When will Internet Explorer support WebGL?

Question

Or does Microsoft intend to hold WebGL back with FUD about security for as long as possible, since 3D graphics is one of the key features that makes the web platform competitive with Windows (starting with Microsoft's PC gaming monopoly)?

Answer 1

The IE10 will officially be released on 26.10.2012 along with Windows 8 and doesn't support WebGL. As far as I know Microsoft hasn't made any announcements about IE11, so it is unknown if IE11 will support WebGL.
But IE10 supports typed arrays, which can be seen as a sub-spec of WebGL. So anything is possbile in the future.

In my opinion the webplatform.org community should raise their voices, so Microsoft hears that we want WebGL in IE11. It's a pity that webplatform.org lists WebGL as a "hot topic" together with Microsoft as one of their key contributors on the same site. (No, it's not a pity to say WebGL is hot and to have Microsoft as a contributor at all, but it's sad that they don't show any willing to support WebGL.)

Answer 2

If you're going to make users install a plugin, it might as well be Chrome Frame. Then they get WebGL and everything else IE is missing. Especially useful for IE 6-9.

Answer 3

Anyway, there is a third-party plugin for IE10 which enables WebGL.

Answer 4

As Pipo mentioned, Microsoft have yet to announce when or if they are going to support WebGL.

As someone that formally worked at a browser vendor, and had input on features to add to WebKit at a mobile vendor, I have some insights here. The best way to get a vendor to support a particular standards based feature is to indicate real developer demand for it. Browsers need to be compatible with web content that is out there. If you‘d like to see WebGL supported in IE, one of the best ways is to make interesting demos and actual web pages that use the technology. We had past success there with SVG. MS didn‘t support the technology for the longest time, but we put pressure on them, and more importantly developed things using SVG. Once SVG looked like a viable technology, Microsoft implemented it, and now have one of the better implementations.

WebGL is an interesting case, as it is not actually a technology defined by the W3C or ECMA of which Microsoft are a member.  It is specced by Khronos. This may have some bearing on Microsoft’s thinking around WebGL. Just like how they tend to focus on HTML5 from the W3C, rather than the WHATWG's *Living Standard*.