IE8 Installation: the User is in Control
As a follow-up to my prior blog post about Automatic Update/Windows Update distribution that began gradually in April, I want to provide an overview of the control users have over the installation and experience.
First, to reiterate what I explained last month: when offered by Automatic Update, IE8 will not automatically install- the user has control over whether to upgrade to IE8. When offered IE8, three choices are offered: Ask later, install, or don’t install. If one chooses “Ask me later” then IE8 will continue to be offered via Automatic Update, and choosing “Don’t Install” will cause IE8 to no longer be offered via this method. Users who choose “Don’t Install” can still download IE8 from https://www.microsoft.com/ie8 or from Windows Update as an optional update.
Users continue to have complete control over IE8 settings and behavior throughout the first-run experience and ongoing use. For example, if IE is not the default browser in Windows, the option to change this setting is presented in a wizard that runs the first time IE8 is launched.
The “express settings” option allows one to view and set several pre-defined settings, many of which are optimized for safety and reliability:
Update 5/9/09: We have updated the above screenshot. The original screenshot was taken when Internet Explorer was already the default browser at the time of the upgrade to IE8 - in that case the default browser setting is not shown, since choosing the Express Settings option would not make any changes to this setting. If a browser other than Internet Explorer is the default at the time of the upgrade to IE8 the wizard will appear as shown above, displaying the default browser setting.
For service settings such as the search provider, express settings will respect your existing service choices when upgrading from a prior version such as IE7 or a prior pre-release version of IE8. For more information about IE8’s services, see Jane Kim’s Personalize IE8 through Services post.
If one wants to manage these settings more granularly, the “Choose custom settings” option provides the ability to set each setting individually:
Finally, while using IE8, if another browser is set as the default users will be given the opportunity to change the default, as well as determine whether to be reminded again:
Different browsers take different approaches to how their settings are managed; IE8 is designed to leave the decisions to the user, providing choice and control over the browsing experience.
Eric Hebenstreit
Lead Program Manager
Edit 5/9/09: Updating first screenshot. The original screenshot was taken on an upgrade when IE was already the default browser. The updated screenshot is taken on an upgrade when a different browser is the default. See this new blog post for more details.
Comments
Anonymous
May 01, 2009
That's really nice, specially when you have issues with other software. I have a HP laptop using Windows Vista with DigitalPersona fingerprint software, and it has problems with IE8, so I decided not to install IE8 right now, maybe some time later, when DigitalPersona releases an update or fix. Anyway, IE8 seems really nice! Best regards!Anonymous
May 01, 2009
If the user has firefox as a default browser and choose "express settings", does IE8 become the default browser without asking the user? i'm refering to this post, see the screenshot there: http://www.pcworld.com/article/164127/make_firefox_the_default_browser_again_after_installing_internet_explorer_8.htmlAnonymous
May 01, 2009
I really think the default behaviour should be to respect the users current default browser choice on install. The user will get the chance to make IE8 the default choice if they decide to use it anyway.Anonymous
May 01, 2009
That's great. Any word on when the Internet Explorer Application Compatibility VPC Images are going to be updated? They expired on April 30.Anonymous
May 01, 2009
You are being frowned upon for being sneaky about the default browser setting. The summary of "express" ("sneaky") settings should state that IE8 is being made default browser! You guys just can't seem to stick to fair play!Anonymous
May 01, 2009
David Naylor, At least it doesn't make it as default browser right after install (if you don't change anything), like in Firefox and OperaAnonymous
May 01, 2009
Vygantas: I don't know what Opera does, but Firefox always prompts the user before changing that setting. (Both during install and on first run.)Anonymous
May 01, 2009
>90% of users will just click red button in the corner. And after installing IE8 on several PCs, I will too. Because it's boring, ugly and lengthy. Nobody wants spending several minutes on yes/no wizards and non-informative sites. What could have been useful there:
- Configuring search provider (one "Google" button and that's it);
- Configuring annoying tab and ClearType options;
- Back up/restore accelerators/favorites easily.
