Upgrading To IE 5.5

As netsters evolve from casual e-mailers to serious Web surfers, the Web browser plays an ever more important role. The Microsoft Internet Explorer browser, with 80 to 85 percent market penetration, has a stranglehold over Netscape Communicator, the declining competitor. When Microsoft releases a new version, upgrading should be given serious consideration.

Several months ago Microsoft announced Internet Explorer version 5.5 had become available for free download. The early buzz heard on the net indicated only minor improvements were in store for courageous pioneers. One reliable source, Fred Langa, warned of possible minor bugs. On the Internet, bad news travels fast. Cautiously, I waited for additional comments, good and bad. Absent horror stories of disasters encountered with the IE V5.5 upgrade, I took the plunge.

 

My Experience

On September 9, a few mouse clicks on Stroud’s CWSApps Web site (http://cws.Internet.com/) landed my cursor in the area where a hotlink to the 505KB IE5.5 Setup Wizard appeared. Note: with a 256kbps cable modem, downloading becomes essentially painless. The wizard forced the main 15.727 MB (ouch!) file to travel across cyberspace to my 400 Mhz PII computer. The whole process (including full installation) involved a total elapsed time of 45 minutes. Users with a dialup connection (56 bps modem or slower) can pass the time by watching reruns of the CBS show Survivor. Having heard no major complaints about upgrading to V5.5, I did not back up any files. Admittedly, this is dangerous. For most netsters, it is prudent to back up critical information like the favorites file and Outlook Express e-mail. Juno remains my primary e-mail client; Outlook folders contain essentially spam. However, prior to downloading, I defragmented the hard drive. This added another 45 minutes to the overall process.

Once installed, the new IE V5.5 launched a “Welcome Page” (WP). This becomes the “All’s Well!” telltale sign. I closed the WP quickly.

Few noticeable improvements earmark V5.5 from its predecessor, although the newer model somehow appears to run a bit faster. However, like a “new car scent,” the effect wears off quickly. The only noteworthy change/improvement results when the user clicks File > Print Preview. For the first time, the total number of pages to be printed appears. Netscape sported this feature much earlier.

 

Why Upgrade?

Many of the so-called improvements remain buried beneath the new browser’s exterior. IE V5.5 contains proprietary features for Webmasters to exploit (style sheet improvements, transparent frames, image zooming, and so forth) at the cost of incompatibility with other browsers and previous versions of IE. Over time, more and more Webmasters will use them. As a result, the Web will become populated with strange looking Web pages when viewed through the prism of older browsers. Frankly, for Netscape users, history repeats itself. Many Web pages created with Microsoft’s Web tool, FrontPage, give Netscape users less than optimum performance. In fact, some pages do not even appear with Netscape. Microsoft wants to ratchet up the pace of change with IE V5.5. Should you upgrade? Answer: a qualified yes. The amount of disk space required is less than V5.0 and additional speed, although not measurable, is always welcomed. No downside risks appear. At least not yet.

 

Windows ME

In mid September, Microsoft announced the availability of Windows ME (Millennium Edition) operating system, an upgrade from Windows 98. Frankly, upgrading from Windows 98 to ME opens a much larger potential set of risks. A major feature touted for ME allows users to “roll back” the software configuration to a state where it worked perfectly prior to encountering a major glitch. It is not uncommon for users to find, after a minor deletion/cleanup of software or hardware, some operations fail. ME allows for returning to an error free condition. In my case, my strongest complaint about Windows 98 involves high frequency of reboots when using graphic editors and MP3 (music) files. Well wishing friends and experts suggest I switch to the Windows 2000 operating system designed by Microsoft for commercial users. While it is hard to argue with the logic, I want to stay in touch with experiences encountered by so many of my readers who use Windows 98. However, should I learn that Windows ME helps alleviate “blue screen of death” issues (a major annoyance encountered just prior to rebooting), I will upgrade quickly. Windows ME can be found on most new Intel PCs sold today. Windows ME contains Internet Explorer V5.5 along with Media Player 7.0. I have upgraded both applications.

The whirlwind pace of hardware and Internet improvements dictate a regimen of steady and timely upgrades. While the catchphrase “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” remains operative, in the case of a Web browser, more and more Web sites may appear broken when viewed with older software. Should you elect to upgrade from IE 5.0 to V5.5, I hope the resulting experience is as easy and pain-free as mine. Good luck.

URLs (Uniform Resource Locators) of interest:

http://cws.Internet.com/ie-ie5.html

(This is the 225th of a series of elementary articles designed for surfing the Internet. Next, “CueCat” is the subject on tap. Stay Tuned. Until next week, happy travels through cyberspace. Previous issues of Internet Info for Real People can be found: http://www.thebee.com. Please e-mail comments and suggestions: rbrand@JUNO.com or editor@thebee.com.)