Microsoft Edge Adds 2 Experimental Flags to Address the Millennial Bug

Microsoft Edge, a Chromium-based browser, is facing the "millennium bug" test. This is because all web browsers currently use a two-digit version numbering scheme, so vendors including Google and Mozilla are actively testing to address this issue as they approach the critical point of 100.

In September of last year, Google began preparing for the inevitable, and now Microsoft is conducting its own tests. Interestingly, Microsoft has adopted a very similar strategy to Google. The company has added two experimental flags.

Both flags essentially force the "User-Agent" identifier to report that Microsoft Edge is on v100. The way a website responds or reacts to this information is critical. It goes without saying that the site will have to understand and accept a three-digit version and respond by interfacing properly with the browser.

Each web browser has a user agent identifier that is associated with the same version. It helps web developers adapt to the special or unique features, quirks, behavior patterns, etc. of the web browser. Developers can even add special, browser-specific features based on user agent information.

The Microsoft Edge stable version is still at v97 and the Dev channel version is v99. Since Microsoft has adopted a 4-week update schedule for its browsers, users can expect v100 to be released in the first half of 2022.