I am a newcomer to Cross Browser Testing and have just begun exploring Selenium. However, I am having trouble finding the answers to the following questions on the official site. It would be greatly appreciated if someone could help clarify them for me.
Does Selenium rely on "independent browsers" (via webdrivers) or does it use/connect to existing browsers that are installed on the operating system?
If Selenium utilizes "independent browsers", is it capable of actually launching separate instances of browsers like IE7, IE8, IE9, IE10, Safari on the operating system (such as Windows) for individual UI testing purposes?