise if your wording gets misunderstood or misconstrued... might just be due to something about how you say things & how you speak to people & I sure don't mean just me. Seems to 'push buttons' in many folks, you style does. Maybe you just should take note of how you impact on others.... just maybe. Now keep your word & drop your participating in this thread. Thanks, DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Drew, you have no right to tell me to go away. I should report you as abusive. Review my first post here today. Just where did I start an argument? You did. By distorting my words, having misread my post in your urgency to defend IE9. I have provided several screenshots here. They are not fabricated. They are not opinion. They are fact. I have provided several links. Including one from Mervyn Zhang. They are all facts.

Drew, you have no right to tell me to go away. he has his troll day. He also trolled agisnt me in a different topic. He thinks he knows everything better and don't need to provide facts. he claim something and things that only he is right. Ignore him in the future and don't reply to this topic any longer."A programmer is just a tool which converts caffeine into code" Want to install RSAT on Windows 7 Sp1? Check my HowTo: http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=150221

1, I don't kwon why I'm dignifying this w/ a reply. 2. I did not tell you to go away, I merely suggested you keep your word since it was YOU who said you were going to stop bothering w/ this thread & your bickering w/ Noel. 3. you were already told, @ least once, that I was not being "defensive" towards IE9... you distorted THAT (too). I just know I am keen & anxious to move on from exchanges w/ 'derosnec', as likely Noel & others are, as well. Just want to get back to enjoyable talk about IE9 & related issues. Not interested in tiring, stressful space taken up w/ other stuff. That's not the aim of this Forum. If you won't stop, as YOU said (to Noel) you would, then I'll have to be done w/ the very thread I actually initiated. Sincerely, DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Right on the heels of IE9... As many may (already) know, Firefox is now offering version 4.0 of its broser. It is impossible not to notice & downright uncanny the degree to which it copies or apes IE9; this is both in appearance, style AND features & funtionality. Even its explanation category boxes (for/about the NEW version) toute basically the same benefits & improved ares, as IE9. Just was a 'double-take-moment' seeing the (very) 'copy-cat', 1st impression that seemed quite blatant. Coincidence?? Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Hi Noel Derosnec has a point because I have the same problem with color splotches in the text of the "MS Answer" pages. I went back to IE8 in order to make sure that I am not halucinating : no splotches in IE8 I returned to my IE9 installation and yep : color splotches again I do however NOT have them here on the technet forum.

Who copied who ? I am going to install it later today but I already saw that the Firefox UI is more complete than the IE9 UI ! - If Firefox 4 copied IE9 then they added quite some nice stuff to the UI - IF IE9 copied Firefox then they killed quite some goodies in the UI Just my 2cts If Firefox 4 doesn't produce color splotches where they are not supposed to be, then I might very well become (finally) my browser of choice.

I have no colour splotches. I do, also, use FF occasionally, for some things BUT, IE 'harmonizes' (best) w/ Windows 7. And there's a few other reasons why IE will remain my primary (default) browser. As always it can be a very subjective concern. Cheers, DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

(Click the balloon) Here are updated comparisons, from earlier in this thread. (Snapshots from the Answers forum). Here's a snippet from Answers forum just now, after the update. Both are from IE9. The top is with IE8 mode (F12 Developer Tools). The bottom is normal IE9. Here's my impression. After this update, the Answers site b&w text is notably more uniform in terms of character thickness. That's when viewed from a normal distance. But a little fuzzier. On the other hand, this TechNet site b&w text, right here on this page, yikes. It's much harder for me to read. It's like, not as dark or something. Hazy. Many characters are light grey, not black. The color background text from Answers definitely is better in IE8 mode. Much sharper. The yellow-background IE9 text makes me feel like I need new glasses. Really. Even when I take them off. Which I often do for a closeup view, because I'm nearsighted. Now, it doesn't help. It just makes it more apparent. I don't know, guys. I see you made an effort and I'm grateful. But, um...

