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After tens of millions of downloads of last year's beta, Microsoft has shipped the release candidate of Internet Explorer 9. The latest iteration of Microsoft's new browser boasts a few new features, a refined user interface, better performance, and improved standards compliance.

Perhaps as a testament to the success of its platform preview program and beta release, the changes are, for the most part, quite subtle. The platform previews have allowed Web developers to track the progress of the browser's core rendering engine, and to submit bugs and feedback to the company; thus, when the beta was released, there were few surprises in the browser's treatment of webpages.

The new user interface was the big surprise of the beta: taking a leaf from Chrome's book, Internet Explorer 9's user interface is a pared down, minimal affair, designed to be much less intrusive and to put the focus squarely on websites rather than the browser itself.

ARS Technica has the details HERE!

Download links for Internet Explorer 9 RC:

Windows  7 (x86 version)

Windows 7 (x64 version)

Windows Vista (x86 version)

Windows Vista (x64 version)