Microsoft Debuts Internet Explorer 3.0
Ray Van Eng (05/02/96)
Not to be outdone by Netscape with their introduction of the Navigator
3.0 browser, Microsoft also announcing the availability of the Internet
Explorer version 3.0 that will make video/audio/data communication as easy
as making a phone call.
The new Microsoft browser (which will begin beta testing May '96) incorporates the industry standard (T.120 and H.320) and widely supported Intel conferencing software which will allow the Internet Explorer user to conduct video and data conferencing, application sharing or simply conduct a two way conversation with another user over the Internet. The Internet Explorer 3.0 will also be the first browser to support Microsoft's recently announced Active X platform, a re-engineered OLE control (OCX) technology specifically made for building Internet applications. Java language, frames, tables, TrueType fonts support are also embedded.
Microsoft's Active X is a software component based technology building on the DCOM -- the Distributed Component Object Model -- architecture. By taking an object-oriented approach with re-usable components, the software developer can easily incorporate Active X controls to add interactive functionalities to whatever application that he/she is developing. Microsoft promises that the Active X controls will be usable across all platforms including Windows, Macintosh and UNIX etc. and be able to interact with Java applets or with another Active X control to maximize flexibility for the software developer.
As Brad Chase, general manager in the Internet platform and tools division at Microsoft puts it "The new communications abilities will let users talk with each other and share their applications in real time for the first time, spurring a revolution in how we use the Internet. And with the new ActiveX technologies, Web sites can come alive with the rich interactivity of action games, multimedia encyclopedias and productivity applications -- they'll be limited only by their authors' imaginations."
The new browser could also claim to be truly international in scope because it will be available in versions for 21 languages including Chinese (simple and traditional), Czech, Danish, Japanese, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish etc.
