Windows RT Says 'No Choice Of Browsers'; Only IE In Windows Classic Environment

Using a browser of our own choice is what we all prefer. But, Windows RT, the name of the Windows OS running on ARM processor, is showing a red signal to its users by denying them a choice of browsers. Since 2004, Windows users have started drifting from Internet Explorer and turned towards other popular browsers, especially Mozilla Firefox and then Google Chrome. Now, it is being reported that Windows RT will have two environments, a Windows Classic environment and a Metro environment for apps. And in the Windows Classic mode, you can use no other browser except Internet Explorer. Only IE will be involved in all of the advanced computing functions that modern browsers perform. Talking of which, isn't it safe to say that if IE can run in Windows on ARM, there is no technical reason why other browsers can’t do the same.



Users will unwelcome this move by Microsoft because it is an encroachment on their freewill of browser choice. The third party browsers will be unhappy to know that they have been swiftly excluded from the platform. This significantly affects every user and developer on Windows, because while ARM chipsets may be built only into phones and tablets today, in the future ARM will be of importance to PC hardware platform as well.

Microsoft is building antitrust army against itself by contradicting its own published <a href="https://lockshot.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/windows-principles-document.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">PDF</a> that everyone relies on. These principles represented a Microsoft market approach that was both notable and went above and beyond their DOJ antitrust settlement obligations. Harvey Anderson, Mozilla General Counsel rightfully says in his  #-Link-Snipped-#, "The world doesn’t need another closed proprietary environment and Microsoft has the chance to be so much more."