Internet Explorer 7 Release Candidate 1

[kcnychief]

Copied from the front page....

Today, Microsoft is announcing the availability of Internet Explorer 7 Release Candidate 1 (RC1) for Windows XP, available via free download at
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie...ds/default.mspx . With this release, Microsoft is strongly encouraging web developers, enthusiasts and IT professionals to finalize their testing and ready their environments for the final availability of IE7.

Microsoft is confident that developers and designers who optimize their web sites and applications with this build will be compatible with the final version when it is released later this year. For an easy path to compatibility, Microsoft encourages technical audiences to download the free Readiness Toolkit.

The RC1 build includes improvements in performance, stability, security, and application compatibility. With this build, Microsoft has also made enhancements to the fit and finish of the user interface, completed CSS platform changes, added language support and included an auto-uninstall feature in Setup, which automatically uninstalls prior betas of IE7 making installing the new build even easier.

IE7 RC1 is available in English today, and all localized versions of RC1 will be available in September including Arabic, Finnish, German, and Japanese as well as the French and Spanish versions which will be available for the first time.
As previously announced, to help our customers become more secure and up-to-date, Microsoft will also distribute Internet Explorer 7 as a high-priority update via Automatic Updates soon after the final version is released for Windows XP later this year.

Download: Internet Explorer 7 Release Candidate 1

 

[madmatt]

This version is much more stable than previous releases. Several issues have been resolved.

Quick Tabs has been fixed and it now shows open tabs at the right size (beta 3 showed fewer open tabs larger than if you had more open tabs).

However, sites that use certain JavaScript functions (such as this site and the "Insert Link" function) need to be added to the "Trusted sites" list or the information bar is going to popup asking you if you want to "temporarily allow".

Still testing and going through the issues I had with beta 3.

 

[kcnychief]

Interesting post on the IE Blog, talking about installation changes. Noteworthy are that it will remove previous version for you, and if it can't you can still upgrade - sweet! That should solve a lot of issues for people testing older builds who want this one



http://blogs.msdn.com/ie/archive/2006/08/24/714977.aspx

 

[madmatt]

Yes, but it requires a reboot in between the uninstall and install of RC1. After installing RC1 it will automatically reboot your computer with or without everything loaded.

Also, it is worth noting that RC1 is also available for XP x64, 2003, and 2003 x64. This isn't mentioned in our news article.

