Windows 10 Spartan browser to feature Cortana, stylus support, group tabbing and more

Recently, we came across reports suggesting Microsoft is working on a new browser codenamed Spartan for its upcoming Windows 10 operating system. Now, sources reveal that it will come with several new features that are seen in other leading browsers today. As reported by TheVerge , one of the key features in Spartan would be the ability to annotate a web page with a stylus and then send notes and annotations to others. This web note service will come powered by the company’s OneDrive cloud storage. This means that notes will be stored on a copy of the web page, which can then be accessed by any other browser across multiple platforms, adds the report. This also means that users can simply doodle on a web page and share it between groups. The report further points out that the Spartan browser will get Microsoft’s digital assistant, Cortana . Microsoft may use Cortana to provide information on flights, hotel bookings, package tracking, and other essential data using the traditional address bar. One should be able to access Cortana search directly from the new tab interface in Spartan. It will also come with other features like a new way to group tabs together that will avoid the otherwise messy multiple browser tabs. Spartan will also let one split up personal tabs from work ones. Future updates to Spartan may also bring custom themes. An **earlier report** revealed that Spartan will be based on Microsoft’s Chakra JavaScript engine and its Trident rendering engine, which means it isn’t switching over to WebKit. Spartan is reportedly designed to be a single browser that can be used across PCs, tablets and phones. Microsoft will be making Spartan a Windows Store app that will allow the company to quickly and easily update the browser in future. The desktop version will incline more towards Chrome. Microsoft is likely to unveil Spartan on January 21 along with the next set of Windows 10 features. “But my sources also aren’t sure if Spartan will be functional enough for inclusion in the Windows 10 January Technical Preview and mobile preview builds that are expected to be available to testers in early 2015. It may not show up in the test builds until some point later, they say,” the ZDnet report had earlier suggested.