Microsoft has today confirmed the existence of its Internet Explorer successor, Project Spartan. This next-generation browser is designed to work with “the way developers develop for the web today”.
This new browser will run on Windows 10 on both the PC’s and the phone and will support a new annotation feature that will allow for users to take notes directly on web pages and have them saved for later viewing. It has OneNote integration and saved pages with markup can be shared the same way users can share content on Windows 8.1; via the Windows system share charm which hooks up to all third-party applications that support sharing.
Project Spartan is also optimized for a great reading experience. Microsoft uses Reading Mode here so that everything but key text and images are shown, no chrome (pun intended). It also has offline support with Reading List integration so users can take webpages offline for later viewing.
Cortana is also built directly into Spartan who will show up at opportune moments to be helpful when she can. Cortana will track flights for example and show up when searching for related sites to make it easier to get flight information. Cortana scours the internet and when users are on websites of particular restaurant for example, Cortana will be right there with directions to that restaurant. Without going into too much detail, it’s clear that Cortana is deeply integrated into Spartan. Microsoft notes that Project Spartan is the first and only browser with a personal assistant integrated and always there to help.
Project Spartan will be available in the next few months for Windows 10 Insider participants.
“Code-named “Project Spartan,” the next generation browser was built with greater interoperability, reliability and discoverability, with a new look and feel built just for Windows 10. Advanced features include the ability to annotate by keyboard or pen directly on the webpage and easily share with friends, a reading view that is distraction free, displaying the article in a simplified layout for a great reading experience for Web articles online and offline, and the integration of Cortana for finding and doing things online faster,” Microsoft explained.
