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Opera 10 sneak peek

Dec. 4, 2008 Paul Thurrott | Paul Thurrott's Supersite for Windows

Opera is beginning the push for the next version of its Web browser:

Today, Opera Software introduces the first look at Opera 10. An alpha version of Opera 10 is now available at http://www.opera.com/browser/next/.

This release gives people a taste of Opera's new rendering engine, Opera Presto 2.2 — the foundation of all future Opera 10 products. Opera Presto 2.2 offers approximately a 30-percent-faster browsing experience as compared to Opera Presto 2.1, introduced in Opera 9.5 in June 2008.

Opera has fine-tuned its standards support and, as a result, Opera 10 alpha achieves an Acid3 100/100 Test score. This version also provides Web developers with a whole range of new technologies for building better Web sites.

Other new features in Opera 10 alpha include spell-checking as you type, as well as auto-updating to the latest versions as they become available. Opera Mail also has added support for HTML formatting of e-mails.

“My favorite development in this release is the support for new Web technologies, which allows people to explore new ways of using the Internet," says Johan Borg, Vice President of Consumer Engineering, Opera Software. "Our 100/100 Acid3 Test score is only a first indication of the impact these new Web technologies will have. We look forward to your feedback on Opera 10.”

To read more and download Opera 10 go to http://www.opera.com/browser/next/.

Note that it’s still in alpha at this point.

