In a sense, Internet Explorer 9 is no longer just a single browser. This, because IE9, just as IE8, can masquerade as any of its predecessors. The feature was initially introduced in Internet Explorer 8, the Beta 2 release, and it was a statement of Microsoft’s commitment not to break the web. By the looks of it, Compatibility View will survive into the final version (RTW) of IE9, allowing the browser to act as IE5, IE7, IE8 and as IE9, depending on whether the web content it needs to display plays nice with modern web standards, or if it is designed to be compatible mainly with older versions of IE.

Source -
IE9, IE8, IE7, and IE5 Cocktail in the Platform Preview - In terms of rendering modes - Softpedia

Posted By: JMH
26 Mar 2010