Functionality Removed and Changed in Internet Explorer 7 RC1

• Offline Favorites--Offline Favorites and Scheduled Offline Favorites have been removed from Internet Explorer 7. Internet Explorer supports RSS feeds which provides scheduled updates to web content and offline reading of this content. For more information about RSS Feeds, read the RSS Blog.
• Scriptlets--Internet Explorer 7 disables Dynamic HTML (DHTML) scriptlets by default. (Scriptlets were deprecated in Internet Explorer 5). They can be re-enabled by system administrators by changing URLActions with the Internet Control Panel (INetCPl.) The INetCPL text should read "Allow Scriptlets." If your programs rely on scriptlets, we recommend that you use DHTML behaviors, which are more efficient. Disabling scriptlets is part of our continued work to ensure that unsupported technology is deemphasized in Internet Explorer.
• ActiveX controls--The new Internet Explorer 7 ActiveX Opt-In feature disables ActiveX controls on a user's machine. When the user encounters a webpage with a disabled ActiveX control, they see an Information bar to enable the control. Controls which were used in Internet Explorer 6 before upgrading to Internet Explorer 7, along with some pre-approved controls, are not disabled.
• Channel Definition Format (CDF)--All CDF support was removed from Internet Explorer 7 and replaced with the RSS feed reading experience. Feeds that the user is subscribed to are available to other applications through the RSS Platform. For details, read the RSS Platform.
• DirectAnimation--All DLLs to support the Internet Explorer DirectAnimation component were removed in Internet Explorer 7 RC1.
• XBM--Support for XBM, an imaging format designed for X-based systems, was deleted.
• SSL--Support for weak SSL ciphers was removed from Windows Vista and support for SSLv2 was disabled for Internet Explorer 7 on all platforms.
• Windowed Select--The Windowed Select Element was replaced by Windowless Select in Internet Explorer 7. This results in some cosmetic changes.
• BASE Element--Internet Explorer 7 strictly enforces the BASE element rule, as documented in the HTML 4.01 standard. We no longer allow BASE tags outside of the HEAD of the document. The standard specifies that the base element must appear within the head of the document, before any elements that refer to an external source.
• window.opener and window.close--Internet Explorer 7 no longer allows the window.opener trick to bypass the window.close prompt. Browser windows cannot close themselves unless the windows were created in script. This security enhancement no longer allows browsing to a random site when the main browser window closes unexpectedly.
• Changes that affect modal or modeless dialogs created from script--Modal or modeless dialogs created from script in Internet Explorer 7 might seem to be slightly bigger than their Internet Explorer 6 counterparts. This is caused by a change to the behavior of the dialogWidth and dialogHeight properties, which now set and retrieve dimensions of the content area of a dialog (from Internet Explorer 7 and onward). It will no longer be necessary to calculate the area lost by components of a dialog’s frame.
  More information on these changes will soon be available on our Internet Explorer Blog.
• Generic Spoofing Risk Reduction in Internet Explorer 7--The window.prompt script method is blocked and the gold Information bar is displayed by default in Internet Zone for Internet Explorer 7. This is a new security enhancement for Internet Explorer 7.
• WWW-Auth--Internet Explorer 7 changes the precedence rules for WWW-Auth. Previous releases of Internet Explorer used the first header encountered. Internet Explorer 7 uses the first header except when the header is Basic. Internet Explorer 7 uses Basic authentication if no other authentication mechanism is present.
• HTTPOnly Cookies--HTTPOnly cookies can no longer be overwritten from scripts.
• _SEARCH--The _SEARCH sidebar is disabled by default in Internet Explorer 7 RC1. It is now a setting in the advanced InetCPL and can be turned on, using a URLAction.
• View Source--The view-source protocol no longer works in Internet Explorer 7 RC1.
• Gopher Protocol--Support for the Gopher protocol was removed at the WinINET level. (Gopher support was turned off by default in Internet Explorer 6.)
• window.external.ImportExportFavorites--window.external.ImportExportFavorites has been removed in Internet Explorer 7 Beta.
• Telnet--The Telnet protocol handler is no longer supported in Internet Explorer.
• SysImage URL Scheme--The SysImage URL Scheme has been removed from Internet Explorer.
• Status Bar Scripting--Script will no longer be able to set the status bar text through the window.status and window.defaultStatus methods by default in the Internet and Restricted Zones. This small step helps prevent attackers from leveraging those methods to spoof the status bar. To revert to previous behavior and allow Script to set the status bar through window.status and window.defaultStatus, follow these steps:
  • Open Internet Explorer, click the Tools button, click Internet Options, and then click the Security tab. Click Internet or Restricted sites, and then click the Custom level button.
  • Scroll down to Allow status bar updates via script, select Enable, and then click OK until you return to Internet Explorer.
• Security Settings for Script Access to the Clipboard--New security-related updates for Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 include a change in the default security settings for Script Access to the clipboard. Sites using scripts to access the clipboard in the Internet and Trusted sites zones will receive a prompt that will inform the user that their clipboard is being accessed by script. The prompt will require user permission to continue. This is designed to prevent the possibility of information disclosure through script access to the clipboard.
• Installing Internet Explorer 7 RC1 with Windows 2003 SP1--The homepage will be reset to the secure page (res://shdoclc.dll/softAdmin.htm).

 

[madmatt]

Issues with RC1

Late-Breaking Notes and Issues
The following open issues in Internet Explorer 7 RC1 might be fixed in beta updates or in the final release of Internet Explorer 7. We are mentioning them here because we think they might impact customers. The information applies to all Microsoft platforms, unless the notes specifies content unique to Windows Vista or Windows XP SP2.

