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The LangaList
21-Mar-99
A Free Email Newsletter from Fred Langa About BrowserTune,
HotSpots, Columns, Tips & Tricks, and Other Activities
In This
Issue:
Test-Driving IE5
IE5 VS Mozilla5/Communicator5
BrowserTune 2000 Version b1.1
NT Security Bug Report---and fix!
Long-Overdue Win98 Patch Download Site
New Versions of Win98 Due
Just For Grins
More!
Test-Driving IE5
It was impossible not to notice IE5's arrival last week: Thursday and Friday, many portions of the web were noticeably slower as tens of thousands of people pulled down megabyte after megabyte of the new code.
I was one of them, and maybe you were too.
If you haven't grabbed a copy yet---and I know many people gave up when Microsoft's servers became glacially slow under the onslaught of download requests--- you can get it for free here: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/.
And if you have gotten your copy, be sure to stop by the "accessories" site for free add-ons and extensions: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/webaccess/default.asp.
You can put your new browser through all its paces at http://www.browsertune.com/bt98/ and check it out with the new, enhanced demo version of BT2000 (see below) at http://www.browsertune.com/bt2kdemo/.
I like IE5 a lot: I find it's faster and less susceptible to weird crashes and misbehaviors than Netscape 4.51/4.08, for example, and it's far more advanced than Opera. (IE's JavaScript implementation runs literally about two orders of magnitude faster than Opera's!) And IE supports more international standards, more fully, than either Opera or Netscape.
Microsoft is everyone's favorite bad guy these days, and many people disparage anything from Microsoft as inherently flawed. But despite whatever corporate sins the company has committed, I think they've produced one heck of a browser; one that leaves the current versions of Netscape and Opera far behind.
What's your take? What do you like or dislike about the new IE? Have you tried the competition, and what's your take on them? If IE is (or isn't!) your top choice, tell us why. Our online discussion will run all week: Starting Monday March 22 around mid-day (EST, UT-5) drop by the WINDOWS Magazine "Dialog Box" online discussion area (accessible via the front page at http://content.techweb.com/winmag/) and join in!
IE5 Vs Mozilla5/Communicator 5
Almost exactly a year ago, in a grand experiment, Netscape released the source code for Communicator to Mozilla.Org (www.mozilla.org). This dedicated group of open sourcers has been plugging away ever since at Mozilla 5. As of last week, they announced they were closing in on their next milestone, which would contain "70-80% of the features needed for our dogfood target."
The term "dogfood" is geek-speak for any software in development. When developers use the product they are creating, and thus suffer the same bugs and shortcomings that the eventual users will endure, it's called "eating your own dogfood." It's actually a great QA practice that helps to ensure that bugs are found and corrected.
Thus, the Mozillans are predicting that the next Mozilla milestone will be 70-80% of the way to the point where it will be stable enough for the developers to use it as their live development platform.
The Mozillans want to build a browser that exhibits excellent consistency in its user interface; is inherently international; is fully cross-platform; highly modular ("add infrastructure before adding features" is how they put it), and that offers good backward compatibility. These are lofty goals that---if achieved---will result in a great browser.
But the high standards to which the Mozillans are holding themselves and the volunteer nature of the workforce mean the project is taking longer than many first thought.
Meanwhile, what has Netscape itself been up to? Why, it's been busy being acquired by AOL. (The deal was consummated last week.) There's been very little new browser code coming from within Netscape. The current releases for Navigator and Communicator both are incremental bugfixes and upgrades along the 4.x continuum.
Not to put too fine a point on it, but Navigator 4.0 debuted in June of 1997. Think for a moment how long ago that is, in Internet time.
IE5's strength worries me because it means Mozilla/Communicator 5 faces a very, very tough uphill climb, especially with the lagging development schedule. If Mozilla/Communicator comes out and doesn't walk on water, cure cancer and end world hunger, the new browsers may be too little, too late.
Netscape's gamble may have backfired: With the external distractions of the open-source movement and the worse distractions of being eaten by AOL, they may have lost too much momentum. It just might be "game over."
What's your take? Regardless of your feelings for Microsoft as a corporate entity, how do you feel about IE5? Will you or your company use it? Why or why not? Do you think Netscape and the Mozillans can catch up in a strong enough way to prevent Microsoft from dominating the browser space? And if they can't, who is there who can bring real competition to the browser market? Join in a week-long discussion starting Wednesday (24-Mar-99) midday (EST; UT-5) at http://www.informationweek.com/langaletter!
BrowserTune 2000 Version b1.1
If you've ever run BT2K, check your email report: If you ran a version earlier than b1.1 (or if you haven't run it at all), you're missing a lot!
Last week, I moved the entire BT2K site to a new server to deliver better performance, and made substantial changes to the tests themselves. For example the new version has:
- brand-new, 100% recoded web-script timing tests
- enhanced throughput timing tests (now includes "latency" timing!)
- a robust and finalized underlying infrastructure for tracking test results
- and all the previous enhancements, including: better browser type detection, dozens of cosmetic improvements, support for a larger number of modem types, streamlined JavaScripts, substantially improved error-handling, further fine-tuned advice, and better handling of old and unusual browsers.
Check it out now at http://www.langa.com/bt2kdemo/ .
NT Security Bug
Microsoft announced a problem with NT's screen saver routines "which could allow a user to gain administrative privileges on a computer. In most common usage scenarios, this vulnerability presents itself on workstations, terminal servers, and other systems that allow non-administrative users to interactively log on."
This problem affects all versions of NT4---server, workstation, terminal server and enterprise edition.
For more information and the version-specific patch locations, see http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q221/9/91.asp
Long-Overdue Win98 Patch Download Site
Microsoft quietly responded to numerous complaints about the problems with having to use the Update Wizard to patch and bugfix Windows 98: many people---myself included, prefer an option to download patches and store them locally so when we inevitably reinstall Windows, we don't have to re-download the patches all over again.
Many readers noticed that the pages at http://www.microsoft.com/windows98/downloads/corporate.asp now let you selectively download the patches you used to have to get through the Update site. Thanks to all who sent along the URL!
Win98/2: Denials No More
As reported on http://www.techweb.com/wire/story/TWB19990318S0013 and contrary to the previous waffling, Microsoft has now admitted that Win98 will appear in at least one---and maybe two---new editions. One will come out this fall, and will be called "Windows 98 Second Edition." It will contain Internet Explorer 5.0 and the "Service Pack" items we've discussed in this newsletter in the past.
There also may be one additional release of Win98 a year or so after that, although it will probably be called something like "Windows 2000, Personal Edition."
Stay tuned!
Just For Grins: Y2K
Longtime reader Bryan Campbell (bryany@pathcom.com) sends "A letter from a Department of Defense (DOD) Y2K Engineer:"
Dear General Smiley:
I hope I haven't misunderstood your instructions. Because, to be honest, none of this Y-to-K problem makes any sense to me. At any rate, I have finished converting all the DOD calendars so that the year 2000 is now ready to go with the following new months and days:
Januark, Februark, Mak
Mondak, Tuesdak, Wednesdak, Thursdak, Fridak, Saturdak, Sundak
Please advise me soonest if there are any additional corrections you wish me to make in this Y-to-K software program area.
Respectfully submitted,
Captain Vernon Julian
See you next issue!
Best,
Fred
(fred@langa.com)
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Please Note: Archived information (e.g. below) may become out of date.