I put the appropriate Updates in although, for me, have never had any text display issues. Maybe I'm just a lucky exception. Anyway, thanks for such an 'in-depth' contribution regarding this matter.Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

The normal post text here - especially when compared with the font used in the text editor, does seem a bit light, but the real difficulty in readability is that it's quite small. For what it's worth, I'm not having any trouble reading it though. A careful run through the ClearType Tuner might be the difference between good, readable text and not so much... -Noel

Good point & explains why mine has been dark enough since, had used Clear Type Tuners (so) long ago. & yes, it is a wee bit light, here, though legible, @ the default. DrewDrew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Sorry. I was totally wrong about the effect to this TechNet page. There was absolutely no change from this update. This is a 300% magnified before+after sample of a couple of words from a TechNet post. (Click it for a larger sample). The post it came from had a good mix of normal, bold, italic text. I can find no differences anywhere between the two. They are pixel-for-pixel identical. You can tell by the colors. On the other hand, compare the earlier shots we discussed, and the color mix is very apparently different from one sample to the next. I guess I've been using Vista+IE8 lately, and my eyes were shocked to come back here to TechNet with Win7+IE9. Hazy. Easy to see why. Hardly any black. Are these TechNet fonts supposed to be black? Maybe they really are grey. Hmmmph. Here's the phrase pixel-for-pixel from my paragraphs directly above. Do you guys also see the letters i and l are faded? In this 300% closeup, the reason why is obvious. There's no black in there. No wonder it looks hazy. Oh well. I'm just obsessing. Nevermind me. Besides. When consumer monitors start shipping in quantity with a standard 300 DPI, it'll be a non-issue. Heck, I think my cellphone screen is 1000 DPI. So, it won't be long before computer screens catch up. We'll just have to put up with this in the meantime.

Oh well, I'm just (still) glad I can make things out & read them (clearly)... never mind, me, either.Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

I was still editing. I wasn't done obsessing yet. : )

Ah, must feel much better, now, then, eh? ;)Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Besides. When consumer monitors start shipping in quantity with a standard 300 DPI, it'll be a non-issue. Heck, I think my cellphone screen is 1000 DPI. So, it won't be long before computer screens catch up. We'll just have to put up with this in the meantime. That would be nice. I think higher pixel densities on large displays would be good, to where the limitations of the monitor don't significantly affect the workflow. For example, when I'm photo editing, I have several tricks (e.g., viewing images at 50% to get a feel for how they'll look when printed). However, keep in mind that some applications don't follow UI guidelines (e.g., Photoshop itself) and could end up irritatingly hard to read. We're seeing modern monitors with wide color gamuts, and some are also starting to push the resolution up a little as well - e.g., the Dell U2711 at 109 ppi. But specialty monitors like the IBM T221 at 204 ppi or Viewsonic VP2290B have come and gone... A shame. There's nothing like that available now that I can see. -Noel

I would live to have 300 DPI for my desktop screen. That would require a big change though in applications with the need for larger icons and the like.My MVP is for the Windows Desktop Experience, i.e. Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 IT Remote Assistance is available for a fee. Visit my IT site for information. I am best with C++ and I am learning C# using Visual Studio 2010. My page on Video Card Problems is now my most popular landing page. See my gaming site for game reviews etc. Developer | Windows IT | Chess | Hardcore Games | Vegan Advocate | PC Reviews

May not be noticing this issue due to having a high res monitor.Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Just thought I would append Noel's recent screenshots here. His web-page text is obviously blurry, compared to his foreground text shot. Well, I only have a 100 DPI monitor. And a 117 DPI one too.

Well, this (thread) started out being about IE9 from the time I began testing the Beta version. It certainly has become an effort that seems to be getting belaboured on a, pretty much, completely different topic, ie this DPI & funny, fuzzy (or not) text thing. I wonder if it is still of interest to a wide-ranging, large number of people. Oh well, I guess threads can weave all over the place (pun intended).Drew MS Partner / MS Beta Tester / Pres. Computer Issues Pres. Computer Issues www.drewsci.com

Of course this thread is still of interest to a wide-ranging, large number of people. Notice from that foreground image (above), Noel is also having problems with IE9 hanging. When he's not running FireFox, that is. Speaking of fuzzy, did you know FireFox does subpixel rendering too, just like IE9? The copycats. (click for full size) Look how elegantly Noel has resolved these perceived IE9 deficiencies, with use of 3rd party addons: Title Bar in caption area Separate search box Internet Zones on status bar You can't help notice the conspicuous absence of any Tabs. Perhaps they are too dark and transparent to be useful to him. That might be one reason he hasn't had much nice to say about pinning them to the TaskBar. Or other customary handy tips.