Microsoft Confirms It’s Building Its Own Google Chrome Browser

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https://news.softpedia.com/news/microsoft-confirms-it-s-building-its-own-google-chrome-browser-524156.shtml

For the past few years, Microsoft has meaningfully increased participation in the open source software (OSS) community, becoming one of the world’s largest supporters of OSS projects. Today we’re announcing that we intend to adopt the Chromium open source project in the development of Microsoft Edge on the desktop to create better web compatibility for our customers and less fragmentation of the web for all web developers.

As part of this, we intend to become a significant contributor to the Chromium project, in a way that can make not just Microsoft Edge — but other browsers as well — better on both PCs and other devices.

Making the web better for many audiences

Working with open source is not new for Microsoft Edge. Our mobile browser has been based on open source from its beginnings over a year ago. We’ve also used open source for various features of Microsoft Edge on the desktop (e.g. Angle, Web Audio, Brotli) and we’ve begun making contributions to the Chromium project to help move browsing forward on new ARM-based Windows devices.

Our goal is to do this in a way that embraces the well-established open source model that’s been working effectively for years: meaningful and positive contributions that align to long-standing, thoughtfully designed architecture, and collaborative engineering. Together we seek the best outcome for all people who use the web across many devices.

Ultimately, we want to make the web experience better for many different audiences. People using Microsoft Edge (and potentially other browsers) will experience improved compatibility with all web sites, while getting the best-possible battery life and hardware integration on all kinds of Windows devices. Web developers will have a less-fragmented web platform to test their sites against, ensuring that there are fewer problems and increased satisfaction for users of their sites; and because we’ll continue to provide the Microsoft Edge service-driven understanding of legacy IE-only sites, Corporate IT will have improved compatibility for both old and new web apps in the browser that comes with Windows.

Microsoft Edge + OSS: a new emphasis for Microsoft

Over the next year or so, we’ll be making a technology change that happens “under the hood” for Microsoft Edge, gradually over time, and developed in the open so those of you who are interested can follow along. The key aspects of this evolution in direction are:

1. We will move to a Chromium-compatible web platform for Microsoft Edge on the desktop. Our intent is to align the Microsoft Edge web platform simultaneously (a) with web standards and (b) with other Chromium-based browsers. This will deliver improved compatibility for everyone and create a simpler test-matrix for web developers.

2. Microsoft Edge will now be delivered and updated for all supported versions of Windows and on a more frequent cadence. We also expect this work to enable us to bring Microsoft Edge to other platforms like macOS. Improving the web-platform experience for both end users and developers requires that the web platform and the browser be consistently available to as many devices as possible. To accomplish this, we will evolve the browser code more broadly, so that our distribution model offers an updated Microsoft Edge experience + platform across all supported versions of Windows, while still maintaining the benefits of the browser’s close integration with Windows.

3. We will contribute web platform enhancements to make Chromium-based browsers better on Windows devices. Our philosophy of greater participation in Chromium open source will embrace contribution of beneficial new tech, consistent with some of the work we described above. We recognize that making the web better on Windows is good for our customers, partners and our business – and we intend to actively contribute to that end.

What happens next

If you’re a Microsoft Edge customer, there is nothing you need to do as the Microsoft Edge you use today isn’t changing. If you are a web developer, we invite you to join our community by installing preview builds when they’re available and staying current on our testing and contributions. We expect to have a preview build ready in early 2019 for you to try for yourself.

If you’re part of the open-source community developing browsers, we invite you to collaborate with us as we build the future of Microsoft Edge and contribute to the Chromium project. A few near-term examples will include continued work on ARM64 support, web accessibility, and taking advantage of other hardware features like touch support.

We look forward to sharing more details in the future as we test and learn. We are excited about the opportunity to be an even-more-active part of this community and bring the best of Microsoft forward to continue to make the web better for everyone.

Thanks,

Joe

The post Microsoft Edge: Making the web better through more open source collaboration appeared first on Windows Experience Blog.

Source

 

[CyberTech]

Microsoft has finally confirmed a report that has been making the headlines for several days already: Microsoft Edge will switch to the Chromium engine in the next Windows 10 feature updates.

In an announcement today, Joe Belfiore, Corporate Vice President, Windows, says moving to Chromium would bring several benefits not only to Microsoft, but to the rest of the industry as well, as the company would make significant contributions to the project.

