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December 1, 2006
Internet Exploring Revisited
Dear Larry,
Windows Updates are asking me if I want to upgrade to
Internet Explorer 7. Should I?
P. S.
Dear P. S.,
That’s a good idea. It’s been many years since Microsoft last
updated its Internet Explorer web browser, the software you probably
use—directly or indirectly—to surf the web. This free upgrade to the software is
long overdue.
Under the hood, Internet Explorer 7 (a.k.a. IE7) adds a host
of security features to make your Internet browsing more secure and help protect
you and your computer from malicious attacks, be it via spyware, viruses,
phishing (see
http://www.accentoncomputers.com/LogOn/2006/20060310.htm), or some other
type of harmful software.
Other changes to the software are more obvious. The IE7 screen
is more streamlined and takes up less room than earlier versions, thus providing
more space to the web pages you’re visiting. A new toolbar makes it easier to
add web sites to your list of favorites, search the web, clear your history, and
access other important tasks.
Another major addition to IE7 is the concept of tabbed
browsing. Now you can surf multiple web sites simultaneously in one IE7 window;
each surfing session is housed in its own tab. With multiple tabs, you can
research a topic in one tab, be checking prices in another tab, and performing a
search in a third. By separating your web browsing into tabs, you can easily
keep yourself from losing track of different sites that you’ve visited and that
you want to visit.
You can easily launch a new web session in a tab by clicking
the new tab button on the toolbar or by holding down the Ctrl key when you click
a link on a web page (you can also right-click a link and select the Open in New
Tab option). The Quick Tabs button on the toolbar gives you a thumbnail preview
of all the various tabs you have open in case you’re not sure which one you want
to switch to next.
IE7 also supports RSS feeds. RSS (which stands for Really
Simple Syndication) feeds give you the ability to have information flow to your
web browser automatically without you having to go out in search of it. A feed
is web content published by a website that is updated on a frequent basis. Feeds
are usually used for news web sites (think “CNN Headlines”) but can also be used
for distributing other types of information such as audio and/or video “podcasts.”
Whether you’re interested in news headlines, sports scores, the latest music
releases, or stock tips, all of it can be fed to your computer on a daily basis
via RSS feeds.
Keep an eye out for your IE7 update; it should arrive on your
computer sometime in the next month or two.
This is Larry Schneider, logging off.
