Internet Explorer gains modicum of HTML5

Internet Explorer fans can now get a taste of the video elements in HTML5 without having to switch browsers.

Through a new in-development plug-in bundled with codecs from Xiph.org, users can activate rudimentary support for OGG-formatted HTML5 video on Windows 32- and 64-bit computers.

Checking off the HTML5 box during the plug-in's installation is the easy part.
(Screenshot by Seth Rosenblatt/CNET)

There are several problems that the plug-in has yet to solve to bring it up to parity with Firefox, Chrome, Safari and the latest Opera beta, which natively support HTML5 in full. The plug-in leaves out support for H.264, lacks playback controls such as seeking, doesn't offer any HTML5 interface, and requires changing an XMLNS attribute within the <video> tag to make it work. The plug-in and installation instructions come courtesy of developer Cristian Adam.

The attribute users need to add is xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml/video".

In short, it's complex to implement and an imperfect HTML5 solution for Internet Explorer at the moment. Future versions are expected to clean up much of the mess, so IE could wind up with decent, unofficial HTML5 support sooner rather than later.

Currently, the plug-in isn't the only way to get HTML5 support in Internet Explorer. Google's Chrome Frame will let you render HTML5 via the Chrome browser in IE. Users who want to run the plug-in in legacy versions of Internet Explorer can follow instructions from the plug-in author here.

It's safe to say that trying to implement it isn't for the faint-hearted. Despite the available workarounds, Internet Explorer still has a long way to go before it is HTML5-compliant.

Via CNET Download