“Our philosophy of greater participation in Chromium open source will embrace contribution of beneficial new tech. We recognize that making the web better on Windows is good for our customers, partners and our business – and we intend to actively contribute to that end,” Belfiore says.

The transition to a new engine won’t be a disruptive switch for existing Microsoft users. Even though Belfiore doesn’t mention it specifically, he suggests that the user interface and the name of Microsoft Edge would be retained.

“If you’re a Microsoft Edge customer, there is nothing you need to do as the Microsoft Edge you use today isn’t changing,” he explains.

Microsoft Edge on macOS

By switching to Chromium, Microsoft can also release Microsoft Edge on other platforms, including macOS. Technically, Microsoft Edge can become available on all platforms where Google Chrome is already up for grabs, and this includes both mobile and desktop operating systems.

The first preview build of the new Microsoft Edge will be released in early 2019, Belfiore says, though a specific launch date for the final app hasn’t been provided. However, it will take time to complete work on this project, the Microsoft exec emphasizes.

“Over the next year or so, we’ll be making a technology change that happens “under the hood” for Microsoft Edge, gradually over time, and developed in the open,” he says. “We expect to have a preview build ready in early 2019 for you to try for yourself.”

The next major Windows 10 update is due in the spring of 2019, and it could come with at least a preview version of the browser for users to try it out.

 

[RoboMan]

I would really love to see this. I really appreciate Microsoft's effort in making Edge secure for use, nevertheless I hate using it. I don't know if I'm the only one but Edge is really buggy. For the first three or four pages is really fast and then I start having blank screens or slow downs... Extensions fail... Lastpass, for example, tends to have blank screens or crashes. I don't know in which language Microsoft codes but this happens with everything they code lol, like Edge, IE, Office, VB...

Hopefully, a chromium-based browser will offer us the stability we need, with the extra layer of security Edge offered, with great integration with Smartscreen. Let's see how they deal with being one version behind the official Chrome.

 

[gorblimey]

There's nothing good about Chrome, just as there's nothing good about Firefox.

Edge is only a problem because it's running on a problem parent: Win10. I can recall with clarity the days when IE--in its extreme youth--was a total disaster. But Microsoft listened, and produced IE4. Netscape sank like a rock in the ocean, and faded into obscurity even faster. IE was\\\ is the most secureable browser ever, even though you have to give up Activ-X for the privilege. But many users these days switch JS off for routine browsing in non-IE browsers. And IE was the only browser to offer client-side ICRA child safety using .rat files, the only successful child protection system.

Chrome, all versions, has no hood to lift. Users are stuck with whatever their fave fork deigns to give them. IE is at least customisable, and many Gecko forks offer extreme features for enthusiasts while remaining user-friendly for beginners.

Can Google be trusted with our data? Those who have suffered depredations in Gmail would say absolutely "NO". Is Chrome secure? Do you really trust Google?

It is my considered opinion that Microsoft would do better for its clients by giving up on Win10 and bringing forward Win12, with a total redesign of Edge using M$ in-house technology. After all, Microsoft has a long and successful history of leading-edge games and sims. They produce several other very highly regarded programs, for example Windows Firewall.

Microsoft taking the Chrome road would doubly ensure my Win7 will be succeeded by ReactOS when this box dies.

 

[RoboMan]

There's nothing good about Chrome, just as there's nothing good about Firefox.

Edge is only a problem because it's running on a problem parent: Win10. I can recall with clarity the days when IE--in its extreme youth--was a total disaster. But Microsoft listened, and produced IE4. Netscape sank like a rock in the ocean, and faded into obscurity even faster. IE was\\\ is the most secureable browser ever, even though you have to give up Activ-X for the privilege. But many users these days switch JS off for routine browsing in non-IE browsers. And IE was the only browser to offer client-side ICRA child safety using .rat files, the only successful child protection system.

Chrome, all versions, has no hood to lift. Users are stuck with whatever their fave fork deigns to give them. IE is at least customisable, and many Gecko forks offer extreme features for enthusiasts while remaining user-friendly for beginners.

Can Google be trusted with our data? Those who have suffered depredations in Gmail would say absolutely "NO". Is Chrome secure? Do you really trust Google?

