One for the techies.... IE 4.0 Beta 1

[Muncher]

I need to get hold of a copy of Internet Explorer 4.0 Beta 1 (released April 1997) and I'm struggling...

Would Microsoft be able to send me a copy if I got in contact?

I need to find whether any pre July 1997 internet browsers have the capability to cache and store webpages and how they provide for offline browsing or storage of e-mail.

[neil_bolton]

Let me see if Technet has it in the SW listing...

[Dave_ST220]

http://www.oldversion.com/program.php?n=msie

doh, doesn't have the version you want

Edited by Dave_ST220 on Thursday 14th August 12:41

[neil_bolton]

neil_bolton said:

Let me see if Technet has it in the SW listing...

Nope only goes back to 6.

You sure you need 4.0 Beta 1 explicity?

[Plotloss]

IE4 certaintly had a local cache.

[Muncher]

It needs to be pre-july 1997 and I think most of the offline browsing features came about in version 4.0, the only release of which pre july would have been the first beta that was released in April 1997.

[Plotloss]

Muncher said:

It needs to be pre-july 1997 and I think most of the offline browsing features came about in version 4.0, the only release of which pre july would have been the first beta that was released in April 1997.

Offline browsing is distinctly different from having a local cache.

[neil_bolton]

I have a 4.01 disc I've just dug out and shoved in my drive?

Would that be of any use?

ETA: Its Nov 97.

Edited by neil_bolton on Thursday 14th August 12:48

[Muncher]

Plotloss said:

Muncher said:

It needs to be pre-july 1997 and I think most of the offline browsing features came about in version 4.0, the only release of which pre july would have been the first beta that was released in April 1997.

Offline browsing is distinctly different from having a local cache.

Sure, but for our purposes they are similar enough. It is the fact they can store information independantly of the webserver and can recall it when the connection is lost. Offline browsing from what I can remember of early IE just uses the browser to display cached contents doesn't it?

[DanL]

Muncher said:

I need to find whether any pre July 1997 internet browsers have the capability to cache and store webpages and how they provide for offline browsing or storage of e-mail.

That's going back a bit! When you say "any", do you mean it? I've a feeling the early Netscape browsers cached stuff like images quite early on, and I'd be surprised if they were the only ones. Not sure about IE, but I'd expect it to do the same. It'd have been more important back in the days of dial up to cache stuff than it is now...

I'm curious why you need to know too.

Dan

[pdV6]

Unfortunately for you, we ditched all our pre-2000 CDs last time we moved office. Until then I could probably have searched out pretty much any version you wanted.

Sorry.

[neil_bolton]

I have: 3.1 floppy disks, a 95 disc, a 95 V2 disc, and several hundred Windows NT workstation disks.

Any good?

ETA pedanticness on media

Edited by neil_bolton on Thursday 14th August 13:13

[Minskii]

http://tredosoft.com/Multiple_IE

Allows multiple copies of IE to be installed and includes versions 3 - 6.

[buggalugs]

Muncher said:

Plotloss said:

Muncher said:

It needs to be pre-july 1997 and I think most of the offline browsing features came about in version 4.0, the only release of which pre july would have been the first beta that was released in April 1997.

Offline browsing is distinctly different from having a local cache.

Sure, but for our purposes they are similar enough. It is the fact they can store information independantly of the webserver and can recall it when the connection is lost. Offline browsing from what I can remember of early IE just uses the browser to display cached contents doesn't it?

I don't remember any versions of IE that would display cached content if the server was unavailable *by default*, although it did have those options about how often to check for new verions of stored objects. IIRC it ranged from automatically to daily to never. The offline browsing was a separate feature again IIRC... Windows '98 had it but not sure about 95.

[Zod]

If you have a Windows 98 (not SE) disk, the release version is on it.

[Muncher]

Thanks for looking guys.

To answer it must be pre July 1997, it can be any browser, I've got Netscape 4.03 from a similar time, it's proving unstable but I can get what I need from it. Any other browsers would be fine.

I'm really looking for the best evidence of a "data store" where web content can be (easily) viewed offline later.

Unfortunately I can't tell you what it's for, other than being work related.

[DanL]

Ok, well I was at university 94-98 and did a reasonable amount of browsing. I'm certain both netscape and IE cached stuff as you browsed, and you could rummage through the cache later if you knew where to look. This is obviously "easy" if you're vaguely computer savvy, but equally my parents wouldn't have a clue how to do it, and I don't think there was an obvious option to browse offline.

Mind you, I wouldn't have used the option anyway so I may be wrong!

That to one side, you could certainly save web pages for view at a later date in the same way you can now.

Dan

[tigger1]

Hmm...I'm wondering if this is to do with a breach of a patent, errmm....or something.

Afraid I cant' help with an old browser...unless the machine in the loft has one installed - it's not been used since 1998, although I *think* I installed Win 98 SE on it, shortly before deciding a P166 wasn't enough of a beastie for me to download porn on through a 56k modem.

[onlynik]

Minskii said:

http://tredosoft.com/Multiple_IE

Allows multiple copies of IE to be installed and includes versions 3 - 6.

You can get IE 3 from here. That'll be pre 1997

[Muncher]

Short of finding IE 4.0 Beta 1 does anyone have a copy of Netscape Navigator/Communicator version 4.0?