Discuss this Article 66

yert
on Dec 4, 2008
Opera is an interesting company, but with the introduction of WebKit their momentum has slowed down. Plus the update mechanism in Opera sucks a bit imo. :P
WebGuy3000
on Dec 4, 2008
Opera is good browser, if a bit fussy. It's fast and the rendering engine is very good. Their problem is twofold; 1) the vast majority of people have never heard of it. 2) even among those who have heard of it, there's really no compelling need for yet another browser. FWIW, Opera accounts for 0.48% of the traffic to my company's website in a typical month.
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
Well, it looks nice and seems fast but has some little problems like not actually letting you post comments here!
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
WebGuy That's about typical usage for Opera in the US.
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
Interestingly, while Opera 10 renders the ACID3 test correctly, it fails to render most pages I've tried to view with it. So much for the value of "official" standards (ACID is NOT a standard by any actual standards body) over "de facto" standards. Personally, I care a lot more about whether the sites I actually visit render reasonably than whether a browser supports extentensions that nobody actually uses.
gorath
on Dec 4, 2008
I've found that issue with opera in the past as well. I really liked the interface, and the speed was excellent, but when most pages I visited didn't display correctly, I had to turn my back on it. Shame.
tayme
on Dec 4, 2008
I have heard a lot of good stuff about their mobile browser. Since I don't use a mobile browser at this time, but am considering jumping on the smart phone bandwagon, can anybody confirm for me? --tayme
tayme
on Dec 4, 2008
OT - BTW, the phone I am looking at is the Samsung Omnia. It is a Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional based Verizon phone...Thoughts??? --tayme
lotsamystuff
on Dec 4, 2008
"It is a Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional based Verizon phone...Thoughts???" Umm...yeah. It is a Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional based Verizon phone. 'nuff said. ;-)
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
Well the Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional works for me but Verizon's data plans aren't competitive here. You might want to check plan pricing in your area.
gorath
on Dec 4, 2008
Omnia's a pretty nice phone, although the interface is a little sluggish.
tayme
on Dec 4, 2008
The data plan is pretty competive here...using the discount that I get based on my employer helps that out a lot!!! Their 3G network here is better than the others, too...so for me, Verizon is the best choice. --tayme
WebGuy3000
on Dec 4, 2008
Tayme, There are two different Opera browsers for mobile phones, so you have to figure out which you want. Opera Mobile is pretty much a regular browser which attempts to render web pages on your phone as written. Opera Mini is a different beast. It's a thin client that uses some smarts at Opera's server side to display pages using OBML. Here's how it works: You request a URL in Opera Mini. Opera Mini makes the request to a proxy server run by Opera. Opera’s proxy server connects to the web server hosting the requested URL, and renders the page into an image. This image is then transmitted (in a proprietary format called OBML — Opera Binary Markup Language) to the Opera Mini client. Opera Mini displays the rendered image on screen. I have no experience with either, so I can't say much useful beyond that.
tayme
on Dec 4, 2008
@gorath - The one that I played with for several hours the other night was not sluggish at all. I did learn that you have to bring up task manager and kill your web browser if you aren't using it and that helped a lot. I also had an iPhone side by side with the Omnia, and the Omnia was actually more responsive than the iPhone. Could have been a fluke, but I had the owner of the iPhone reset it to see if that helped...and it still seemed slower. @ WebGuy - Good info. Thanks!!! I'll quit with the OT posts now...just wanted some opinions, and even if I do argue with the lot of you, I do value the input --> most of the time!!! --tayme
shark47
on Dec 4, 2008
I thought the Omnia didn't receive good reviews on Gizmodo or Engadget. One of the minuses, they claimed, was of course, Windows Mobile.
tayme
on Dec 4, 2008
The reviews on phonedog and phonescoop were much better... --tayme
Avro
on Dec 4, 2008
Interesting, Opera seems to be pretty popular here in Europe. Not as popular as IE or Firefox to be sure but still well known. I have tried it a few times on OS X, XP and Linux. Nice but I don't intend to change from OmniWeb or Firefox.
subzerohitman721
on Dec 4, 2008
Opera has always been a contender but the issues with rendering has always plagued it. Thats why I've had to pass on Opera so many times. Its ashame because they do a lot of things well, but they need to resolve its lack of reliability versus I.E. or Firefox. Second, Opera's lack of popularity is the fault of the Opera software company. They don't advertise in any of the magazines, websites, or on television. How the heck is anyone to know if you don't advertise? Hopefully Opera can fix these issues and get a browser to challenge the Big 3 of browsing.
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
Avro Paul had browser share numbers in a post on Nov. 23rd. Worldwide, Opera has 0.55% global usage share. (They didn't even make the list on US usage which bottomed out with Netscape at 0.50%) See http://community.winsupersite.com/blogs/paul/archive/2008/11/23/google-c... for more.
gorath
on Dec 4, 2008
@ tayme. hmm. fair enough. The one I tried felt a little sluggish to my mind, but not enough for me not to want one!
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
Put simply, Internet Explorer is by far the world's leading browser with Firefox a very distant second and everybody else is pretty much lost in the noise. (less than 5% total for all other browsers combined in both US and worldwide markets)
