Posts Tagged IE6
IE6 Must Die for the Web to Move On
Posted by ShopinJA in Science & Technology on July 16th, 2009
July 16th, 2009 | by Ben Parr
Just six years ago, the web was dominated by one browser: Internet Explorer, specifically Internet Explorer 6. Without Netscape to compete against it and the ability to bundle its browser with Windows XP, Microsoft experienced superior market share – up to 95% at the peak. Today though, we have far superior browsers like Firefox, Safari, Opera, and Chrome, as well as Internet Explorer 8.
So why is 15 to 25 percent of the world’s browsing still done in a browser created in the digital Stone Age (aka 2001)? As a coder, designer, and UI guy, it’s difficult to put into words how many extra man hours I and others have dedicated to make websites compatible with the outdated browser.
Despite the difficulty presented by IE6 though, the web’s done alright. But with the coming release of HTML 5, we’re about to hit a breaking point where innovation will be stifled if websites must continue to cater to this browser. Here’s what’s happening in the next few months and, more importantly, why we must force ourselves off IE6 if the web is to grow.
The Issue with Internet Explorer 6
Yeah…Facebook doesn’t like IE6…
You might be asking yourself two questions right about now: What’s so bad about IE6? And why do so many people still use it? The answer to the first question is relatively simple: Internet Explorer 6 is outdated technology in a rapidly-changing Internet landscape. Imagine trying to use the social web, Microsoft Office, iTunes, IM, your video games, and all of your desktop apps…with a computer from 2001 (20 GB of space, 256 MB of RAM, anyone?). It’s the same thing: a great deal of new web technology is simply incompatible with IE6. A short list of things IE6 does not support, of which coders probably know them all:
