The end of an era: Microsoft is finally retiring Internet Explorer

Internet Explorer has been a major part of the online landscape for over two decades. Its launch in 1995 made browsing the web more accessible to the general public and was subsequently Microsoft’s flagship browser until now.

After a long journey, Microsoft announces in August 2021 that they will be finally retiring the internet explorer in 2022. This key announcement marks the end of an era as Microsoft lays the final nail in its browser’s coffin.

Microsoft is finally retiring Internet Explorer in 2022

On August 17th, 2020, Microsoft announced the end of an era by retiring its Internet Explorer (IE) web browser. After over 20 years of use, Microsoft is sunsetting IE in favour of its Edge browser. This decision brings Microsoft into a competitive market that currently offers a variety of browsers to choose from.

Internet Explorer was first introduced in 1995 and quickly became one of the world’s most widely used web browsers. Millions have used it over the years as their preferred choice for internet browsing. However, its legacy extends beyond users’ usage – many developers have built sites tailored specifically for its rendering engine to ensure compatibility during browser wars between it and its competitors like Firefox, Safari and Chrome.

Microsoft’s decision to finally retire Internet Explorer marks the end of an era. However, it also opens up new opportunities for users who want something more modern and reliable than IE in their web experience. The new Edge browser includes flexibility and security enhancements to protect against cyberattacks and improved efficiency on PCs with less RAM or battery life. All these elements combined promise to give users more control over their browsing activities while simultaneously allowing them to remain secure while connected online.

History of Internet Explorer

Internet Explorer (IE) has been around since 1995, providing internet users with a web browser that could deliver web content faster and with more features than its competitors. It quickly became a popular browser and was used by millions of users.

However, Microsoft has announced they will finally retire Internet Explorer in 2022. This article will examine the history of Internet Explorer and explore why Microsoft is deciding to retire it.

The browser’s rise to popularity

In 1995, Microsoft introduced Internet Explorer (IE) as the first web browser bundled with the Windows operating system. During the competition of browsers of the late 1990s, IE quickly gained a foothold in the market. Its rapid rise to popularity was due to its inclusion with Windows and its user usability. In addition, IE helped popularise many features, like tabbed browsing and ActiveX controls, integral to today’s web browsers. At its peak in 2002, IE held over 95% of the market share for browsers on desktop devices worldwide.

By 2004, Firefox had released its first major version and began to take some market share from Microsoft’s favourite browser. In 2006 Microsoft responded by re-branding their product as “Windows Internet Explorer”. It released a new version (IE7) which included more advanced security features such as anti-phishing measures and improved compatibility with web standards. Following this release, it took over four years before another version was made available to users (IE9) in 2011 — but by then it had already lost a huge amount of ground against competitors like Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox.

In 2015 Internet Explorer 11 was released, which included improved performance issues on older hardware and touchscreen support — but this wasn’t enough to prevent it from losing market share against other browsers in a fierce competition. As a result, by 2017 IE 11 only accounted for 10% of global browser usage on all platforms meaning that after almost 22 years since its initial release Microsoft was finally ready to move on from their beloved browser with new Edge replacing it as default beginning in Windows 10 from 2020 onward.

The browser’s decline in usage

With the rise of Firefox, Chrome and other browsers, Internet Explorer’s market share had been steadily declining for over a decade. In 2008, its market share dropped to about 70%, with Microsoft’s web browser accounting for most of that decline. In 2015, Microsoft officially ended support for all prior versions of its web browser, pushing users to upgrade to either Microsoft Edge or another modern web browser solution.

With each new release of Windows 10 came an increase in the number of devices running Microsoft’s brand-new operating system and an even greater decline in Internet Explorer usage. By the summer of 2019, its global usage share had dropped to just 0.41%. Without ongoing support or rapid innovation, Internet Explorer could no longer compete with other modern solutions on the market — including Microsoft’s new Edge browser.

While many users clung onto their beloved application due to familiarity or corporate policy constraints — mostly within government agencies — it was only a matter of time until Microsoft finally laid down its legacy product to focus on competitive solutions that could once again help it compete in the browser wars. As a result, on June 15th 2020, after more than 25 years on the market, Microsoft officially announced that it had ended support for Internet Explorer 11 and all prior versions across all supported Windows 10 (including older versions).

Impact of Internet Explorer’s Retirement

Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) has been the most popular web browser until the invention of Google Chrome. However, this all changed in 2021 when Microsoft announced the official retirement of IE, slated for 2022. This decision by Microsoft has sent shockwaves through the industry, with people questioning the impact of IE’s retirement.