It is my considered opinion that Microsoft would do better for its clients by giving up on Win10 and bringing forward Win12, with a total redesign of Edge using M$ in-house technology. After all, Microsoft has a long and successful history of leading-edge games and sims. They produce several other very highly regarded programs, for example Windows Firewall.

Microsoft taking the Chrome road would doubly ensure my Win7 will be succeeded by ReactOS when this box dies.

Give your data to Google, give your data to Microsoft. Same sh1t, different toilette.

Google built the most secure browser, along with Microsoft with Edge so far. If somebody else prefers to use another browser for terms of privacy, good luck with that, but I will always prefer to use Chrome and try to reduce telemetry all I can, but enjoy of the whole Google team working for security updates.

 

[Eddie Morra]

"Microsoft Edge" sounds about right - it's definitely edgy for me.

I don't know in which language Microsoft codes but this happens with everything they code lol, like Edge, IE, Office, VB...

Microsoft use the same languages as everyone else, but in my opinion, they do a lousy and inattentive job 99.9% of the time.

People can talk about how bugs are apart of all software - it's true, they're naturally part of software because software is created by humans, and humans are not perfect - but if Microsoft paid more attention to what they were doing and improved their organisation skills, I think they'd see a big difference in the quality of their creations.

Microsoft can talk about how they want to push for a safer world until the cows come home, but in my opinion, they always end up contradicting themselves through stupid actions.

Visual Studio 2017 Enterprise has started bugging up for me lately and complaining about the WDK extension.

I'm not a Microsoft hater... I'm a Microsoft customer who is disappointed with many things.

 

[Genux]

Thanks for the news. Edge is okay, but my Nano AdBlocker does not block Ads properly. Microsoft is supporting open-source and seems like this is one of them. Thanks for sharing.

 

[spaceoctopus]

Is that difficult for Microsoft to allow integration of extensions flexibility like other browsers? Instead of building another browser again.

 

[Eddie Morra]

Is that difficult for Microsoft to allow integration of extensions flexibility like other browsers? Instead of building another browser again.

Well, Microsoft Edge has many issues aside from extension support. I suspect this is the main reason for why they want to get rid of their existing work as fast as possible and switch to something else using Chromium.

A browser engine being used by a vendor who have contributed for a ton of the Windows vulnerabilities in the past decade? What could they ask for more?

 

[oldschool]

I suppose I am in the very small minority of Edge users who suffers only small annoyances like window resizing when scrolling (it just gets a hair's width smaller) or else I am blissfully ignorant of its more serious issues. I only use one extension: Nano Adblocker and it works perfectly fine. I like a clean UI, with no bookmarks bar, and I really am oldschool because I prefer Edge's drop-down favorites window for its simplicity. It is visually the cleanest UI of any browser I have used. And its generally as fast as my other browsers, FF and Brave Beta. I really use Edge 95% of the time. I also use Edge since I'd rather have MS use/sell my data than the behemoth that Google is. (Think Mr. Robot's E Corp!) And I like to spread my data collection around to different vendors! Above all else, I value Edge for SmartScreen and its security-by-obscurity (less people using it!). Having said all this, I will withhold judgement until I actually have a new Edge browser to use. Depending on how it's designed and configured I may use it or migrate to something else. If I were switching today, it would probably be Brave Beta. The title of the latest Edge story has been written, but not the story. We will see...

 

[Deleted member 178]

The choice of Chromium isn't innocent, chromium is the only one that can handle appcontainer used by Edge.

 

[ForgottenSeer 72227]

I guess this announcement touched a nerve with Mozilla.

Goodbye, EdgeHTML

 

[DeepWeb]

I think they realized Chromium project and the way Google Project Zero is so far ahead that there's just no point in catching up. Chrome extension support is gong to be a big deal.

 

[ForgottenSeer 72227]

The choice of Chromium isn't innocent, chromium is the only one that can handle appcontainer used by Edge.

I'm curious what will happen with things like smartscreen for Edge. Can they replace the one built into chromium, can they have both, or and this maybe a stretch, are we now seeing the reason why they released an extension for chrome

 

[509322]

The choice of Chromium isn't innocent, chromium is the only one that can handle appcontainer used by Edge.

Google is Microsoft's role-model. Microsoft wants to be Google (Alphabet).