Anonymous
May 01, 2009
@David Naylor and @Vygantas All browsers want to make themselves the default. If you just click through "Next" without reading what's on screen, you'll make your last installed browser the default one... But also, all browsers give you the option to not make the browser the default one, even if its set to make it default by default (excuse the pun). At least IE8 has the dignity not to have any option selected by default (see the second last screenshot in the post) IF you select "Choose custom settings". I set IE8 as the default browser on all machines I have (but I also have all other browsers installed), so I don't know if "Use express settings" makes IE8 the default without a prompt, but I believe that even if you don't see that prompt during setup (as the second last screenshot), you'd see it at first launch (as the last screenshot)... at least I'd expect that. Correct me if I'm wrong on that one. But even if IE8 does make itself the default when using express settings, I for one wouldn't mind that. When you select "Use express settings", you're basically saying "Do whatever you will, but don't bother me. If I have a problem with what you've done, I'd fix it later myself. For now, I just want to get my new browser. NOW!".Anonymous
May 01, 2009
Oh, BTW, @fmerletti I just saw that the article you mention has been updated, saying IE8 does tell the user it will change the default browser when you select "Use express settings". That also answers whether IE8 prompt at first launch - it doesn't, and it says so during setup.Anonymous
May 01, 2009
Why not make IE 8 so good that everyone will WANT to make it default instead of tricking less technical users into using it again? I suspect even a non-technical user will know that their browser UI suddenly changed but I doubt they will know how to switch it back. Must be worth it for the 0.5% increase in marketshare you get, I am not so sure it will look good for the EU though. Thanks again Microsoft, because of your action I will have to spend another few hours of unnecessary work (again). @boen_robot : "All browsers want to make themselves the default." Only when you install them specifically. They do not have hooks into Windows update and make themselves default again after updating. An update should always keep existing settings, even if the developer has hooks into Windows Update and happens to think their browser is the best. Giving users prompts does not mean anything (Microsoft know this from years of security problems). They always click yes because they do not understand the question and they know that clicking yes, ok or next always gets things done. "IE is not your default browser" - I have met many many people who do not know what IE, default or browser means. Very few know what all 3 are. Also, while we are on the subject, NOBODY knows what an ActiveX control is.Anonymous
May 02, 2009
Any news on when IE App Compatibility VPC Images for XPSP3, with a new expiration, will be RTW?Anonymous
May 02, 2009
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May 02, 2009
The early sections seemed relavant, and I was able to understand a fair amount of the material, though with no certain sense of how it will be something I need down the road. The rest of it became more and more complicated Greek. I could see that they were important to people who use and need such applications and functionality. But, lines of demarcation pointing out what is crucial for daily household operation would be very welcome.Anonymous
May 02, 2009
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May 02, 2009
Wow - That sounds like a lot of work to just get a decent secure browser. I prefer this procedure.
- Install Firefox for friend.
- Walk away. I don't like it when this happens.
- Install Firefox.
- MS update replaces default browser because user is 'stupid'.
- I have to explain to them over the phone how the user interface changed to something terrible and how to get their old one back. IE was good in the 20th century but people have moved on a lot since the release of IE6. Did Microsoft expect we would all wait for them to release a decent browser and then welcome them with open arms when they finally make something that is not a complete pile? Firefox only asks if it should be default when you first install it, it does not ask on every update. They certainly do not try to trick 'stupid' users into making it default to inflate their figures.