Let’s discuss the anticipated impact and how it will shape the future of web browsers.

Impact on web developers

The retirement of Internet Explorer is a significant milestone for web developers and has immediate implications for businesses with IE customers. The web development community will need to invest time, resources, and attention to modernise their codebases and meet newer web standards to ensure that websites are accessible to all users.

When Microsoft announced the end of its support period for IE, they also recommended that developers move away from using legacy technologies – including ActiveX controls, Browser Helper Objects (BHOs) and VML – which were all commonly used with IE. As such, developers need to be sure they’re using more modern language versions like HTML5 and CSS3. Additionally, businesses should ensure their websites are optimised for their visitors’ browsers. This can involve testing websites against multiple browsers or ensuring your website is browser-agnostic (such as by setting up responsive design frameworks).

In addition to these technical concerns, businesses should consider how their content is best served across browsers. For example, some companies may deliver content via Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) or opt into Google’s Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP). Another consideration should be browser-based feature detection such as video streaming support, canvas element access or geolocation capabilities so users don’t miss out on any features the site may offer them.

By transitioning away from Internet Explorer and taking advantage of modern web standards and technologies – specifically tailored to different user environments – businesses can remain competitive in an ever-evolving digital landscape while providing exceptional experiences for customers regardless of what device or device or browser they use.

Impact on users

Microsoft’s announcement that it is finally retiring Internet Explorer brings an end to one of the most popular web browsers of all time. In its prime, Internet Explorer was an influential player in creating the World Wide Web and set the standards for browser functions.

The retirement of Internet Explorer will have a varying impact on users, depending on whether they are corporate or personal users. Corporate users may be concerned about legacy web apps built and maintained over multiple versions of IE. In contrast, personal users may transition more easily as other browsers improve their features and performance.

For corporate users, transitioning from IE to a modern browser such as Edge may require extensive reworking of their existing software stack with upgrades to modern programming languages and technologies that are more efficient at rendering new web content standards for normal end user experience. However, for personal users who are only slightly impacted by the retirement, there is still an element of familiarity that can exist since Edge has shared similar feature lines with IE while adding some security improvements.

Overall, while there may be inconvenience associated with making adjustments due to the retirement, it could ultimately lead to increased productivity if properly leveraged due to improved support for modern web technologies and standards not supported by IE anymore. In addition, there could also be advantages regarding security given that new browsers are generally updated faster than old versions to defend against latest cybersecurity threats.

What’s Next?

Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) was the go-to browser for many people worldwide for many years. However, Microsoft is finally phasing out IE and will retire in 2022. As sad as this news may be, it’s also an opportunity to explore what other browsers are available and their benefits.

Let’s take a look at some of the options that are out there.

Microsoft’s move to Edge

With the announcement that Microsoft is retiring Internet Explorer, many users are left with the question of “what’s next?” Edge is the natural choice for those still loyal to Microsoft products and has become part of the Windows 10 operating system. In addition, edge includes features like page reading, improved security and other modern web developers’ tools that make it a great fit for users with various needs.

Microsoft also provides more choices across user experience platforms so that users can choose their preferred browser for their needs. Users can access an array of new browsers and programs such as Chrome, Safari and Firefox, each offering various benefits from customizability to speed. With any browser you choose, you will have access to all the great things the internet offers like audio/visual sharing and online gaming.

The end of Internet Explorer does not mean less choice. Instead, users can access more options than ever — from Chrome’s developer tools to Firefox’s customizability. With such a wide selection available at no cost, everyone can find something that suits their web usage preferences in terms of performance, convenience and innovation!

Alternatives to Internet Explorer

The demise of Microsoft Internet Explorer means that users now have to look for alternatives for web browsing. Fortunately, there are a variety of readily available options on the market. Here are some popular choices:

-Google Chrome: With a simple user interface, Chrome is the leader in web browsers in terms of usage and features. It displays all kinds of multimedia content and offers an array of extensions to further explore the web.

-Mozilla Firefox: Firefox offers fast page loading and secure browsing, with an extra layer of privacy that enables users to block trackers across multiple sites and reduce the amount of information websites collect about their online activities.

-Safari: Safari focuses not only on speed but also on privacy, offering auto-fill capabilities that let you easily complete forms and built-in protection from malicious websites.

-Opera: A solid choice with much lower memory use than other popular browsers, Opera also boasts a built-in ad blocker and native support for many streaming services like Netflix and YouTube TV.

-Edge & Brave: Both Edge and Brave are modern browsers offering good performance and plenty of additional features tailored for tech-savvy users looking for more control over their online experience.

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