codybear
01-26-2000, 07:48 PM
Last week's Insider: http://www.winmag.com/win98/newsletter/2000/02.htm#ns
Because the topic of this newsletter is Windows 98, I've covered
Internet Explorer 4.0 and 5.0 (which are ostensibly integrated
into Windows). I hadn't really planned on treating Netscape, but
I'm glad many of you asked me to. Now I have an excuse. ;-)
So, anyway, to answer the question about what's going on at
Netscape, I called them, and talked to the lead product marketing
and development folks who work on Netscape Communicator. We had a
conference call for about an hour, and I came away pretty excited
about Netscape's future. Here are some of the things you can
expect.
First, there is a maintenance release to Communicator 4.7 that's
in the works now, and nearing distribution. There was a 4.71 beta
version that was posted on the Netscape FTP site as a private
beta for corporations. It's no longer available, but the company
is still working on this build. You can expect this next upgrade
no later than the end of March, but probably *much* sooner. It's
possible that it won't be called 4.71, and no name has been set
yet.
Second, in case you haven't been paying attention, Netscape is
working with Mozilla.org on its next-generation product.
Originally described as Communicator 5.0, and announced in the
fall of 1998, Netscape's next major upgrade is still under
development. Why have we been waiting so long? According to
Netscape's Chris Saito and Michael Laguardia, Netscape originally
planned to create Communicator 5.0 as an evolution from the
Netscape 4.x code base. But NETSCAPE.EXE and its support files is
a large, old-fashioned, monolithic program. When Netscape saw how
quickly and well Mozilla.org's open source Gecko browser engine
was progressing, they decided to start all over, and base their
next version on Gecko.
Mozilla.org http://www.mozilla.org
Although that's left us waiting for an upgrade for a long time,
you have to try the latest version of Gecko, called Milestone 12
(M12), to get a sense of just how light on its feet this new
browser will be. It's not just the browser, either. Messenger and
Composer are also being re-written mostly from the ground up, and
you can see their precursors in M12. Netscape wouldn't tell me
when their next-generation browser would appear, except to say
it's getting close. Reading between the lines, though, I'm
guessing that M14 might be the Mozilla.org build they take and
make their own. Hopefully, there'll be no more slippage.
Mozilla M12: http://www.mozilla.org/projects/seamonkey/release-notes/
Given the fact that Communicator 5.0 (or whatever it will be
called) can be embedded, just as Internet Explorer can, it's
finally going to get real as an IE competitor. Nokia, IBM, and
NeoPlanet have all announced that they'll be working with the
embeddable version of Navigator 5.0. Nokia and IBM will be
working with it in their devices, probably with Linux as the
operating system. Meanwhile, the DOJ vs. Microsoft stuff is
loosening up bundling arrangements with OEM PC makers. Netscape
is hoping to win back some marketshare with its next-gen browser.
And I think they have a chance to do just that.
Because the topic of this newsletter is Windows 98, I've covered
Internet Explorer 4.0 and 5.0 (which are ostensibly integrated
into Windows). I hadn't really planned on treating Netscape, but
I'm glad many of you asked me to. Now I have an excuse. ;-)
So, anyway, to answer the question about what's going on at
Netscape, I called them, and talked to the lead product marketing
and development folks who work on Netscape Communicator. We had a
conference call for about an hour, and I came away pretty excited
about Netscape's future. Here are some of the things you can
expect.
First, there is a maintenance release to Communicator 4.7 that's
in the works now, and nearing distribution. There was a 4.71 beta
version that was posted on the Netscape FTP site as a private
beta for corporations. It's no longer available, but the company
is still working on this build. You can expect this next upgrade
no later than the end of March, but probably *much* sooner. It's
possible that it won't be called 4.71, and no name has been set
yet.
Second, in case you haven't been paying attention, Netscape is
working with Mozilla.org on its next-generation product.
Originally described as Communicator 5.0, and announced in the
fall of 1998, Netscape's next major upgrade is still under
development. Why have we been waiting so long? According to
Netscape's Chris Saito and Michael Laguardia, Netscape originally
planned to create Communicator 5.0 as an evolution from the
Netscape 4.x code base. But NETSCAPE.EXE and its support files is
a large, old-fashioned, monolithic program. When Netscape saw how
quickly and well Mozilla.org's open source Gecko browser engine
was progressing, they decided to start all over, and base their
next version on Gecko.
Mozilla.org http://www.mozilla.org
Although that's left us waiting for an upgrade for a long time,
you have to try the latest version of Gecko, called Milestone 12
(M12), to get a sense of just how light on its feet this new
browser will be. It's not just the browser, either. Messenger and
Composer are also being re-written mostly from the ground up, and
you can see their precursors in M12. Netscape wouldn't tell me
when their next-generation browser would appear, except to say
it's getting close. Reading between the lines, though, I'm
guessing that M14 might be the Mozilla.org build they take and
make their own. Hopefully, there'll be no more slippage.
Mozilla M12: http://www.mozilla.org/projects/seamonkey/release-notes/
Given the fact that Communicator 5.0 (or whatever it will be
called) can be embedded, just as Internet Explorer can, it's
finally going to get real as an IE competitor. Nokia, IBM, and
NeoPlanet have all announced that they'll be working with the
embeddable version of Navigator 5.0. Nokia and IBM will be
working with it in their devices, probably with Linux as the
operating system. Meanwhile, the DOJ vs. Microsoft stuff is
loosening up bundling arrangements with OEM PC makers. Netscape
is hoping to win back some marketshare with its next-gen browser.
And I think they have a chance to do just that.