Anonymous
May 02, 2009
Yeah. I don't like the second scenario either. That's why I isntall the latest IE (today, that'd be IE8), and forget about it. > Did Microsoft expect we would all wait for > them to release a decent browser and then > welcome them with open arms when they finally > make something that is not a complete pile? To follow up on that metaphor, I think the MSIE team don't deserve hugs and/or kisses just yet (assuming that's what the opened arms are for), but they do deserve a salute, a handshake or a wink - IE8 is a great leap from IE7 after all, even though it's still not as good as other browsers. > Firefox only asks if it should be default > when you first install it, it does not ask on > every update. It's been a long time since I did this, so correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't an upgrade from Firefox 2 to Firefox 3 ask for you to make it the default browser yet again (assuming you changed your default browser between the FF2 and FF3 installations)? If you download the executable from the site, rather than from the Help menu, doesn't it also ask again (major OR minor version; again assuming the default is changed)? Point it that minor updates in general (IE security and reliability updates from Windows Update or Firefox's Help menu) don't change settings. But it's normal for major ones to ask you to change settings yet again, even if they preserve most of the old version's settings, as in the case of IE8.Anonymous
May 02, 2009
Issue with IE7/Vista to IE8 update. I have Vista SP, x86, ITA. I upgraded from IE7 to IE8. Everything went right as expected except a problem: default web accelerator 'Tranlsate with Live Search' is set as default in arabic-english instead of expected english-italian. Switching 'Protected mode' off the default language for translation is correct: english-italian. Looks like a bug in the update process.Anonymous
May 02, 2009
After some investigation it seems that a wrong cookie is saved in "%appdata%MicrosoftWindowsCookiesLow<username>@translator.live[n].txt" containing ar_en instead of en_it as it should... Removing the cookie doesn't solve the problem. How do I solve this problem?Anonymous
May 02, 2009
Just force an IE8 update for users of IE 5.5, 6, and 7. What is this giving the 'users' control nonsense? That is what causes such a split environment for web development and so many users still stuck on extremely old browser versions. Force the update! Or at least only give two options: install now or ask me later. And then continually give warnings about their browser every time they start until they update. People that don't spend considerable parts of their day on computers are afraid of changing things and will not update unless forced. Force it!Anonymous
May 02, 2009
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May 02, 2009
After installing IE 8 I was unable to open any e-mail attachments on MSN. Verizon/MSN advised me to uninstall IE 8 as it is not compatible with MSN. The solution worked and I am able to open all attachments now that I'm back to IE 7. I wish Microsoft and MSN would better communicate and coordinate upgrades.Anonymous
May 02, 2009
Where does IE8 get/store location settings? One ecommerce site reports "not in correct region" since upgrading to 8. Before that IE7 worked fine, Firefox still does on the same machine. All the Windows Regional & Language settings are "local", New Zealand, proved by Firefox still working.Anonymous
May 02, 2009
I NEVER do anything but a custom install though showing what the options are set to for express is commendable as most installers will just do whatever they want and unfortunately a lot of people don't use the custom install option when installing software.Anonymous
May 02, 2009
IE8 Installation: the User is in ControlAnonymous
May 02, 2009
There are a lot of lies being spread here. Every other browser makes itself the default on install. Safari, Opera, Chrome and Firefox all check the "make [me] your default browser" in their installation screens. Don't believe me? Try it. IE8 doesn't even offer to set itself as the default on install-- it's only during FirstRun that the option is shown.Anonymous
May 02, 2009
Robin Capper, look inside Tools / Internet Options / General / Language Settings. What locale is set?Anonymous
May 02, 2009
fmerletti, you're not talking about the same thing. boen_robot is talking about the checkbox that is shown during Firefox setup, not the popup that is shown on run if you ever switch away from Firefox as the default. This is all a bit of a tempest in a teacup. Every browser does pretty much the same thing: Tries to make itself the default if you'll let it, and makes it really easy to switch it back to the default if you start it after something else becomes the default. But I guess it gives everyone something to talk about until Win7 comes out. :-)Anonymous
May 02, 2009
@Rick and @Dan Amen to that :-) It's exactly what I've been trying to say.Anonymous
May 02, 2009
