Microsoft has apparently submitted to European pressure and has built a feature within Windows 7 that allows users the option to disable Internet Explorer.

Google Inc. and Mozilla foundation, which have their own browsers, believe that Microsoft is trying to dominate the market by leaving users no choice but to use its own software.

In a blog post published on Microsoft's Engineering Windows 7, Jack Mayo who is the group program manager for our Documents and Printing team and also worked on Internet Explorer 8, shared how users can disable Internet Explorer 8 if they want to by ticking a box.

This single check box could possible allow Microsoft to avoid further problems with the EU.

Windows 7, the successor to the much anticipated of Vista, isn't expected to reach consumers until next year, but more than a million people are already testing early versions.

Mayo added that deselected features won't be available for use, meaning that the files (binaries and data) are not loaded by the operating system (for security-conscious customers) and not available to users on the computer. If the user wants to turn the feature back on, they can do so easily without having to pop in the OS media.

The following is a complete list of changes to be included:

* Windows Media Player

* Windows Media Center

* Windows DVD Maker

* Internet Explorer 8

* Windows Search

* Handwriting Recognition (through the Tablet PC Components option)

* Windows Gadget Platform

* Fax and Scan

* XPS Viewer and Services (including the Virtual Print Driver)

Microsoft might be looking to calm the European Union's wrath in the ongoing antitrust battle between the two. Internet Explorer 8 may not list amongst those features that can be turned on and off in the Release Candidate version of the OS, according to Reuters.

Read Jack Mayo’s full blog here.

Microsoft Software