Is IE8 a Step Backwards?

June 26, 2008

I was taking a look at a web project in various browsers and thought I would run it by Internet Explorer 8 (beta) for some feedback. The project worked fine in IE7 and IE6 as well as every other browser in my arsenal. IE8, however, decided to disagree with me for whatever reason. In a fit of pretend anger I said “sometimes I feel like IE8 is a step backwards.”

I was using the (very old) beta edition of IE8 and so it seemed reasonable to look for an updated version. After all, it wouldn’t be entirely fair to judge the results on an early beta edition. I went over to Windows Update to see if there was something newer, and this is what I received instead of the expected screen:

IE 8, telling me I need IE 5 or greater to use the windows update feature