• Application Compatibility Toolkit Beta 5.0 Available--The Application Compatibility Toolkit Version 5.0 Beta program is available for download through the Microsoft Connect Program. This toolkit, which runs on Windows XP SP2, Windows Server 2003 SP1, and Windows Vista, replaces the Temporary Application Compatibility Toolkit which supported previous Beta versions of Internet Explorer 7. The Temporary Application Toolkit is not longer available.
• Citrix©--The CITRIX ICA Client ActiveX Control does not work when run in Internet Explorer 7 Protected Mode on Microsoft Windows Vista. The user will not be able to see the remote desktop in a webpage that is hosting the control. To work around the issue, the user can right-click the Internet Explorer icon and select Run as administrator. This allows the ActiveX control to run.
• SmartBridge© by Motive--SmartBridge© is distributing an old version of PSAPI.DLL. As a result, users might receive the following error message after installation of Internet Explorer 7 Beta: SmartBridge Alerts:MotiveSB.exe Entry Point Not Found
  The procedure entry point GetProcessImageFileNameW could not be located in the dynamic link library PSAPI.DLL
  To work around this error:
  • Go to the installation location for SmartBridge (\Program Files\Verizon...\Smart...)
  • Find PSAPI.DLL and rename it to something like PSAPIOLD.DLL
  • Restart the computer
  The program will find the new PSAPI.DLL in the \Windows\System32 directory and function normally.
• Hal Screen Reader and Supernova Reader Magnifier by Dolphin--These screen readers stop responding when users click commands from Internet Explorer’s file menu. These two programs are shipped with an older version of psapi.dll which causes the program to stop responding in Internet Explorer 7. To workaround this issue, follow these steps:
  • Go to the installation location for Dolphin Hal Screen Reader or Supernova Reader Magnifier
  • Find PSAPI.DLL and rename it to something like PSAPIOLD.DLL
  • Restart the computer
  The program will find the new PSAPI.DLL in the \Windows\System32 directory and function normally.
• Upgrading Internet Explorer 7 from a previous build (not uninstalling Internet Explorer 7 first) can leave computer in confusing state for users who require Assistive Technology programs--Assistive technology software that runs on Windows, such as screen reading software, will not be able to read the screens that appear while installation is being completed (after your computer restarts) because those screens are displayed before the assistive technology starts. When the installation is complete, your computer will restart again.
• Reset Internet Explorer Settings (RIES)--Use Reset Internet Explorer Settings (RIES) if you need to reset Internet Explorer after installing incompatible browser extensions, spyware or malware. See Reset Internet Explorer Settings on the Internet Explorer blog for more details.
• Reset Internet Explorer Settings (RIES)--When you reset all settings a non-OEM or unbranded version of Internet Explorer 7 running on Windows Vista, the homepage gets changed to the single tab http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/default.mspx instead of www.msn.com and www.live.com tabs.
• Reset Internet Explorer Settings (RIES) Behavior in Special Scenarios--The following sections describe special handling of some settings by RIES in Internet Explorer 7 RC1. This feature is referred to as "Reset Internet Explorer to the Default Settings" in the Help content.
  • Protected Mode Settings (Windows Vista only)--These settings determine how Internet Explorer 7 runs a process from within protected mode. You can find more information in the MSDN article, Understanding and Working in Protected Mode Internet Explorer. REIS sets this list to the defaults known at installation time. Additional controls added to the list after that time will be cleared.
  • ActiveX Compat Key--This key contains kill bits that prevent known harmful controls from getting loaded. RIES resets compatibility bits of the CLSIDs known at Beta 2 release time and leaves other CLSIDs as they were.
  • Feature Control Keys (FCK)--This key provides a way to opt in to certain secure settings that can be used by multiple features and applications. This key is not reset by RIES.