Now that automatic upgrades have begun I have found there to be a lot of people that have issues cause by the unregistered actxprxy.dll Why is Microsoft not adding that dll to be reregistered by IE8 installation. Advising people to reregister their dll using: regsvr32 actxprxy.dll is fine for some experienced users but unaccpetable for most common users.Anonymous
May 03, 2009
In response to JP's posting,forced updates almost caused my computer to crash. I have an older computer with limited disk space (that is very full-not with files but with leftovers of deleted programs that were not removed with either uninstall or remove program). Every new update is bloated with features that many users do not need. Before installation of an update last year, it had 1.5 Gb free. After the update, there was less than 300 Mb free. The space and memory used for forced updates is a waste to a regular, but not power user, like me. At 35 Mb free, I ran Norton removal tool, and immediately had 5.2 Gb free. Just one example of bloated and forced.Anonymous
May 03, 2009
These screens are the most annoying part of a fresh Windows 7 RC install. Why are these questions even asked? Just set it up with your defaults. Not to mention, after ending the wizard you end up with a confusing set of tabs open. P.S. Nobody wants live search by default, but I guess that's too much too ask ;-)Anonymous
May 03, 2009
@hAl: Registering actxprxy.dll doesn't do anything desirable on Vista; Vista uses a different registration mechanism, not self-registration. On XP, AFAIK, the installer does actually register the actxprxy.dll.Anonymous
May 03, 2009
[quote]@hAl: Registering actxprxy.dll doesn't do anything desirable on Vista; Vista uses a different registration mechanism, not self-registration.[/quote] Mayby you should tell the Microsoft support site as on there it an advised method on several knowledge base articles dealing with browser issues on Vista. For example: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;902932 It specifically states that registering dll's trough regsvr32 works on Vista Home basic and Vista Home Premium [quote]On XP, AFAIK, the installer does actually register the actxprxy.dll[/quote] Why then would people notice changes after using registering the dll's. Could there be something interfering with the registering of the specific dll's on installation (like security software) or could the registering fail trough some other reason ?Anonymous
May 03, 2009
@PC: the 'lost space' is actually a bunch of files used to roll back your system updates; actually a running patched system and a non-patched one, with rollbacks removed, have pretty much the same size. Wasted files found by software such as Norton suites (which are, themselves, Bloaat Masters) can be found in several places:
- security patch rollback data: if your system is very old, you have a rollback for SP1, SP2 and SP3, and every and all patches in between: pretty much 6 times the size of a 'core' install of Windows XP (more or less 750 Mb)
- file system log: although supposedly limited in size, this log can get huge
- DrWatson's log: also supposedly limited in size, it can inflate excessively
- if you added some RAM, the hibernation file got bigger, as did the swap file. If you don't use hibernation, disable it.
- System Restore will take several Gb off your hard disk space. It is a good idea to limit it. Moreover, if for any reason you reinstalled Windows, many snapshots may have become stale. IE 8 won't, by itself, crash your system. Actually, you're supposed to keep more than 20% of your hard disk drive space, free: otherwise you get huge slowdowns and very severe fragmentation. Personally, I recommend doing a thorough cleanup and update of a system, disable System Restore (to wipe it clean), re-enable it with a smaller value, reset the file system's journal (but then it would be more easily done with a GUI option, instead of using fsutil usn deletejournal /D c:) and call it a day. Last time I did that on a 5 years old PC still running from its original install, I recovered 9 Gb and divided its boot time by 3. An amount of HD space that makes the 10 extra MB of space IE 8 takes, quite laughable.
Anonymous
May 03, 2009
Re #9584392 Windows region is New Zealand Windows Language is English New Zealand IE Language is English New Zealand (EN-NZ) Site, www.mylotto.co.nz, says "You are not in NZ". Queried the site where they get locale from, the response was "Install Firefox" (which works) but IE8 works too, on other machinesAnonymous
May 04, 2009
OMG we are NOT playing this stupid game again are we Microsoft? IE8 Better NOT make itself the default browser on install (after a FORCED upgrade from Windows). http://www.pcworld.com/article/164127/make_firefox_the_default_browser_again_after_installing_internet_explorer_8.html Absolutely UNFORGIVABLE! in this day and age.Anonymous
May 04, 2009
Oddly enough, every one of the default express settings (except compatibility view) was nearly the exact opposite of what I wanted, so I went with custom.Anonymous
May 04, 2009
