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Opera Updates Browser

Version 4.0 adds e-mail and greater security to budget browser.

By Terho Uimonen, IDG News   

The Norwegian software vendor reports it is still ironing out a few last-minute bugs, but the prerelease version of the browser is available for download from its site.

Versions for software platforms other than Microsoft's Windows, including Linux, also are under development, a company spokesperson says. The release date for the commercial version of Opera 4.0 is not yet set, he adds.

Opera 4.0 is faster, includes an e-mail client, and supports 128-bit encryption, the company says. The 4.0 version will also feature support for cascading style sheets as well as Secure Sockets Layer versions 2 and 3, the company says.

It is easier to port to other operating systems than its predecessors, so versions of Opera should be appearing soon for other platforms.

You can use the shipping version of Opera for Windows for 30 days after installation; then the license expires and you can only access Operas home page unless you pay for the software. The browser costs $35 for up to nine copies, with volume discounts for additional copies, and educational discounts that start at $18 per copy.

Designed around a core that is independent of any one operating system, Opera 4.0 supports not only Hypertext Markup Language 4.0 and Hypertext Transfer Protocol 1.1, but also Extensible Markup Language, Wireless Markup Language, JavaScript 1.3, and ECMAScript, Opera Software says.

Earlier this month the company also released the final English-language version of Opera 3.62 for Windows, which is available for Windows operating systems ranging from 3.1 to the recently introduced 2000 iteration aimed at business users.