‘Project Spartan is our future’ – Windows 10 prepped for new, improved browser

25 Mar 2015

Microsoft has announced that, rather than creating a new browser as well as updating Internet Explorer, Project Spartan will instead enjoy the company’s full attention.

It was previously looking at improving the outgoing Internet Explorer, but will now keep it the exact same as the model on Windows 8.1.

So, for Windows 10, Spartan – whatever it transpires to be – is the default browser, attracting the full force of Microsoft’s developers.

Internet Explorer’s antiquated model will remain an option, for the “small set of sites on the Web that were built to work with legacy technologies”.

Essentially Spartan is built for the “next generation of web,” claims Kyle Pflug, program manager for the browser, “taking the unique opportunity provided by Windows 10 to build a browser with a modern architecture and service model for Windows as a Service.”

Project Spartan

Microsoft is opening up about its plans for Windows 10 and the Spartan browser

There are a few reasons given for the decision to separate the engine behind Internet Explorer and Spartan, and they are fairly random.

First is the target of looking towards the future. Secondly its that a new engine behind Internet Explorer could compromise its compatibility with Windows 10. Thirdly feedback from “insiders and developers” showed Microsoft that “it wasn’t clear what the difference was between Spartan and Internet Explorer 11 from a web capabilities perspective, or what a developer would need to do to deliver web sites for one versus the other.”

Ultimately, it means the hasty decline of Internet Explorer isn’t slowing, but as yet it’s unclear what the future has in store for the company. What is certain is Windows 10 is sure to be a mammoth roll out, with the company already confirming that even users of pirated Windows 7 and 8 will be getting free, full upgrades to the service.

The company claims Windows 10 won’t be just an operating system but one of the largest internet services on the planet. It has even partnered up with smartphone manufacturers, notably Android smartphone manufacturers, to roll out Windows 10 on their devices, with a full native layout rumoured.

Sparta warrior image, via Shutterstock

Gordon Hunt was a journalist with Silicon Republic

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