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March 30, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Microsoft Deepfish beta runs dry
Demand for a beta version of Microsoft's new "Deepfish" Web browser for mobile phones appears to have far outstripped the company's limited supply. After unveiling the new software at O'Reilly's eTech conference late Wednesday, and offering a free demo version for download, the company was overwhelmed with requests, according to a post on the Deepfish download Web site. Judging by user feedback comments -- which many aspiring beta applications used to vent at Microsoft for its limited beta program -- the supply of beta versions of Deepfish lasted about 12 hours before being exhausted.
"Please remove the download link if you already know you won't let me download it. It just wasted my time." wrote a visitor to the Deepfish download site who used the name "Shamus"
"Disappointed! ... whats the point in offering a download link if you aren't really going to let me download it?" wondered another visitor using the handle "x-man."
According to Microsoft, Deepfish is different from most mobile browsers now in use because it allows formatting rich Web sites to display as they were intended, rather than forcing them into a single-column format that reformats existing pages by repositioning content to fit the limited screen size. Deepfish users can zoom in or out of a Web site on Deepfish, viewing the layout the way designers intended, the company said.
Deepfish runs on Windows Mobile Smart Phones or Pocket PCs that run Windows Mobile 5.0. So far, Microsoft is keeping mum about whether it will turn Deepfish into a product. In a company Q&A, LiveLabs director Gary Flake said that Deepfish is a prototype technology, and that Microsoft is not announcing specific plans for making the product more widely available.
Judging by comments, users were impressed with the browser's ability to preserve Web page formatting and with the ability to zoom in and out of pages, but also reported that Deepfish needs work - including the ability to save Web page cookies that are used to store login information for password protected Web sites.
Posted by Paul Roberts on March 30, 2007 10:16 AM
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Ha, it's funny to see people actually want a Microsoft product.
If you read up on the trends in the computer industry, such as "Cracked Windows" by Shelly Palmer, you see the tide is definitely turning away from Redmond.
- Jake
Posted by: Jake at March 30, 2007 12:16 PMYes Jake, because of course nobody wants to buy Windows or Office do they.... you complete prat.
Jake, which cult do you belong to: Mac, Linux or the one that thinks that the e-mail is overrated (bone-heads)?
Posted by: Dave at April 5, 2007 07:24 PMI don't know who Shelly is of why he has a womans name, but I do know he is another TV exec. That speaks volumes about how trustworthy he is.
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