Microsoft has today introduced the Windows Internet Explorer Platform Preview to both web developers and the general public.
The release is designed to provide an early look at the technologies behind Microsoft's next-generation web browser, Internet Explorer 9, and will be used by Microsoft as a feedback portal throughout the development process.
As opposed to nightly builds, Microsoft has revealed that the IE9 Platform Preview will be refreshed with new code every eight weeks in the build up to the first beta release.
At this early stage, the IE9 Platform Preview - a 31MB download - is a far-from-finished browser that focuses solely on the underlying technologies implemented in IE9. The preview provides developers with a look at Microsoft's new multi-core JavaScript engine - codenamed Chakra - as well as a new hardware-accelerated graphics subsystem.
The release also provides a look at Microsoft's implementation of HTML5, with the software giant introducing support for CSS3, Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG), XHTML parsing and support for video and audio tags using the H.264/MPEG4 and MP3/AAC codecs.
As a result of the improved HTML5 support, IE9 now scores 55 out of 100 in the Web Standards Project's Acid3 test. Microsoft's IE9 score has almost doubled from its last public showing in November, where it scored just 32 out of 100, and the software giant expects its score to rise with the introduction of additional HTML5 elements.
Aimed at the developer audience, the preview release is described as "a first look at the work Microsoft has done so far". Casual users should be aware that the preview is far from a complete browser - there's little-to-nothing in terms of security, and no back button.
The Platform Preview is available to users of Microsoft's Windows 7 and Windows Vista SP2 operating systems, and will run alongside any existing version of Internet Explorer.
Despite the introduction of the preview, Microsoft hasn't hinted at a release timetable for IE9.
The Internet Explorer 9 Platform Preview is available at IETestDrive.com.
Press release: Microsoft Announces Hardware-Accelerated HTML5, Pushes Boundaries on Web and Cloud Development
