Opera Software announces the beta release of Opera 10.50 for Windows, the latest version of its desktop browser.
Opera Software announced the beta release of Opera 10.50 for Windows, the
latest version of its desktop browser.
Opera in a Feb. 11 release touted Opera 10.50 as "the fastest browser
ever," as well as promoting its design and large browsing space.
The latest browser version boasts the fastest JavaScript engine and graphics
library available and also features "great speed on limited networks"
with its Opera Turbo technology, the company said, adding that its new Carakan
JavaScript engine runs Web applications more than eight times faster than its
predecessor. Moreover, Opera 10.50's new Vega graphics library "enables
fast and smooth graphics for everything from tab switching to animation on Web
pages," Opera said.
"Our previous JavaScript engine, Futhark, was the fastest when it was
first introduced a few years ago, and the challenge for our engineers was to
once again to make Opera the fastest browser on Earth," Christen Krogh,
chief development officer at Opera, said in a statement. "We are proud
today to show the results of the amazing work the team has done, and we are
looking forward with great anticipation to the final release of Opera
10.50."
For developers, Opera has remained "at the forefront when it comes to
supporting and implementing Web standards," the company insisted. "The
new Opera Presto 2.5 [layout] engine in Opera 10.5 Beta provides enhanced
support for HTML5 [and] full support for CSS
2.1 and much of the latest CSS 3, displaying
Websites just as developers and designers intended them to look."
Also with the new platform, Widgets go native on Opera. The platform "allows
Opera Widgets to move beyond the Web browser and into your desktop. Each widget
can run as a separate process, independent from the browser, enabling them to
behave as native applications."
In addition, "The new Opera menu in Windows replaces the menu bar and [Opera]
10.50 offers overall improved visuals such as Speed Dial, effects on visual
tabs and more," the company said. And, "with private browsing in
Opera 10.50, you can browse and leave no trace of the Websites you have visited
or other actions you have performed. What differentiates Opera from other
browsers is that you can create private tabs and private windows."
For simplified searching, Opera 10.5 enables users to use their search
engine of choice directly from the address field. "The new address field
also shows your matching results in your history, bookmarks and even actual
content [of] the pages you have visited. You can use different search engines
and Website searches from the new Search field," the company said. And
Opera 10.5 also enables such options as "adding custom searches such as
Twitter, looking at previous searches or finding something on the current page."
Opera 10.5 also integrates well with Windows 7, particularly with the Aero
Glass effect of Windows 7 and Windows Vista. Opera 10.5's Windows 7 integration
includes support for "Aero Peek, Jump List support and a completely
reorganized and easier-to-use menu bar under the new Opera menu."
The beta of Opera 10.50 is "free and currently available for Windows
users at http://www.opera.com/browser/next/. Mac and Linux betas are expected"
to ship not long after the Windows release, Opera said.
Darryl K. Taft covers the development tools and developer-related issues beat from his office in Baltimore. He has more than 10 years of experience in the business and is always looking for the next scoop. Taft is a member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and was named 'one of the most active middleware reporters in the world' by The Middleware Co. He also has his own card in the 'Who's Who in Enterprise Java' deck.
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