Internet Microsoft said on Tuesday that an upgrade to Microsoft Edge on certain versions of Windows 10 will permanently eliminate the outdated and unsupported Internet Explorer 11 desktop application.
Anyone who has been paying attention to Internet Explorer and the world of web browsers, in general, could have seen this development a mile away. Since 2015, Microsoft has poured resources into its current web browser, Edge, while abandoning the legacy IE browser.
Microsoft To Kill Internet Explorer
Nevertheless, it is more than that: Microsoft said in 2021 that it will put Internet Explorer out to pasture, gradually shifting away from the software until June 15, 2022, when it would officially cease support.
In case you haven’t recently consulted a calendar, June 15, 2022, occurred eight months ago, which means Microsoft terminated Internet Explorer more than six months ago. But, retirement does not equate to death. Technically, it was still possible to access the web with Internet Explorer (IE), despite the fact that the firm made using the obsolete browser more difficult than switching to Edge.
The lack of support rendered it a security risk, in addition to the fact that Internet Explorer’s age made it a poor browser to use in 2022. Internet Explorer continued to exist if such a thing is possible.
This gets us to February 14th, Tuesday. Valentine’s Day, but only for those who no longer adore Internet Explorer. Instead of allowing the program to enjoy a peaceful retirement, Microsoft decided to disable it permanently in some versions of Windows 10. Frequently, you will be unable to use it at all.
Internet Explore’s Worldwide Domination
Internet Explorer was previously the standard web browser. In 2003, if you were accessing the Internet, you were likely using Internet Explorer, as the browser commanded a staggering 95 percent market share.
This was in part due to Microsoft’s strong integration of the application into Windows, which made it impossible to examine alternatives, such as Netscape at the time. In reality, Netscape’s parent firm, AOL, launched a monopolistic behavior lawsuit against Microsoft and won. Yet it didn’t matter: Internet Explorer was the browser of choice for too many people, whether they were aware of it or not.
Internet Explorer’s story of success, however, would not last long. Competing browsers, such as Firefox and Chrome, began to gain popularity due to Internet Explorer’s lack of capabilities. It became evident very soon that Microsoft’s browser could not compete in the new Internet, with pages that loaded slowly and elements that failed to load at all.
In the digital age, it makes no difference whether you were once the preferred option for nearly every internet user on the planet; if you can’t stay up, you perish.
Internet Explorer 11 was the last new browser version to be launched, in 2013. The phrase ancient is a massive understatement in terms of computing.
Internet Explorer has not been a legitimate part of the web conversation for the majority of us for years. But it served a purpose. Microsoft’s primary motivation for keeping Internet Explorer around for so long was to support legacy websites that were incompatible with modern browsers.
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Will History Be Repeated?
Internet Explorer could still connect you to older portions of the internet, although Chrome and Firefox cannot. It was particularly crucial for businesses utilizing certain services that require Internet Explorer and cannot be updated to a more recent version.
However, even this objective was quickly evaded by IE. Microsoft incorporated Internet Explorer Mode to Edge, allowing their new browser to perform both tasks, so rendering Internet Explorer irrelevant.
Consider the apps and services that currently have a stranglehold on the public. iMessage and FaceTime have contributed to the iPhone’s great popularity in the United States; Google is the default search engine for the majority of people.
Certainly, these things have been true for some time, but will they remain so? Perhaps Apple will be compelled to offer its exclusive chat services on Android, so completely upending the U.S. smartphone market.
Perhaps Microsoft’s or another company’s forays into artificial intelligence search will make their search engine the next king.
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