Skip to main content

Microsoft Ships IE (Eolas) Update


Microsoft has shipped a new version of its Internet Explorer browser to permanently change the way multimedia content is rendered on Web pages.

The cumulative non-security IE update was released Feb. 28 as an optional download for IE6 on Windows XP and Microsoft Windows Server 2003 and is a direct result of the multimillion-dollar patent spat with Chicago-based Eolas Technologies.

The modifications mean that IE users won't be able to directly interact with Microsoft ActiveX controls loaded by the APPLET, EMBED, or OBJECT elements without first activating the user interface with an extra mouse click.

Some widely deployed programs that use ActiveX controls within the browser include Adobe's Reader and Flash, Apple's QuickTime Player, Microsoft's Windows Media Player, RealNetworks' RealPlayer and Sun's JVM (Java Virtual Machine).

A Microsoft spokesperson said the changes will have "little to no impact on customer experience and partner applications" except for an extra mouse click in certain cases.

The company first detailed the modification plans last December after a start-stop-start-stop scenario that included a warning that the Eolas court ruling would force certain technical modifications to IE that would significantly disrupt the display of multimedia content on its dominant browser.

On Dec. 2, 2005, Microsoft changed course and notified ActiveX control vendors, OEM partners and content providers of modifications, which affects all future releases of Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003.

The spokesperson said all versions of IE that are currently being sold will be updated in a phased approach.

"Over the next few months, other versions will be updated and released, such as the update that went live as an optional download Feb. 28.

"These changes will also be reflected in IE7 for Windows XP and in IE7 in Windows Vista," she said.

According to Windows enthusiast site ActiveWin, localized full versions of Windows XP SP2, Windows Server 2003 SP1, and Windows Server 2003 R2 (including all SKUs of those products) will be released in a phased approach during March and April this year.

"At this time we are not releasing other down-level versions of IE or Windows," the spokesperson said. However, a final decision on browser revisions for Windows 2000 is still pending.

A white paper detailing the ActiveX changes has been published on the MSDN (Microsoft Developer Network).

Despite the changes, Microsoft has vowed to vigorously appeal the $521 million patent infringement ruling won by Eolas and the University of California over the use of certain patents in the browser.

Comments

Anonymous said…
I write a leave a response whеn I eѕpеciаlly enjoy а ρоѕt on
a site or I have ѕomеthing to add to the conνeгѕation.

It's a result of the sincerness displayed in the article I looked at. And after this post "Microsoft Ships IE (Eolas) Update". I was actually moved enough to post a comment :-) I do have 2 questions for you if you don't mind.
Is it simply me or does it аppeаr likе a few оf the responsеs cоme аcrοѕs like written by
braіn dead individuаlѕ? :-P Аnd, if you are writіng
аt addіtional online soсiаl sіteѕ, I'd like to follow anything new you have to post. Would you list the complete urls of all your community pages like your linkedin profile, Facebook page or twitter feed?

My homepage :: tens unit
February 23, 2013 9:19 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Play against Xbox360 gamer on PC in Vista

Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates on Tuesday announced a cross-platform gaming service that integrates games played on cell phones, Xbox 360 consoles and the upcoming Windows Vista operating system. The "Live Anywhere" service will be available as part of Windows Vista, Microsoft's next-generation PC operating system. The consumer version is scheduled for release early next year. "It means that you have one online community," Gates said in a news conference. "This platform can really unleash developers to do amazing new things." The system would extend the company's existing Xbox Live service for the Xbox 360 console into millions of Internet-enabled PCs and cellular phones. No pricing information on the new service was announced. In recent months, Microsoft has been pushing a number of online services that it hopes will boost revenue as markets for its traditional software become increasingly saturated. The company expects to make money off s...
9 comments
Read more

Welcome to Google Checkout, that will be $3.14

From ZDNet The first time I looked up the domain " GDrive.com " it appeared that someone other than Google had it registered. A trip down memory lane takes us to my very first article that describes how I determined GDrive.com is in fact owned by Google, despite what it looks like on the surface. Well, by the same logic I have found that a brand new set of domains appearing to be registered to someone else were actually registered by Google on May 25th. The domains googlecheckout.net / org / info (.com is owned by someone else at the moment) have all been registered to a company called DNStination, Inc. Don't be fooled, the registrar is MarkMonitor — a company that prides itself on the protection of your corporate identity. There is no way they would let just anybody register a domain with "Google" in it — especially since Google is one of their clients. Then who is this DNStination, Inc. then? Googling the address of this "company" tell...
Post a Comment
Read more

Hackers biting Apple

Hackers are increasingly focusing on Apple's Mac OS X, and the number of newly discovered vulnerabilities has surged. Such a switch could mean big implications for Apple's user base, which has traditionally not had to concern itself too much over security. It's been an impressively quiet year so far on the PC virus and worm front, and hackers seem to be focusing their attention elsewhere. One such area is Apple's Mac OS X. Once mostly ignored by malware developers, there appears to be a growing interest in this "alternative" OS. Details Have you noticed the dearth of serious PC virus and worm threats out there lately? Well, it isn't a figment of your imagination -- according to vnunet.com, viruses are no longer the top security threat . While serious attacks are still likely to emerge, the bottom has apparently fallen out of the PC antivirus market -- just as Microsoft begins a big push into the security market. One cause of this drop-off is solidif...
6 comments
Read more