Windows 10: The Missing Manual

Chapter 10. The Edge Browser

Internet Explorer was the most famous web browser on earth, thanks in part to several years of Justice Department scrutiny. But it may have been too successful for its own good. Because it was built into Windows, because everyone used it, Internet Explorer became a prime target for hackers. Over the years, it had become old, and slow, and riddled with holes and patches. In Windows 10, Microsoft decided to start over. It wrote a brand-new browser—called Edge.

Now, don’t panic. Internet Explorer is still on your computer. You won’t find it in the Start menu—not even in “All apps”—and certainly not on the taskbar. But a search will find it. And if you want to know more about it, read the free downloadable PDF appendix to this chapter, “Internet Explorer.pdf,” on this book’s “Missing CD” page at www.missingmanuals.com.

But as far as Microsoft’s future is concerned, Edge is it. It’s far faster and more modern than IE ever was—and much simpler. You cannot believe how much cruft Microsoft hacked out of it. A ton of stuff nobody used (Trusted Zones, anyone?) and a lot of shortcuts and refinements you’ll miss. (Microsoft says, “Give us time. This is 1.0.”)

Edge is designed to eat up very little screen space with controls, so that the web pages you’re reading get as much room as possible. Yet the big-ticket features you’d expect are in place, like bookmarks, a Downloads list, a History list, Reader view (text and graphics only—no ads, no blinkies), private browsing, ...