Of course, not all browsers currently in popular use (ahem, Internet Explorer) support the “pushState” function yet. Older browsers will continue to use hash-based URLs, and if hash-based links are shared with modern browsers, they’ll be transparently upgraded to the “pushState” version of the URL.

—The new Backbone release includes support for “pushState”, which lets browsers dynamically update URLs without forcing a page refresh and without using hacky hashes or hashbangs. And, it even does the right thing when fed a hashed URL, the exact opposite of what seems to be en vogue these days. Bravo.