Microsoft have today released their Browser Choice Update forcing users to choose the browser they want installed on their computer. So how does this work and how does it affect you?

Key points

1. A choice of 12 browsers (7 of which this techie has never heard of)
2. The browser choice software will be delivered as part of the Windows Update system Microsoft usually uses to distribute security patches.
3. The choice screen will keep appearing until a user has made a choice. Anyone wanting to stick with IE will be prompted to upgrade to the latest version.
4. Microsoft said that Windows 7 users who have fixed or “pinned” IE to their taskbar will have it unpinned by the update. Right clicking the icon for any browser will let users pin that program to the taskbar.
5. It will not pop up in front of those who already run a different default browser, such as Firefox, Safari or Chrome.
6. Users guaranteed to see it are those that have Internet Explorer (IE) set as their default browser and have taken the option to let Windows automatically download and install updates.

How to handle the Update

After the update is downloaded and you have restarted your computer, you’ll automatically be shown the Browser Choice screen, and you can then select and install the browsers you want to use. (If the Browser Choice screen doesn’t automatically appear when your computer restarts, you can double-click the Browser Choice shortcut on the desktop to select and install web browsers.)

The Browser Choice update doesn’t add or remove any programs from your computer. If you’re using Windows 7 and Internet Explorer is your default browser, the update will unpin the Internet Explorer icon from your taskbar. Internet Explorer will still be available from your Start menu, and you can choose to pin it back on your taskbar. For information on how to pin programs to your taskbar, see Pin a program to the taskbar.

To select and install web browsers using Browser Choice

Follow these steps to use Browser Choice to install one or more browsers to your computer:

1. Double-click the Browser Choice shortcut on the desktop.
2. In the Welcome screen, click OK.
3. In the Select your web browser(s) screen, for each browser you want to install, click Install. Click Tell me more for information about any of the browsers.
4. Follow any on-screen instructions to install the browser you chose.

At Solsis we recommend using Internet Explorer 8, it’s fantastic security features and compatibility with programs such as Outlook Web Access, and Microsoft Office Web Apps is the natural partner for your current network applications

This guide has been replicated in parts from the one on Microsoft’s own website which can be found here. However the part relating to browser recommendation is purely the view of the author