14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft replaced Internet Explorer with Microsoft Edge in Windows 10 as the default browser, and since the first version of the OS came out in July 2015, the company pushed very hard for users to try out its modern app.
Internet Explorer, however, continues to be available in Windows 10 as a second-class citizen, being offered specifically for compatibility purposes whenever companies need to run their own internal apps.
But with Microsoft Edge also soon to be migrated to Chromium, Microsoft is now trying to convince all of its users, be they consumers or enterprises, to just give up on Internet Explorer, explaining in a post called “The perils of using Internet Explorer as your default browser” that this app is there just for compatibility reasons.
Chromium-based Edge on its way
Microsoft says it understands Internet Explorer remains a valuable tool for enterprises, but emphasizes that sooner or later apps still need to be updated because the rest of the world is migrating to modern browsers anyway.
“You see, Internet Explorer is a compatibility solution. We’re not supporting new web standards for it and, while many sites work fine, developers by and large just aren’t testing for Internet Explorer these days. They’re testing on modern browsers,” Chris Jackson, Microsoft engineer, explains.
“So, if we continued our previous approach, you would end up in a scenario where, by optimizing for the things you have, you end up not being able to use new apps as they come out. As new apps are coming out with greater frequency, what we want to help you do is avoid having to miss out on a progressively larger portion of the web!”
By the looks of things, Microsoft is just trying to pave the way for its new Chromium-based browser, despite this project still in its early days. According to the company itself, a preview build is projected to roll out in early 2019.