Overview

The Internet has evolved at an extraordinary pace, and browsing software has brought easy information access to millions of people. However, Web browsers have grown in size and complexity, while failing to consistently implement standards. This has held back the development of richer Web applications and content.

Today, Netscape fulfills its promise by delivering a browser that is smaller in size, leads the industry in standards compliance, and runs across a wide variety of platforms. This groundbreaking software is Netscape 6.2.3. It includes powerful tools for Web surfing, communicating with colleagues, participating in discussion groups, and creating dynamic Web pages--all in one integrated package. Of course, one size does not fit all, so Netscape offers unequalled opportunities to adapt the software by choosing which search engine and operating system to use, the overall appearance of the user interface, which tabs to include in My Sidebar, and what Instant Messenger screen name to use.

The latest version of Netscape also integrates Java[tm] technologies and XML technologies. That's one of the reasons why Sun chose Netscape for the Solaris Operating Environment (OE), building an open architecture that offers enhanced functionality, flexibility, and standards.

Highlights

World-Class Browser Technology Enhances Flexibility

The speedy Netscape Gecko browser engine provides a compelling Web experience across multiple platforms. Users of the Solaris OE enjoy unmatched convenience, features, and the ability to stay connected to important information, as well as the flexibility to customize the browser to fit individual needs and personalities. "Themes" enable Web sites and businesses to create browsers that suit their customers, while users can personalize the browser to make it faster, easier, and more convenient to find the features they rely on most. Netscape 6.2.3 includes the standard Classic look, as well as the latest Modern look. Features aimed at boosting productivity help users keep track of important information, check multiple e-mail accounts, send and receive instant messages, and find information on the Web. And because Netscape is available free of licensing fees, companies and schools can reduce their software costs significantly.

Stay in Touch With Friends, Colleagues, News, and Much More

Everyone is different, so it makes sense that everyone's My Sidebar can be different too. A student might listen to music while doing homework, a journalist might keep tabs on breaking news articles from various online sites, and an investor might track stock prices for a personal portfolio throughout the day. Hundreds of customized tabs, including stocks, news, calendar, music, and more, are available from Netscape and other companies. For example, the Instant Messaging Buddy List tab helps users keep track of friends and communicate with them in real time. Web developers can even utilize the software's open architecture to easily create My Sidebar tabs with links from their sites.

Simplifies Management of Multiple E-mail Accounts

Because many people have more than one e-mail, news account, or screen name, Netscape Mail seamlessly combines browsing, e-mail, and instant messaging, and supports multiple POP3, IMAP, and newsgroup accounts. Everything can be accessed from Netscape Mail without switching to a new profile. And now, millions of AOL users can access their AOL e-mail accounts from within Netscape Mail. The Address Book saves time by automatically collecting information about e-mail contacts, and the Address Book Sync feature makes it easy to access important contact information from any computer connected to the Internet.

Searching the Web Is Now Easier Than Ever

Many people would say that searching is their number one activity while browsing the Web. To take full advantage of the Netscape Search Service and Netscape Open Directory Project, a search field (which doubles as the Web address field) is located in the main toolbar. Users can type a word, Web address, or phrase, then click "search"--no more waiting to load a special search page or open a frame. Results are automatically opened in My Sidebar, so users can retrieve multiple results without taking the time to reload the search engine every time. It's even possible to conduct searches from the drop-down AutoComplete feature on the URL bar, making the process more convenient and efficient. Because almost any search engine can be integrated, users have hundreds of choices.

Ideas that Save Time, Enhance User Experience

From the moment when the software is downloaded, today's Netscape offers innovative ideas that can help save time and make the Web experience more pleasant and secure. As instant messaging becomes an important tool for business negotiations, real-time reminders, or any time regular e-mail isn't fast enough, Netscape's integrated instant messaging enables important issues to be solved in seconds. Instead of playing e-mail tag, users can look in the message envelope or header to see if the sender is online and available for a quick chat.

