Internet Explorer 4
Developer(s) | Microsoft |
---|---|
Initial release |
|
Stable release |
|
MSHTML | |
Operating system |
|
Included with | Windows 95 OSR 2.5 and Windows 98 First Edition |
Predecessor | Internet Explorer 3 (1996) |
Successor | Internet Explorer 5 (1999) |
Type | Web browser |
License | Proprietary |
Website | replay |
Microsoft Internet Explorer 4 (IE4) is the fourth, and by now, discontinued, version of the
It was one of the main participants of the first
Internet Explorer 4 is no longer available for download from Microsoft. However, archived versions of the software can be found on various websites.
Overview
The Internet Explorer 4.0 Platform Preview was released in April 1997, and Platform Preview 2.0 in July that year. Internet Explorer 4 was released to the public on September 22, 1997, and deepened the level of integration between the web browser and the underlying operating system. Installing version 4 on a Windows 95 or Windows NT 4 machine and choosing "
Internet Explorer version 4.0 for Macintosh
On January 6, 1998, at the Macworld Expo in
At the following year's San Francisco Macworld Expo on January 9, 1999, Microsoft announced the release of Internet Explorer 4.5 Macintosh Edition. This new version dropped 68K processor support, introduced Form AutoFill, Print Preview, and Page Holder pane, which allowed user to hold a page of links on one side of the screen that opens pages in the right hand and support for Mac OS technology like Sherlock.
Internet Explorer 4 for Unix
On November 5, 1997, a
Features, technology, and integrated software
IE4 came with
Other new features including
But it was the Web-style view that surprised me so much on first using IE 4. This changes the way you look at Windows, with files and folders now acting like hyperlinks on a Web page; you move your cursor over them to select them, then single click to launch. Individual folders are viewed as Web pages, including My Computer and Control Panel, and any folder you wish can be customised with your choice of background.
Internet Explorer Desktop Market Share | |
---|---|
— October 2023[14] via Net Applications[note 1][note 2] | |
Internet Explorer 8 | 0.01% |
Internet Explorer 9 | 0.01% |
Internet Explorer 11 | 0.06% |
All variants | 0.08% |
Microsoft Edge excluded from the list. | |
Bundled and/or integrated software
- NetDDE.
- Microsoft Internet Mail and News, an early e-mail client add-on for Internet Explorer 3. Internet Mail and News handled only plain text and rich text (RTF) e-mail, it lacked HTML email. Despite being versioned 4.0, Outlook Express was at its first iteration.
- videoconferencing client that uses the H.323protocol for video and audio conferencing.
- FrontPage Express 2.0 was a stripped-down version of Microsoft FrontPage. It was bundled with Internet Explorer 4, but was also available for free, and could be downloaded from online repositories.[16][17]
- RealPlayer was a streaming media player made by Progressive Networks (later called RealNetworks). The first version of RealPlayer was introduced in April 1995 as RealAudio Player and was one of the first media players capable of streaming media over the Internet.[18]
Active Desktop
Active Desktop is a feature of
Channels
Active Channel is a website type which allows synchronizing website content and viewing it offline. It makes use of the Channel Definition Format, which is a way of defining a website's content and structure. Each country had different channels, so picking a country during the installation of IE 4 (and therefore Windows 98) was important. Channels could be displayed in a Channel Bar and made heavy use of Dynamic HTML.
Windows Desktop Update
Windows Desktop Update was an optional feature included with Internet Explorer 4, which provided several updated shell features later introduced with the Windows 98 operating system for older versions of Microsoft Windows. The Windows Desktop Update also added the ability to create desk-bands like the quicklaunch bar. It also updated the Windows file manager, explorer.exe (also a shell), to be more modular and extensible.
MSHTML
MSHTML (Trident) was a layout engine introduced with IE4. It was designed as a
Browser Helper Object
A Browser Helper Object (BHO) is a
for Internet Explorer 4.0, and provides added functionality. Most BHOs are loaded once by each new instance of Internet Explorer.System requirements
Adoption capability overview
Internet Explorer 4.0 had support for
Windows
For Windows, Initially Windows 95 or above, 16MB of RAM, 11MB of disk space (minimum for install).[9] The 16-bit version required a 486, 12 MB of RAM (or 16 MB for Java support), and 25 MB of disk space.[19]
Mac
System Requirements for initial release of 4.0 for Mac:[20]
- Macintosh with 68030 or higher processor
- System 7.1or higher
- 8 MB of RAM with virtual memoryon (12 MB recommended)
- 12 MB of Java VM.
- Open Transport 1.1.1 or higher or MacTCP 2.0.6 or, Config PPP or similar PPP connection software (Control Panel) with PPP (Extension).[20]
IE 4.5 did not support 68k Macs.
Encryption
Internet Explorer 4 was the first version of the browser to support TLS 1.0.