  • Enhanced Security Configuration (ESC) Defaults on Server Machine--If ESC is ON, RIES resets Internet Explorer to the ESC defaults. If ESC is OFF, RIES resets Internet Explorer to the standard defaults. RIES does not cause the state of ESC to be changed.
• Spoofing User Agent String Values to Internet Explorer 6--Some webpages, which have hard coded values for the User Agent String, will work if you temporarily spoof them, using the User Agent Utility to make it appear as though they are running on Internet Explorer 6. The tool will create an instance of Internet Explorer 7 that emulates Internet Explorer 6. Other instances of Internet Explorer 7 will not be affected.
• RSS feed detection button--Internet Explorer 7 RC1 uses a link in the HTML of a webpage to enable the feed discovery button located on the Command Bar. If a page does not have that link element, Internet Explorer 7 does not detect the feed. See the Internet Explorer Blog entry for details.
• SharePoint--Windows® SharePoint® Services (WSS) cannot import spreadsheets when Internet Explorer 7 RC1 is running.
• Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004--If Flight Simulator 2004 stops responding after you have installed Internet Explorer 7 RC1, find the oleacc.dll file in the Flight Simulator folder and rename it to oleacc.old. Then restart Flight Simulator.
• SAP GUI--You cannot use the SAP GUI with Internet Explorer 7 RC1. A fix for the issue will be available in patch level 20 of the SAP GUI for Windows 6.40 and patch level 64 for Windows 6.20, later this summer.
• GE Pathspeed ActiveX Control--An ActiveX control that is used on old versions of Pathspeed™ from General Electric (GE) prevents users from accessing ActiveX controls and generates the message, "Security certificate has expired." This problem is fixed on newer versions of the Pathspeed product.
• Freedom Scientific--When using Freedom Scientifics' JAWS® for Windows screen reader with Internet Explorer 7 RC1, you might encounter the following issues with shortcut keys. (Please see the Accessibility section for important information about installing JAWS.)
  • JAWS 7 does not display the contents of individual frames when a page contains a frame set. To work around this problem, copy psapi.dll from the \WINDOWS\system32 directory to the directory where JAWS is installed.
  • JAWS 6 and greater reads incorrect information for Select Control with Say Line and Say Control Hot Keys, because of the new Internet Explorer 7 Select Control. For more information on an update to Select Control, contact Freedom Scientific.
  • CTRL+F opens the Internet Explorer Find dialog box rather than the JAWS Find dialog box. To work around this, use INSERT+CRTL+F. This was fixed in JAWS 7.1.
  • INSERT+A does not move the JAWS cursor to the Address bar. To work around this, use ALT+D to set focus on the Address bar
• Input Method Editor (IME)--Certain configurations with Input Method Editor (IME) active, typically on tablet PCs or when the Far East language pack is installed, can cause Internet Explorer 7 to stop responding. It is possible for Internet Explorer to stop responding when an Internet Explorer window or tab is closed while a tooltip is displayed. An example of this is using Outlook Web Access (OWA) to send a mail message; if you hover over the send button so the “send” tooltip is displayed, then click the send button while the tooltip is still displayed, Internet Explorer might stop responding after the mail is sent. To work around this problem, avoid the use of IME in Internet Explorer by following these steps:
  1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
  2. Click Regional and Language Options.
  3. Click the Languages tab.
  4. Click the Details button.
  5. In the Text Services and Input Languages dialog box, click the Advanced tab.
  6. Clear the Extend support of advanced text services to all programs check box.
  7. Click OK twice to save and exit.
  8. Restart your computer.
• Internet Explorer 7 RC1 and Outlook Web Access (OWA)--When a user logs out of an Outlook Web Access server, any other sites open in other tabs in the same Internet Explorer Window might be logged out, if those sites use cookies to establish logon sessions.

