IE7 Is Coming This Month...Are you Ready?

[Da_Fuzz]

Taken from the Official Internet Explorer blog site:


The final release of IE7 is fast approaching … and I mean really fast … and will be delivered to customers via Automatic Updates a few weeks after it’s available for download. We want to ensure that you are ready and the information below will help get you there.

Compatibility with sites, extensions and applications has been a very high priority for us as we develop new features, enhance the existing features and move the platform forward to be more secure and standards compliant. We are continually listening to feedback from our customers, partners and leaders in the industry to resolve major compatibility issues to ensure our common customers have a great experience with IE7. As we make key improvements in areas such as layout and security, some changes need to be made by site owners to work smoothly with IE7. We have produced detailed documentation, tools and other resources to assist site, extension and application owners in their testing and development efforts to ensure they are compatible with IE7. We have also proactively worked with hundreds of companies to resolve issues that were reported through our beta testing to ensure those issues were resolved before IE7 is released.

These efforts have been ongoing since last year and have been extremely successful but we can’t ensure 100% compatibility without your help. We need you to test and ensure your sites, extensions, and applications are ready for IE7. We strongly encourage you to do the following ASAP:

Download, install and test your products with IE7 RC 1 –This is the fastest and best way to test for compatibility issues.

Download the IE7 Readiness Toolkit - This toolkit pulls together a number of important resources to help you prepare for IE7:

Developer and IT Pro readiness check lists,
Detailed documentation on important changes in IE7,
Testing and debugging guidance,
Tools for testing, debugging and investigating issues,
And more…

Download and use the Application Compatibility Toolkit – Helps test browser-based applications to ensure they work with IE7.

Visit the Microsoft Internet Explorer Developer Center – You will find an array of important information for developers.

Use the Information Index for Internet Explorer7 – Think of this as a table of contents linking you to documentation, blog posts, whitepapers and other information on IE7.

Read the IE Team Blog – Use the search feature on the right to find previous posts on almost any topic you can think of with regard to IE7.

What if my organization is not going to be ready for IE7 in time?

Organizations that are using Automatic Updates in their environments can block the AU deployment of IE7. For more details check out the “Options for Blocking Automatic Delivery” section of our Automatic Delivery of Internet Explorer 7 article.

We hope that you are as ready and excited about IE7 as we are. If you have feedback or encounter any issues, check out the IE7 Support page for FAQs, Release Notes, and feedback options.

Thank you,

Scott Graff
Program Manager – IE7 Compatibility
Microsoft Corporation