128-bit encryption was available or included for these versions:[23]
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.5 for Macintosh
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.5 128-Bit Edition
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 for Unix
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 Service Pack 2
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 for Macintosh
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 128-Bit Edition
If it is not possible to upgrade to 128-bit, then 40-bit (SGC) is standard.[23]
Versions
Versions overview
Mac OS:
- Version 4.0 – January 6, 1998
- Version 4.5 – January 5, 1999
Version number | Release date | Significant changes | Shipped with | Shdocvw.dll version[24] |
---|---|---|---|---|
4.0 Beta 1 | April 1997 | Improved support of CSS and Microsoft DOM. | 4.71.544 | |
4.0 Beta 2 | July 1997 | Improved support of HTML and CSS. | 4.71.1008.3 | |
4.0 | September 22, 1997 | Improved support of HTML and CSS. | Windows 95 OSR 2.5 | 4.71.1712.6 |
4.01 | November 18, 1997 | Bug fix release. | Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition | 4.72.2106.8 |
4.01 SP1 | May 15, 1998 | Vulnerability patch. | Windows 98 | 4.72.3110.8 |
4.01 SP2 | March 16, 1999 | Updates, included in IE 4.01 SP2. | 4.72.3612.1713 |
Comparison of features across platforms
Feature | Windows 95, NT 4.0, 98 | Windows 3.x, NT 3.5 | Mac OS | Unix |
Active Desktop | Yes | No | No | |
Autocomplete | Yes | No | Yes | |
Active Channel | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
Microsoft Chat 2.x | Yes | No | No | |
Dynamic HTML | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
DirectX | Yes | No | No | |
Explorer bars | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
FrontPage Express | Yes | No | No | |
Internet Connection | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
Internet Mail and News | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
Javascript | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
NetMeeting | Yes | No | No | |
NetShow | Yes | Yes | No | |
Outlook Express | Yes | No | Yes | |
Personal Web Server | Yes | No | Yes | |
RealAudio | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
Security Zones | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
Shockwave | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
TrueType Fonts | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
Wallet | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
Web Publishing Wizard | Yes | No | No | |
Source:Sweet, Steven. "Internet Explorer for Any System". PC Novice. 6 (9): 23. Archived from the original on 2012-03-10.
|
See also
- History of the Internet
- United States v. Microsoft Corp.
- Comparison of web browsers
- Timeline of web browsers
Further reading
- "Microsoft Explorer". PC Novice. PC Novice Guide Series. 6 (9).
References
- ^ John C Abell (August 6, 2009). "Aug. 6, 1997: Apple Rescued — by Microsoft". Wired. Retrieved 2016-03-08.
- ^ a b McMillan, Robert (November 5, 1997). "It's Here!". SunWorld. Archived from the original on 2020-08-02. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ "Information about Internet Explorer Versions". Microsoft.com. Microsoft. August 17, 2005. Archived from the original on 2015-01-30. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ a b c "The History of Internet Explorer". Microsoft. Archived from the original on 2005-10-01. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ "TheCounter.com: The Full-Featured Web Counter with Graphic Reports and Detailed Information". 14 October 2008. Archived from the original on 14 October 2008.
- ^ "TheCounter August 2001". TheCounter.com. INT Media Group. August 2001. Archived from the original on 2001-12-08. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ "TheCounter August 2004". TheCounter.com. INT Media Group. Archived from the original on 2004-08-04. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ "Internet Explorer 4 - WinPlanet Windows Software REviews and Downloads". CWS.Internet.com. JupiterMedia. Archived from the original on 2004-09-15. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ a b c d "PC Pro: Focus: Broadband: Product Reviews: Internet Explorer 4". PcPro.co.uk. Dennis Publishing Limited. October 1997. Archived from the original on 2005-03-21. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ "MacUser: Product Reviews: Microsoft Internet Explorer v4.0". MacUser.co.uk. December 1997. Archived from the original on 2005-02-09. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ InfoWorld.com. InfoWorld Media Group, Inc. Archived from the originalon 1999-08-29.
- ^ Mainsoft (March 3, 2008). "Mainsoft Ships First MainWin 3.0 Application as Microsoft Launches Internet Explorer on Unix". Archived from the original on 3 January 2013.
- ^ "Internet Explorer 4 - WinPlanet Windows Software Reviews". 10 December 2004. Archived from the original on 10 December 2004.
- ^ "Browser Version Market Share". Net Applications. October 2023. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
- ^ https://gs.statcounter.com/#desktop-browser_version-ww-monthly-202310-202310-bar
- ISBN 1-896283-42-X.
You can find the latest version at the www.Microsoft.com Web site
- ISBN 1-57231-514-8.
Frontpage Express is included with Internet Explorer to make it easy for you to upload all of your HTML pages to a server
- ^ "RealNetworks Granted Fundamental Streaming Media Patent, Enhancing Helix Licensing Program". RealNetworks.com. May 23, 2006. Archived from the original on 2006-05-23. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ "Internet Explorer 4.0 for Windows 3.1, Windows NT 3.51, and Windows for Workgroups 3.11: System Requirements". Microsoft. Archived from the original on March 2, 2000. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ a b "Internet Explorer 4.0 for Macintosh Release Notes File". Archived from the original on 2008-12-24. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ "What Browsers Only Support SSLv2?". Archived from the original on November 23, 2009. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
- ^ "Microsoft Strong Encryption Downloads". technet.microsoft.com. 20 February 2014.
- ^ a b c "How to Upgrade Internet Explorer to 128-bit Encryption". Microsoft.com. Microsoft. Archived from the original on 2007-02-09. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
- ^ "How to Determine which Version of Internet Explorer Is Installed". Microsoft.com. Microsoft. Archived from the original on 2006-01-05. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
External links
- Internet Explorer Architecture
- Internet Explorer Community — The official Microsoft Internet Explorer Community