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
subzero "Opera's lack of popularity is the fault of the Opera software company." Realistically, they're competing with Microsoft's money power and influence and Google's money, power and influence. (Remember that Google pays most of Firefox's bills despite all the "we're community driven and not corporate" chatter)
Ocean
on Dec 4, 2008
>>Put simply, Internet Explorer is by far the world's leading browser with Firefox a very distant second << Kinda like how McDonalds sells more burgers than anyone but would never ever recognition for making and selling a best in breed burger.
Avro
on Dec 4, 2008
Mike, It all depends on where you are. Opera has 17.6% market share in the Ukraine and is ahead of FireFox. http://diary.braniecki.net/2008/01/11/central-europe-marketshare-situati... As of September 2008 browser market share in Europe was IE 60% FireFox 31% Opera 4% Safari 3% So it is a bit more popular than Safari here, but way behind FireFox. Most people I know are familiar with Opera and use it occasionally, but not as their primary browser.
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
Avro Right. There are markets that vary wildly in almost all product categories. Sometimes due to differences in localization, sometimes by an early introduction in a previously untapped market, sometimes just due to a local cultural leader picking a product. I'm sure with very careful selection there's a place where Opera is the leading browser (For example, it's likely that in some parts of Opera's home town of Oslo it does exceptionally well) Still, in the overall, global market, (and the Internet is nothing if not global) it's: 81.36% - Internet Explorer 14.67% - Firefox 03.97% - Everybody else combined
Avro
on Dec 4, 2008
Mike Agreed, I think you will find that Opera has its biggest following in Europe. Keep in mind too that the majority of people stick with what is loaded on their computer. Most Linux users go for FireFox, most Windows users IE, most Mac users Safari, this is not an indication of worth, just one of human nature in that they need to go out of their way to install and use something else and all that is a bit too much effort. If Opera came preloaded on Linux, Windows or OS X that would be the most popular browser on the platform. Sad, but true.
Waethorn
on Dec 4, 2008
"McDonalds sells more burgers than anyone but would never ever recognition for making and selling a best in breed burger." The new angus burgers are actually really good. http://www.mcdepk.ca/AngusBurger.htm I can honestly say without exaggeration that they do come out looking like the picture. That's a major step up for a fast food chain. Combo's aren't cheap though: it's $7.99CDN for a bacon&cheddar angus burger combo. You can get side salads instead of fries, which I like. I had one of those combo's for lunch today with some of that Paul Newman Italian Dressing.* It was yummy! :)P *I would've got the Balsamic Vinaigrette, but they discontinued it awhile back for some reason. It was my fave. On a side note, they're also doing a corporate "Re-imaging": http://www.mcdepk.ca/Re-ImagingImages.htm Some of the places look pretty swank. Almost (perish the thought!) date-worthy. ;)
Waethorn
on Dec 4, 2008
....and now for something completely different: http://tinyurl.com/6gwz87 ;)
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
Waethorn The McDonalds Angus Burger seems to be a Canadian only product or at least isn't in nationwide distribution in the US. McDonalds is amazingly good at localizing their menu for each country. When I was in Brazil a few years back I used to grab a hot banana pie and a glass of guarana there on the way back to the hotel after work. In New Zealand the premium burger had a fried egg and a slice of beet on it.
gorath
on Dec 4, 2008
Angus burger is a Canadian only product! LMAO! Mike, they're supposedly made of Scottish beef, from highlan' coos. You know, the big hairy buggers. So I'll let you figure that one out ;)
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
Actually, gorath, Angus Beef in the US (and likely Canada) is a marketing name that actually no longer designates that the beef is actually from the Angus breed cattle.
Waethorn
on Dec 4, 2008
Most of the beef for McDonalds North America-wide comes from Alberta cattle. Alberta also is one of the main sources of Angus beef. In the East Coast, McLobster is my fave. They have them in Maine too, but from all the pics I can find, they don't look anything like that in Canada. The Canadian McLobster doesn't have celery - just lettuce, real lobster chunks (a seafood connoisseur can tell), and mayo. The bun is the same type they've used for the Toasted Deli Sandwiches (tell me you guys in the States had those at least!), not some glorified hot dog bun like the pics indicate. Those buns were like an Italian mini-sub bun, but were about half-way crusty on the outside, and were toasted on the inside. http://www.mcdonalds.ca/images/food_tds_landingpage.jpg These are what the TDS's looked like. They don't carry them around here anymore though. They've moved on to the premium angus beef and chicken sandwiches now. Kind of a shame. When they introduced the premium beef and chicken sandwiches, they had brought the Turkey BLT from the TDS menu to the new square bun type to match the beef and chicken. After the Canada-wide Maple Leaf deli meat recall, they discontinued them. The new Southwest chicken sandwich is nearly identical to the old TDS one, except for the bun. The Chicken Caesar TDS has moved to a Chicken Snack Wrap menu. AFAIK, they no longer use the TDS/McLobster-style buns around here. They still use them for McLobster in the East Coast though (at least in Canada they do). The new buns are good. I liked the old ones too though. They're both different, so I dunno if I could choose a favourite. I could see the new ones being easier for them to use for the current menu since they only have beef burgers and chicken on them. I actually like McDonalds now. I wouldn't have said that 10 years ago. It's changed for the better, and I like it. I certainly won't eat at Burger King anytime soon though. I kind of wonder if the result might be different now if they did a sequel to the movie "Super-Size Me". If they don't have this kind of menu in the US, it'd be interesting to see what result the Canadian menu would have.
