Microsofts Internet Explorer 7 is a massive upgrade from previous versions of the browser, with greatly improved standards support and a more secure default security profile. But with great changes often come great hassles, and businesses upgrading to IE 7 will run into their fair share of site and application incompatibilities.
One of the biggest causes of problems in IE 7 will be its new handling of ActiveX controls. ActiveX has historically been one of the main culprits when it comes to IE security problems. The fact that IE now treats ActiveX with a great deal of suspicion is therefore a very good thing.
However, this does cause some inconsistencies and problems with a number of applications that expect IE to be more forgiving when it comes to ActiveX. Organizations using older, server-based products will be especially prone to problems due to the changes in the treatment of ActiveX.
However, there also have been reports that even newer applications are having trouble with IE 7. These apps run the gamut, from desktop-based products such as McAfee anti-virus systems to on-demand services such as those from Salesforce.com.
eWEEK Labs recommends that businesses perform thorough testing with all their vital company apps to make sure that the benefits of the improved IE 7 arent offset by maddening incompatibilities.