Microsoft Research was in the news not too long ago regarding the innovative, outside-the-box research being done by MSR scientists on display at the annual MSR TechFest event. One of the stars of the show was a new web browser project named Gazelle. Gazelle is a Microsoft Research prototype web browser constructed as a multi-principal OS (empahsis on research and prototype). From the Gazelle Microsoft Research Technical Report: Gazelle’s Browser Kernel is an operating system that exclusively manages resource protection and sharing across web site principals. This construction exposes intricate design issues that no previous work has identified, such as legacy protection of cross-origin script source, and cross-principal, cross-process display and events protection.
Interesting, Captain. This really piqued our curiosity so Erik Meijer and I decided to find out the inside scoop on Gazelle. Why choose an OS architecture to model a web browser? How does it work, exactly? What does multi-principal mean in the context of execution of web pages? Aren't we talking about isolated processes? What happens when a principal is compromised? Is the browser kernel completely isolated from code executing in a principal context(is it possible to "blue screen" Gazelle)? What are the intrinsic challenges with implementing this design? How performant is a multi-principal, kernel-based web browser (what if you have 40 principal contexts running simultaneously, for example)?
This is a great conversation with Gazelle project lead Helen Wang and Alex Moshchuk, a PhD student intern developer working on the Gazelle project. We cover a lot of ground and Erik and I are unusually curious given the fascinating model Gazelle represents for a truly secure web browser.
Enjoy! This is a birthday present from Channel 9 to you!
Koen Zwikstra has created a very useful tool for Silverlight application development called 
When we launched Channel 9 five years ago we weren't sure what to expect from the community and from Microsoft. What would developers think of this non-corporate, free wheeling website designed by and for geeks and developers (and one great designer, David Shadle - designer of the 9 Guy and first iteration of Channel 9)? Did we do the right thing? Will Channel 9 be taken seriously? Are we crazy? Well, history has answered these questions and the next five years will be very interesting indeed. I thought I'd pay a visit to my friend, fellow Niner and co-conspirator Jeff Sandquist. I don't think I've ever really interviewed him. 5 years!!! Wow. 
Long time Niner, typography master, ClearType co-inventor and more-than-avid reader Bill Hill reflects on Channel 9, the state of the economy, Homo Sapiens 2.0 and the next version of, well, Bill Hill (Bill Hill 4.0?). :)
Scott Guthrie, VP of all things .NET (and IIS), wishes Channel 9 and the Niner nation a very happy 5th birthday!!! Thanks for spending time on Channel 9, Scott! You're a rock star. :)
High Priest of the Lamda Calculus Erik Meijer, wearing celebration lights around his neck, reflects on Channel 9, Niners and the importance of showcasing the humans behind technology. Erik is the star of our Expert to Expert series and will continue to provide incredible conversations for Channel 9 for a long time to come. Thank you, Erik!! You rock, man!
Mark Russinovich, long time Niner, 
Anders Hejlsberg, Microsoft Technical Fellow and C# Creator, reflects on Channel 9 at 5, Channel 9's birth, Niners, and to the future of Channel 9. Happy Birthday, Niners!!!