Acknowledging the fact that not everyone in the world wants its integrated operating system/browser release codenamed Nashville, Microsoft Corp says there will still be Mac and Unix standalone versions of Internet Explorer. Redmond will also release an updated, standalone version of the browser for Windows 3.1. Internet Explorer 2.1 for Macintosh is available in beta and will ship by the end of the year. The Unix version will also ship by year-end, and Microsoft promises it will contain the same level of functionality as Internet Explorer 3.0 on Windows 95 and Windows NT. Version 2.1 for Windows 3.1 is in beta and will be available in three weeks. Microsoft says it will provide development tool kits for building ActiveX controls on Unix platforms. Its browser updates for Macintosh and Windows 3.1 will support frames and animated GIF files which Microsoft says will improve content viewing.
