ie8

Downloaded it this morning. Wasn't too impressed. But I'm picky. You give it a try. From PC Magazine

On Thursday at the MIX09 conference in Las Vegas for Web developers and designers, Microsoft will announce the availability of its next-generation Web browser, Internet Explorer 8.

The conference, which runs from March 18 to 20, has already seen the launch of the Silverlight 3 beta, and a preview version of the Expression Blend 3 Web design and prototyping tool.

Dean Hachamovitch, who heads up the IE8 development team, is expected to announce the browser's launch during his keynote at MIX09. It will be available for download in 25 languages at www.microsoft.com/ie8 starting at noon EDT on March 19. Installers will be available for Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows Server in both 32-bit and 64- bit editions.

"Customers have made clear what they want in a Web browser—safety, speed and greater ease of use," said Steve Ballmer, chief executive of Microsoft, in a statement. "With Internet Explorer 8, we are delivering a browser that gets people to the information they need, fast, and provides protection that no other browser can match."

Though still trailing Firefox in terms of JavaScript speed and available extensions, the newly released browser surpasses Mozilla in terms of security and browsing aids. The latter include Accelerators, WebSlices, search improvements, and new-tab assistance. IE8 also catches up to Firefox with its Smart Address bar, equivalent to the open-source browser's so-called "awesome bar." IE8 also adds improved Web and on-page searching, as well as color-coded tabs for related Web pages.

The browser made news with its InPrivate browsing mode, also known as "porn mode," back when it was in beta. InPrivate goes beyond other browser's similar features by not only hiding your activities from other users of the same computer, but also by preventing third-party Web sites from keeping tabs on your Internet activities. Other unique security features include protection against clickjacking and cross-site scripting.

For a full blow-by-blow analysis, see PCMag.com's review of Internet Explorer 8.