Toolbars that are incompatible with Internet Explorer 7
The following is a list of known incompatible toolbars that can cause Internet Explorer 7 to stop responding. We’re actively working with application owners to provide newer, compatible versions so please expect to see updated versions of these toolbars soon. The current workaround is to disable or uninstall these toolbars when running Internet Explorer 7.
To disable a toolbar open Internet Explorer 7, click the Tools button, click Manage Add-ons, click Enable or Disable Add-ons, click the add-on you want to disable, click Disable, and then click OK.
To uninstall a toolbar, use Add or Remove Programs in Windows Control Panel.

• Google Desktop--Google has fixed the issue that caused Internet Explorer 7 to stop responding when opening new tabs. Users need to install the latest version of the Google desktop.
• MSN 1.02 Toolbar--The MSN 1.02 toolbar causes Internet Explorer 7 to stop responding. Users can download the latest version of the MSN Toolbar here.
• Developer Toolbar and Internet Explorer 7 RC1--The latest version of the Microsoft Developer Toolbar runs correctly with Internet Explorer 7 Beta. You can download it from the Internet Explorer Download Page. Previous versions of the Developer Toolbar do not display correctly on systems running Internet Explorer 7 Beta and sometimes cause Internet Explorer to hang.
• VeriSign's i-Nav™ Plug-in--Users of the VeriSign i-Nav IDN Resolver Plug-in might notice that they are unable to navigate to Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) in Internet Explorer 7 RC1. This is caused by Internet Explorer 7's enhanced support for IDNs. To navigate to IDNs in Internet Explorer 7 RC1, please open IE and click from the file menu Tools > Manage Add Ons > Enable or Disable Add Ons. Select the i-Nav browser extensions and "Disable" them.
• RoboForm Toolbar version 6.3.96--Opening multiple tabs in Internet Explorer 7 with the RoboForm Toolbar might cause the browser to stop responding when it is used with Internet Explorer 7.
• Cooxie Toolbar version 1.1.05--The Cooxie Toolbar might cause Internet Explorer 7 to stop responding.
• Diodia Toolbar version 2.4.01--Internet Explorer 7 might stop responding when running this toolbar.
• Ask Toolbar by AskJeeves version 4.0.1.1--Internet Explorer 7 might stop responding when running this toolbar.
• Citi Card's Virtual Account Numbers version 3.7.0.0/134--Internet Explorer 7 cannot open after installation of the Citi Card's Virtual Account Numbers add-on.
• Yellow Pages Toolbar version 4.0--Toolbar does not work correctly with Internet Explorer 7 installed.
• Mojicon Dispenser--Toolbar can cause Internet Explorer 7 to stop responding.
• Logos Word Toolbar--Internet Explorer 7 can stop responding if there are multiple tabs open with this toolbar installed.
• Adelphia Toolbar version 1.2--Opening multiple tabs with this toolbar can cause Internet Explorer 7 to stop responding.

Website Connectivity Issues

• SSL Changes--When navigating to an HTTPS site in Windows Vista, you might encounter a connection failure error page if the server does not correctly support the TLS standard. To work around this problem, open Internet Explorer, click the Tools button, click Internet Options, click the Advanced tab, clear the Use TLS v1.0 check box, and then click OK. (A description of the changes in SSL can be found in the Internet Explorer blog).
• Proxy Connectivity--If you notice slowness or a problem connecting to websites after upgrading to Internet Explorer 7 RC1, it might be due to web proxy auto-detection problems. To fix these problems, follow these steps:
  1. Open Internet Explorer, click the Tools button, and then click Internet Options.
  2. Click the Connections tab.
  3. Under Local Area Networks (LAN) settings, click the LAN Settings button.
  4. Clear the Automatically detect settings check box.
  5. Select the Use a proxy server for your LAN check box, specify your proxy server and port, and then click OK twice.
  You will now be able to navigate to Internet sites.
• Internet Connection Settings--If you notice a problem connecting to websites, it might be because the upgrade to Internet Explorer 7 changed your Internet connection settings from what they were set at in Internet Explorer 6. To work around the problem, follow these steps:
  • Open Internet Explorer, click the Tools button, and then click Internet Options.
  • Click the Connections tab.
  • Click the first entry in the Dialup and Virtual Private Networks list, and then click Settings.
  • Select the Automatically detect settings check box, and then click OK.
  • Repeat the previous two steps for each entry in the Dialup and Virtual Private Networks list.
  • Click the Lan Settings button in the Connections tab, and repeat steps 4-6. Click OK on the Connections tab.
  • Close Internet Explorer and restart it.