@OMG A) It ain't a forced upgrade but an upgrade you must actually agree with. B) The installation program does not have the express settings enabeled/checked which makes IE8 the default browser so you actually have to choose express settings and not just click on next next next next...finish.Anonymous
May 04, 2009
@Robin Capper: If your language/locale setting is correct in IE, my guess is that there's simply a site bug within the Lotto site. Unfortunately, with the response you got, it sounds like the admin isn't interested in fixing their problem. :-( If you visit http://samples.msdn.microsoft.com/workshop/samples/author/behaviors/clientCaps/ccProperties.htm what are the two language settings shown?Anonymous
May 04, 2009
Is there a way to "un-grey" the "Don't show this update again" for IE8 so it can be checked when using the Custom update? Several machines all show the same grey that cannot be checked and I really don't want someone to wander into this and create complications right now. ThanksAnonymous
May 05, 2009
Upgraded my 2nd machine from the Windows Update process. Now, this machine's browser will also crash (I have another machine installed with RC1 with the same exact problem) whenever I right click on any link and select 'Open in New Tab/Window'. This is on just about every site. I've already tried changing the 'protect mode' and that doesn't seem to fix anything. Anyone has any idea?Anonymous
May 05, 2009
@Joe: The majority of IE crashes are caused by incompatible 3rd party software. Please turn Protected Mode back on, then see www.enhanceie.com/ie/troubleshoot.asp#crash for troubleshooting steps.Anonymous
May 05, 2009
Very nice - but why do I still have to reboot my system for the update to complete? Firefox doesn't make you do that.Anonymous
May 05, 2009
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May 05, 2009
@EricLaw. This is on things like www.msnbc.com, right click and select open in new tab. Same thing on most other sites. Even on some sites that doesn't even use Javascript, etc. I'll try to go through the URL you have posted but not sure it's going to get me anywhere since I've been going at this problem for several months now with no real solutions out there.Anonymous
May 05, 2009
@Joe: Thus far, everyone I've spoken to regarding crashes in the "Open in new tab" has been able to fix the problem by disabling addons and/or updating their AV programs.Anonymous
May 05, 2009
Is there going to be a date when this update will be forced ? (I would prefer all users are upgraded to ie8)Anonymous
May 08, 2009
I've been a happy Windows user since version 3.0. I like Windows. But now I've gone and downloaded IE8. After downloading it, I responded to the selections presented in the "Set Up Windows IE8 pop-up window. I manage six user accounts, so I've become pretty familiar with it. But I don't have time to delve in deeply and learn how to use all these features right now. They may be great features; we are just too busy. So I just want to know one simple thing. HOW DO I GET IE 8 TO STOP INCESSANTLY INTERUPTING ME WITH THE "SET UP WINDOWS IE 8" POP-UP? I thought the original idea of personal computing was that we were supposed to be able to tell the computer what to do; not that the computer should tell us when we need to learn about a particular feature. If I don't hear about how to stop this pretty soon (and I have searched), I'm going to uninstall IE 8. So much for the user being in control.Anonymous
May 08, 2009
Re #9585996 systemLanguage = en-nz userLanguage = en-nz Still "not in New Zealand"Anonymous
May 09, 2009
@Stephan: No, upgrades to new IE versions are never forced. IE8 will become available for all XP+ users, but they will always be in control of deciding whether or not it should install. @Robin: The most likely explanation is that the site is doing an IP-based GeoLocation attempt, and, from the sounds of it, failing miserably. Changing the browser (on the same machine) should make no difference unless you're using a different proxy server or VPN with one of the browsers. @csrorke: The wizard will return daily unless you make a selection. It should take somewhere on the order of 5 seconds to click through; because I install new IE builds several times a day at Microsoft, I have clicked through this wizard a few thousand times. If necessary, you could use Group Policy to disable the wizard, but that will take significantly longer if you only have 6 accounts.Anonymous
May 09, 2009
This post walks through the IE setup experience and the choices it offers users. There have been a bunchAnonymous
May 11, 2009
@EricLaw: thank you for your answer.Anonymous
May 12, 2009
Heey! I'm just a stupid 13 years old swedish boy. blabla... But i have thinking about this.
Why not have All the browser in the installation? when i install i can Check the browser i wanna have on my computer. If i wanna have IE i check IE, if i wanna have Mozilla i check mozilla, if i wanna have opera i check opera, if i wanna have two of them i check two of them if i wanna have all i check all!
Didn't that sounds good? I Hopes so! MvH, Mibbo