Why does the browser even matter ?
There's no requirement for internet access to need any kind of browser - and from my experience it's not a lot harder to write your own code for downloading etc
Reusing a specific application to do the work for you is an easy way to get bitten on the ass when things change
Winsock (and Winsock2) does all the things you need - it's what's used by windows and IE after all
The only thing I can think of is proxy servers - using IE to do the work for you means that you don't need to do the work yourself (or get people to configure things)
I agree, but software developers leverage other standard technology components where they can. This trend will increase, not decrease. This let’s them focus on the unique bit they are trying to create. They do not need to re-invent the wheel as a pre-requisite for the invention part.
That being said – because so many software developers use browser stuff – or depend on browser features – it makes me stay away from BETA versions (at least until they get into the final pre-release phase.