In my post last Friday that I called ‘Looking Through The Windows’ (click here if you want to read it) I mentioned that the demise of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer browser was imminent and Windows 10 would see a whole new ‘streamlined’ internet browsing system bundled with it.
Now it’s official.
Microsoft is indeed ditching Internet Explorer. If fact it is getting rid of the entire brand.
Microsoft has confirmed that it was re-branding its new browser, currently known as ‘Project Spartan’, when it is released in summer.
As usual, the need to kill off Internet Explorer is Microsoft’s own fault. They have released a series of bloated and buggy versions of IE over recent years, every one worse than the previous one. Now IE has attained a very negative reputation with internet users, particularly experienced ones.
But IE’s death will not be a quick and painless one. Instead a lingering demise is planned. Why I don’t know.
Some versions of Windows 10 will apparently still be shipped with IE still on board. Presumably you will have to go through the rigmarole of deleting it and replacing it when the new version is ready. Possibly a reason not to buy the new Windows 10 system until they get their act together.
On the positive side, the new browser will be free. Not because Microsoft likes to give things away for free (that’s not what made Bill Gates the richest man in the world), but because they started that trend when they were trying to kill off Netscape, which they successfully did.
Since then no one pays for a browser. Apple, Google, Mozilla, Opera and the rest are all freebees these days. Inadvertently I suppose Microsoft did us all a big favor.
The only thing that scares me is the hype coming from Microsoft.
Statements like, “Microsoft’s change in direction is a smart, albeit bold, and a symbolic gesture.” don’t fill me with confidence. It is the same type of nonsense that preceded the release of ‘Windows Vista’ and ‘Windows 8’, and if you read last week’s post you will know what disasters I thought they were.
So will a change of name, or re-branding as Microsoft calls it, mean that their new browser will be a good one? The jury is still out on that. Like everything else we will have to wait and see. If they stick with the name ‘Spartan’ the implication would be that the new browser will be slick, fast and not memory hogging. That would indeed be good and a welcome changes from recent versions of Internet Explorer.
Having said that, I don’t think Google Chrome is in any imminent danger though.
Last week we had the BIG Christmas quiz and thank you to everyone who visited and tried it out.
And a very special thanks to the Coastal Crone who reblogged it.
Since we are all used to ‘leftovers’ at this time of the year I thought I would use my leftover questions from last week’s BIG quiz for a little one this week.
The questions still have a Christmassy theme and as usual, if you get stuck, you can find the answers waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay down below.
So enjoy what’s left of the Christmas holiday and good luck with the quiz.
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Q. 1: How many points does a snowflake have? (Sorry there’s only one point for the correct answer.)
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Q. 2: Charles Dickens is said to have considered the names ‘Little Larry’ and ‘Puny Pete’ for which character? (A bonus point is available if you can also correctly name the Dickens novel in which the character appears.)
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Q. 3: In which country that made the news a lot during 2014, and the largest country of its continent, is it said that finding a spider web on Christmas morning brings good luck, and so Christmas trees are decorated with artificial spider webs?
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Q. 4: What is New Year’s Eve called in Scotland?
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Q. 5: What former Egyptian president was born on Christmas day in 1918?
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Q. 6: Which alcoholic ingredient is used in a ‘Snowball’ cocktail?
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Q. 7: And what animal is ‘Snowball’ in George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’?
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Q. 8: Derived from the Latin word meaning ‘coming’, what is the name of the period leading up to Christmas?
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Q. 9: In the rhyme ‘Christmas is coming’, who is getting ‘fat’?
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Q. 10: The first singing radio commercial, which aired in the US on Christmas Eve 1926, was for which brand?
a) Rolex b) BMW c) Wheaties d) Durex
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Q. 11: Why is the male turkey often referred to as ‘Tom Turkey’?
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Q. 12: In what country did Christmas Trees originate?
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Q. 13: How many ‘Wise Men’ brought gifts to Jesus?
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Q. 14: Which English monarch was crowned on Christmas Day in Westminster Abbey?
a) William I b) William II c) William III d) William IV
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Q. 15: Name the two administrative and ex-colonial regions of China for which Christmas day remains a legal public holiday, whereas in the main country it is not? (A point for each that you name correctly.)