 

[ray_gillespie]

I can't get the download! It just goes to http://switch.atdmt.com/action/IE_7..._SP2_mostcommon and then sits there with a blank page! Anyone else get this? It happens on my work pc and at home

 

[SPeedY_B]

You may have atdmt.com blocked? I know I had to un-block it before getting to the download.

 

[ray_gillespie]

Yes, I don't know how or why but that was blocked, but it still doesn't make any difference. I've cleared my cache too, but still no luck

Why the hell would atdmt.com be blocked?

EDIT: May have something to do with Supertrick! Will investigate further...

EDIT EDIT: Ahhhhh!! switch.atdmt.com was blocked from the hosts file, but I've cleared that and it works! Thanks for the tip!

EDIT EDIT EDIT: I've tried giving you reps but I need to spread some around first! Will try again later.

 

[SPeedY_B]

Heh. atdmt is used for advertising aswell as tracking. I have it blocked at router level, quite annoying when someone like Microsoft uses them to track downloads (I guess that's what they're doing?) and I have to hop into the router config and disable the blocking for a while.

Either way, IE7RC1 is now installed, and running fine. Still doesn't work with Meebo though, bah!

 

[Mainframeguy]

thanks for linking me here Khyaman (rep+++) and why you may ask? Because the Citrix ActiveX problem (known issue) is a show stopper for my usage (need it for my work!) - so the chilled IE is teh one for me!

 

[kcnychief]

thanks for linking me here Khyaman (rep+++) and why you may ask? Because the Citrix ActiveX problem (known issue) is a show stopper for my usage (need it for my work!) - so the chilled IE is teh one for me!

I thought that only is an issue on Vista?

Even if it is, there is a workaround....

 

[madmatt]

Derek is right, Protected Mode isn't available for Windows XP.

Citrix©--The CITRIX ICA Client ActiveX Control does not work when run in Internet Explorer 7 Protected Mode on Microsoft Windows Vista. The user will not be able to see the remote desktop in a webpage that is hosting the control. To work around the issue, the user can right-click the Internet Explorer icon and select Run as administrator. This allows the ActiveX control to run.

 

[Mainframeguy]

OK, I'm using it now, and so far it seems to work OK for my work apps too....

I just started finding Firefox was going into resource hogging and crashing on me too often.... I already knew the IE7 functionality more or less met my needs - pleased to see it seems tidier than Ffox now at RC level, my memory usage may even be a 100 meg or so lighter....

How are others finding the RC1 comparatively speaking, so to speak.... not wishing to start any browser fanboy stuff, but interested in other comparitive experiences...

 

[kcnychief]

I can't really give much in regards to comparison, because I have never really used other browsers.

I love IE, the features that version 7 brings to the table are a huge improvement

That being said, IE7 is stable, fast and hasn't given me any problems worth mentioning.

 

[madmatt]

IE7 RC1 is a huge improvement over previous versions of IE. It is very exciting (for me anyway) knowing that Microsoft is once again dedicated to their browser and that they will be delivering a new version every year.

 

[kcnychief]

^^^Well said.

 

[Kr0m]

Hmm, I tried previous versions but it basically ran poorly. So, is this version any better? Until it at least comes close to running to Maxthon's level then I might just stay away from it.

 

[madmatt]

RC1 is very stable and much faster than previous beta releases. RC1 is feature complete. There are a few bugs which I have been told were fixed already in internal builds.

 

[NetRyder]

Final build coming out this month...
http://blogs.msdn.com/ie/archive/20...s-Month_2E002E002E00_Are-you-Ready_3F00_.aspx