Windows 7 Microsoft isn't the only one developing a hardware-accelerated browser

[reghakr]

Microsoft has shared very few details so far about Internet Explorer (IE) 9, but has said the company is planning to accelerate the performance of text and graphics rendering by taking advantage of the power of PCs’ graphics-processing unit (GPU).

Specifically, Microsoft officials said at the Professional Developers Conference last week that with IE9, it will be moving all graphics and text rendering from the CPU (and GDI) to the graphics card using Direct2D and DirectWrite. (Istartedsomething blogger Long Zheng posted a good write up on Microsoft’s hardware-acceleration plans for IE 9 last week, if you want more details.)

But as News.com reported on November 24, Microsoft isn’t the only browser provider planning to harness hardware acceleration. Mozilla is planning to do the same with Firefox. Firefox developers have posted a prototype demonstrating the ability to take advantage of Direct2D and DirectWrite. Google is interested in the possibilities of hardware-accelerating Chrome, as well, as News.com’s Stephen Shankland notes. Unsurprisingly, the Chrome team is keeping any plans, concrete or otherwise, close to the vest.

The Mozilla folks already are claiming they believe they’ll be first to deliver a hardware-accelerated browser. I’d bet they’re right. Microsoft officials aren’t saying when to expect a test or final version of IE 9. But if the IE team stays on the same trajectory that it followed with IE 8, I’d bet the earliest we’ll see a final version of IE9 is spring 2011. (My calculation?

I’m betting Windows 8 will be released in summer/fall 2011, two years after Windows 7 was released to market, and that IE 9 the version of the browser that will be part of Windows 8, will hit a few months earlier.)
Besides being unwilling to share dates, the Microsoft folks also are not yet talking about which versions of Windows they plan to support with IE 9. Will Microsoft still support XP machines with the next version of IE? There’s no word. My guess is IE 9 won’t work on XP. And based on the less-than-optimal way IE 8 runs on lower-memory XP machines, I’d say XP users might want to steer clear of it if it does run.

More............Microsoft isn't the only one developing a hardware-accelerated browser | All about Microsoft | ZDNet.com

 

[Highwayman]

seriously GPU rendered websites sounds like a pointless idea to me, the only real thing that will gain would be maybe HQ video streams...or maybe add some more bling to browser-games like pogo etc.....like the recent flashplayer that has gpu assist....cos we all need flash player acceleration ?? NOPE....not unless they intend to make use of it by having effects that would boggle a cpu (zero evidence of that happening anytime soon).

Web browsing has to be the LEAST cpu demanding task on a pc, they clearly haven't thought it through, why do they need to save any cpu cycles from that? even a 10 year old cpu bearly lifts a eyebrow browsing or playing web games, even a 6 year old rig wouldnt have a gpu assist feature...so its gonna be limited to a range of pcs that are even on the lowest end of the spectrum hugely overpowered for that chore, that said if Mozilla web based OS comes out then that might be handy.

Can anyone really think of a worse use for the technology? why not do something meaning full like GPU assisted Anti-Virus since they could really go to town on the hueristic deep scanning time. What are they trying to save all these tiny percentages of cpu time for anyway? when ya web browsing the CPU isnt gonna break a sweat even a single core 1500ghz chip could do that with no fuss and enough overhead spare to do other standard tasks like a defrag or AV scan happily.

So i'm now at the only logical conclusion...it's gonna be for Hi-Def video streaming or Games and Apps will become very restrictive by making them run as a terminal system (ie all the game data is on stream, nothing is installed but a client executable of sorts.) which they should be able to do without GPU assist but hey...it's pushing hardware specs up keeping demand for new gear that does old jobs that same as the old gear. So does that mean Mozilla's browser OS is indeed going down that path? a big brother company storing all your data, running your OS, and watching every single action you do and hiding behind bullshit privacy laws that are worthless if someone hacks thier servers? cybercrime will expand beyond belief.

 

[reghakr]

In Task Manager IE is using the most memory. Plus,. there is more than one instance.

No offense,. but I think the developers would have though out all scenarios before taking this step.

 

[Highwayman]

prehaps but i put it to you...the only rigs that can support gpu assist already have to be well above the specs needed top handle anything browsers can throw at them to have said gpu hardware requirements in the first place. can't really say much about IE's task manager size, iI simply don't use it...so on mine it's firefox stealing a massive 70mb wooooow think a pentium 2 with 512mb rig would cope with it...lol I realise render time would be much faster on GPU due to faster ram they tend to have etc, but broadband would need to be a heap more faster and more reliable for a real need to be there.