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Q. 16: The Christmas favorite of ‘Pigs in Blankets’ is chipolata sausages wrapped in what?
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Q. 17: In Mexico, it is said that wearing what color underwear on New Year’s Eve ensures finding new love the following year?
a) Yellow b) Green c) Red d) Brown
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Q. 18: Father Christmas is known as ‘Pai Natal’ in which European country?
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Q. 19: The surname ‘Chandler’ derives from the making or selling of what?
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Q. 20: What was Mr Bean searching for when he got his head stuck in a turkey?
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ANSWERS
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Q. 1: How many points does a snowflake have? (Sorry there’s only one point for the correct answer.)
A. 1: Six.
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Q. 2: Charles Dickens is said to have considered the names ‘Little Larry’ and ‘Puny Pete’ for which character? (A bonus point is available if you can also correctly name the Dickens novel in which the character appears.)
A. 2: The character is ‘Tiny Tim’ and he appears in ‘A Christmas Carol’.
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Q. 3: In which country that made the news a lot during 2014, and the largest country of its continent, is it said that finding a spider web on Christmas morning brings good luck, and so Christmas trees are decorated with artificial spider webs?
A. 3: The correct answer is Ukraine. (Since it is the time to be generous you can also have a point if you said ‘Poland’. Although it does not fulfill all the parameters of the question, spiders or spider webs are common Christmas trees decorations in Poland because according to legend, a spider wove a blanket for Baby Jesus. In fact, Polish people consider spiders to be symbols of goodness and prosperity at Christmas.)
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Q. 4: What is New Year’s Eve called in Scotland?
A. 4: Hogmanay.
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Q. 5: What former Egyptian president was born on Christmas day in 1918?
A. 5: Anwar Sadat.
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Q. 6: Which alcoholic ingredient is used in a ‘Snowball’ cocktail?
A. 6: Advocaat.
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Q. 7: And what animal is ‘Snowball’ in George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’?
A. 7: A Pig.
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Q. 8: Derived from the Latin word meaning ‘coming’, what is the name of the period leading up to Christmas?
A. 8: Advent.
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Q. 9: In the rhyme ‘Christmas is coming’, who is getting ‘fat’?
A. 9: The goose.
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Q. 10: The first singing radio commercial, which aired in the US on Christmas Eve 1926, was for which brand?
a) Rolex b) BMW c) Wheaties d) Durex
A. 10: The correct answer is c) Wheaties.
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Q. 11: Why is the male turkey often referred to as ‘Tom Turkey’?
A. 11: After Thomas Jefferson, because Jefferson was opposed to the idea of a turkey as the national bird.
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Q. 12: In what country did Christmas Trees originate?
A. 12: Germany. (Technically it was Latvia but at that time it was part of Germany.)
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Q. 13: How many ‘Wise Men’ brought gifts to Jesus?
A. 13: ‘More than one’ is the correct answer, the Bible does not specify how many. (If you said ‘3’ you don’t get a point.)
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Q. 14: Which English monarch was crowned on Christmas Day in Westminster Abbey?
a) William I b) William II c) William III d) William IV
A. 14: The correct answer is a) William I.
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Q. 15: Name the two administrative and ex-colonial regions of China for which Christmas day remains a legal public holiday, whereas in the main country it is not? (A point for each that you name correctly.)
A. 15: Hong Kong and Macau.
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Q. 16: The Christmas favorite of ‘Pigs in Blankets’ is chipolata sausages wrapped in what?
A. 16: Bacon.
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Q. 17: In Mexico, it is said that wearing what color underwear on New Year’s Eve ensures finding new love the following year?
a) Yellow b) Green c) Red d) Brown
A. 17: The correct answer is c) Red.
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Q. 18: Father Christmas is known as ‘Pai Natal’ in which European country?
A. 18: Portugal.
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Q. 19: The surname ‘Chandler’ derives from the making or selling of what?
A. 19: Candles.
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Q. 20: What was Mr Bean searching for when he got his head stuck in a turkey?
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