14 DAY TRIAL // Internet Explorer is no longer the default Windows browser, and very soon, the operating system will undergo another similar change.
Microsoft Edge, the app that replaced Internet Explorer as the new default in Windows, will itself be replaced by a modern version running on Chromium, the same engine that powers browsers like Google Chrome and Vivaldi.
However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that Internet Explorer got the ax. In fact, I’m pretty sure Microsoft would kill off Internet Explorer right now if it could, but because of compatibility reasons, the company has no other choice than to keep it around for a little longer.
The problem with Internet Explorer is that many companies and enterprises built apps that are specifically optimized for this browser. So even if Windows has a new browser, Internet Explorer is the only one that works smoothly with these apps, and this means that Microsoft must keep it around, at least until companies update their internal apps or the software giant finds another solution to deal with it.
One such idea could be part of the upcoming Chromium-based Microsoft Edge, which is expected to come with an integrated IE mode. This means a separate instance of Internet Explorer would no longer be needed, pretty much allowing Microsoft to retire this old browser without being worried of compatibility issues.
Meanwhile, for consumers and users not using such apps, sticking with Internet Explorer doesn’t make any sense. And there are three reasons for it.
Old-school browser
While Internet Explorer still receives security patches, which means that Microsoft keeps fixing vulnerabilities found in the browser, it lacks the modern functionality of today’s browsers.
For example, I really can’t imagine using a browser without extension support, a feature that pushes the capabilities of such an app beyond what the developing company offered in the first place.
It goes without saying that comparing Internet Explorer with a modern browser, such as Google Chrome, Firefox, or even the new version of Microsoft Edge, doesn’t make any sense from a feature perspective, and users sticking with IE are missing out on so much.
Security concerns
As I said, Microsoft does provide security patches, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that Internet Explorer is a safe browser. In fact, IE was a safe browser for its time, but the cyberthreat concept has evolved so much lately that it’s nearly impossible to deal with it without frequent updates.
And IE no longer receives new features, which means it can easily expose users even without being affected by a security vulnerability in the first place.
Browsers like Microsoft Edge come with so many features in terms of security, including privacy enhancements tool, cookie controls, and so much more, so sticking with Internet Explorer isn’t by any means a good idea from this security perspective.
Slow and lacking customization
Internet Explorer not only that is slow, but it also lacks the customization options that you can find in modern browsers.
While I’m not a big fan of tweaking the appearance of browsers, pretty much because this could lead to an impact in terms of performance, making the app heavier on system resources, I do need a dark theme and small fine-tuning here and there.
In Internet Explorer, this isn’t possible by any means, so again, users who don’t want to give up on it miss out on all of these.
At the end of the day, Internet Explorer is just a relic, and sooner or later, it should really get the ax. This will happen when the time comes, but for now, the best way you can do is to move to a modern browser and discover a whole new world in here.