Responding to reports that Microsoft's Web browser ballot doesn't display icons in a truly random fashion, the company has changed the algorithm used in the screen mandated by an antitrust settlement with the European Union.
Last week, news agencies reported that the JavaScript used in Microsoft's browser ballot led Internet Explorer to appear most often in the rightmost spot among the top five browsers. Other browsers also were more likely to appear in other spots.
The "choice screen" was delivered March 1 to European users of Internet Explorer as a result of the E.U.'s recent investigation into Microsoft's practice of bundling IE and Windows there. Browser competitors lobbied for a ballot that allowed users to choose their preferred ballot from a list of alternatives, with the top five browsers (by market share) on the first screen and further choices shown by scrolling to the right.
"We can confirm that we made a change to the random icon order algorithm in the browser choice screen for Europe," Microsoft spokesman Kevin Kutz told seattlepi.com Monday. "We are confident the algorithm change will be an improvement. As always, we are grateful for the feedback we get from developers, and we thank those who commented on the topic and suggested changes."
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