gorath
on Dec 4, 2008
Oh come on, you know that's what it means. You're just being a pedantic arse now. What the hell else does Angus beef mean then?
gorath
on Dec 4, 2008
Even moreso, when the product is called "Aberdeen Angus"?
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
gorath It's a trade name of Certified Angus Beef LLC which sets some specific requirements for membership and for beef to be sold with that trade name. It does signify specific quality requirements but no longer a specific breeding requirement. At least that's what I heard from some local farmers in the business.
shark47
on Dec 4, 2008
Funny, we go from a discussion about Opera to a discussion about Angus beef. I had to scroll up to see who was responsible. No surprises there - our resident troll made another senseless remark.
DRWAM
on Dec 4, 2008
Actually, it would seem that we eat more beef than we use Opera.
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
DRWAM I think we eat more pomegranate than we use Opera.
tayme
on Dec 4, 2008
Hey, pomegranate juice is good...I'll take a Roy Rogers, please. --tayme
gorath
on Dec 4, 2008
Aberdeen Angus is a particular breed of cattle. Opera is a particular breed of web browser. It's tenuous, but it's much stronger a link than some subjects covered here in the past.
cesjr
on Dec 4, 2008
Paul, Just a question - why haven't we seen anything from you on the Blackberry Storm? I mean you have a lot to say about the "flaws" of the iphone, but you're apparently afraid to say a word about its nearest competitor from RIM, the king of the U.S. market for smartphones. Of course this is a rhetorical question - we all know why you're silent. RIM failed - utterly - with the Storm. See http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/04/technology/personaltech/04pogue-email.... Which only shows how big an achievement the iphone. It ain't easy to duplicate what apple did. Even almost 2 years out from release.
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
Um... Maybe because it isn't a Windows product? Paul also didn't review the latest Dell computers based on the Intel p7 and that would be a LOT more relevant.
mikegalos@msn.com
on Dec 4, 2008
oops Need more coffee. Obviously that should read Intel Core i7. Multi-core with hyperthreading! Now that's the way to run Windows!
cesjr
on Dec 4, 2008
mikey - and the iphone is?
tayme
on Dec 4, 2008
@cesjr - This has already been discussed. In Pogue's "review", he mentions the iPhone nearly more than the Storm. I like the way that Pogue lists all of the comments from people that agree with him; but when it comes to those that don't, this is all he says, "Not all readers agreed with me, however. About a dozen new Storm owners wrote to say that, while they, too, found some bugs and sluggishness, they liked the phone nonetheless." He does however list a few from people that haven't used a Storm, but posted jabs at him. I liked; "Having you comment on technology is like having Tom Cruise comment on religion. You stretch and distort facts to fit your opinions. Your biases are obvious to any objective person." Of course, those are probably in the "article" so that he can say it was objectively written, which it obviously wasn't. Have you used a Storm? Tell us your thoughts? See above for my thoughts when I did a side by side of an iPhone and a Samsung Omnia. --tayme
tayme
on Dec 4, 2008
@mikegalos - in all fairness....the Blackberry is a device that a lot of Windows users may also use - with Windows...and that is how Paul explains his blogs about iPod, iPhone, and other Apple products. --tayme
shark47
on Dec 4, 2008
"mikey - and the iphone is?" Something that Paul bought and owns.
cesjr
on Dec 4, 2008
tayme, I'll tell you my thoughts. I can read. I read the following reviews: NY Times’ Pogue reviews RIM’s BlackBerry Storm: ‘I’ve got a better name for it: BlackBerry Dud’ - November 26, 2008 InformationWeek reviews RIM’s BlackBerry Storm: ‘Tiresome, slow, severe bugginess and problems’ - November 24, 2008 TIME Mag reviews RIM’s BlackBerry Storm: ‘Novelty screen feels cheap; steer clear of this storm’ - November 20, 2008 Chicago Tribune reviews RIM’s BlackBerry Storm: ‘Can’t compete with Apple’s iPhone’ - November 20, 2008 Gizmodo reviews RIM’s BlackBerry Storm: ‘Heavy, laggy, sluggish, unstable, clunky, and tiring’ - November 20, 2008 Engadget reviews RIM’s BlackBerry Storm: ‘Frustrating, inelegant, uncomfortable; a disappointment’ - November 20, 2008 PC World reviews RIM’s BlackBerry Storm: ‘Awkward, disappointing; a failed experiment’ - November 20, 2008 Really, what more do we need to prove a point to you guys? You can't accept reality.
cesjr
on Dec 4, 2008
another thing tayme - it doesn't have wifi!!!!! unbelievable. Guess what, I didn't have to use it to know that. So I don't have to use it to know it's a complete nonstarter. Complete and utter nonstarter. You can thank Verizon for that one. You know, the nazi like company that is the only viable alternative that paul never mentions that has a better signal strength than ATT. And no, I don't count sprint (lucky if they stay alive 18 months) and t-mobile (talk about poor coverage) as options.
shark47
on Dec 4, 2008
"@mikegalos - in all fairness....the Blackberry is a device that a lot of Windows users may also use - with Windows...and that is how Paul explains his blogs about iPod, iPhone, and other Apple products. " Yes, but these are products that he pays for with his own money. He doesn't get review units like Pogue does. I don't think he can buy 15 different phones and review them.

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