In addition, Quick Launch dramatically reduces how long it takes the browser to start up. A Bookmark Manager window helps users quickly find any Web page based on its name, URL, date last visited, and other attributes. A Form Manager automatically completes Web forms with key information including name, address, and more. Password Manager helps solve a problem everybody faces--how to keep track of all those login names and passwords for different sites.

Safeguarding Privacy and Security Online

For years, Netscape has led the development of security standards that are widely used by browser and server applications on the Internet. The security features included in Netscape 6.2.3 are built on open source Network Security Services (NSS) code. Over the past six years, this code has been enhanced and strengthened, and is now used in all Netscape client and server products. For Internet users concerned about online privacy and security, Netscape delivers additional control through the Cookie and Password managers. Not only does Password Manager remember favorite Web sites, it can even fill in usernames and passwords with a click of the mouse. With a Master Password, people who have access to a user's computer cannot access saved passwords or personal information on the Web. The Cookie Manager allows users to choose which sites will be allowed to set cookies, and which sites will be blocked. And the Certificate Manager checks secure Web sites to make sure they are authentic.

Additional Languages Meet Global Demand

In response to growing demand by global customers, Netscape 6.2.3 will be available in English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Swedish, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese. In addition, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, and Russian (GUI only)

Reversing the Trend in Software Design

As a full-featured, yet modular browser, Netscape reverses the trend insoftware design. Instead of a single, huge program, Netscape was developed from the ground up to be as modular as possible, while still providing a rich feature set. The revolutionary Netscape Gecko technology, developed as an open source project, serves as the basis for the Netscape 6.2.3 browser. The result: a very powerful product that delivers everything users need, and then some.

Content developers can take advantage of accepted Web standards, resulting in a richer Internet for developers and consumers alike. For many developers, that simply means using HTML and JavaScript[tm] technology. Or, to more fully exploit Netscape's capabilities, programmers create a tab for My Sidebar. The standards-compliant HTML editor displays exactly what others will see when viewing a Web page--there's no need to switch back and forth from Netscape Composer to Netscape Navigator to make sure the images, links, and tables display correctly.

For application developers, Netscape provides tools, documentation, and a community for building Web content. Full support for Java technology, XML, CSS1, and DOM standards (among many others), enable the creation of a new class of Web applications. These include full-featured applications that can run on a variety of desktop platforms (including the Solaris OE, Linux, Microsoft Windows, and Mac OS), as well as an emerging class of Web appliances.

Ideal Platform for Creating Java Applications

By contributing key Java technology to Mozilla.org, Sun has helped seamlessly integrate Java technology-based software with the latest version of the Netscape browser environment. Now, Java applets can easily communicate with the Gecko rendering engine to access common browser functionality and interoperate with browser components. As a result, today's Netscape offers an ideal platform for creating and deploying cross-platform, browser-based Java applications. To provide the right foundation for accessing and running any Java application from the browser, Java[tm] 2 Standard Edition (J2SE(TM)) 1.4 software is included with Netscape.

System Requirements

Solaris 7 and 8, SPARC[tm] and Intel editions
Solaris 9 SPARC edition
64-Mbytes RAM
130-Mbytes hard drive space

Languages

English
French
German
Italian
Japanese
Spanish
Swedish
Korean
Simplified Chinese
Traditional Chinese
Polish
Brazilian Portuguese
Russian (GUI only)

Licensing

Netscape 6.2.3 is free; no licensing fee is required

Standards

XML
CSS-1
DOM level 1, 2
RDF
HTML 4.0
LDAP
J2SE[tm] version 1.4

Plug-in Support

Java plug-in for running Web applets
RealPlayer for streaming media
Macromedia Flash for high-impact Web content
Adobe Acrobat Reader PDF
Prizm

Service and Support

Netscape 6.2.3 is supported under the SunSpectrum support program. Customers with a SunSpectrum Metal support contract for their system or with a SunSpectrum Software only option for Solaris are entitled to support for Netscape 6.2.3.

Upgrades