Comments on: Why do I have two intances of Internet Explorer on my new Windows 7 computer?

By: Bruce Epper

Bruce Epper — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 04:41:00 +0000

If you want to surf with a minimal amount of add-ins for the browser, no flash, etc. you can just use the 64-bit version of IE. Most toolbars and other crap that bloats IE beyond its initial bloat won’t run in the 64-bit version. This will make your browsing somewhat faster depending on how much extra crap is crammed into your 32-bit version of IE.

By: Dsch12

Dsch12 — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 03:39:00 +0000

Is there any advantage to clicking on the 64 bit version when surfing?

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 20:14:00 +0000

The 64bit edition of Windows 7 comes with both installation of Internet Explorer 8 (32 & 64bit) to guarantee maximum compatibility.

Internet Explorer (64bit)
Internet Explorer

Actually, the second one ~ the 32bit version ~ is the default browser after installation since most Add-ons including Flashplayer weren’t 64bit compatible when Windows 7 was released. When installing Internet Explorer 9 both versions are upgraded.

As for your Java crashes I suggest to download the offline package and reinstall it.
Java 6u24 (32bit)
http://javadl.sun.com/webapps/download/AutoDL?BundleId=47363
Java 6u24 (64bit)
http://javadl.sun.com/webapps/download/AutoDL?BundleId=47155

If you are using both browser versions you have to install both packages, otherwise Java will only work for the installed architecture.