Technology giant Microsoft has officially discontinued support for Internet Explorer (IE), the web browser that once … [+] dominated the market
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On Wednesday, technology giant Microsoft officially discontinued support for Internet Explorer (IE), the web browser that once dominated the market – and even led to an antitrust lawsuit filed by the United States government.
Internet Explorer officially launched on August 16, 1995, and quickly emerged victorious in the so-called “Browser Wars” of the late 1990s, defeating rival Netscape.
However, Microsoft’s dominance in the market did not last long, and the release of Firefox in 2002 led to a wave of open source browsers, including Google Chrome, which was launched in 2008. This was not the end of IE, but perhaps to quote the late Sir Winston Churchill, this was the “end of the beginning.” Microsoft saw so much and eventually developed the Edge, a more secure and modern browser that launched in 2015.
“The death of IE marked the official end of the early days of the Internet, when accessing and merging content drove online businesses more than advertising. Microsoft’s actions around IE, including its connection to Windows, have also led to the company’s accusation of violating Sherman’s antitrust law, said technology analyst Charles King of Pund-IT.
“As Microsoft emerged from the breakup, its victory in Browser Wars was short-lived, and IE was steadily losing ground to competitors, including Google’s Firefox and Chrome,” King said. “The story of the rise of IE to dominance and then the eventual decline to irrelevance is a parallel to the evolution of e-commerce and other activities. It was a fascinating journey with what would once be considered an extremely unlikely end.
Twitter reactions: Browser history
The end of the official support for IE was marked on social media on Wednesday and there were about 100,000 tweets dedicated to the browser. For some, it was like the death of an old friend.
The official Twitter account of the fin-tech news site Morning Brew (@MorningBrew) shared a picture of Pixar’s cartoon character Woody, saying “such a long partner”, while saying: “Goodbye is never easy. In 27 years, Microsoft will officially be shutting down Internet Explorer from Wednesday this week. “
“Microsoft is retiring from Internet Explorer today after almost 27 years. RIP “, noted the influencer, gaming site and e-sports news Dexerto (@Dexerto).
In a more humorous way, LizaMinnelliOutlives’ (@LiZaOutlives) humor account tweeted: “Lisa Minnelli has outlived Internet Explorer. After 27 years, Microsoft officially closes it.
Others were less polite in their assessment of the role of IE in browser history.
“You will miss Internet Explorer,” suggested Malaysian news site MGAG (@My_MGAG), which shared a caricature of the death, telling IE it was time to go.
A similar topic was shared by web video producer Marquez Brownlee (@MKBHD), who scoffed, tweeting: “Today marks the official end of Microsoft’s support for Internet Explorer. RIP to the # 1 Chrome installer of all time
“Respect ++ To Internet Explorer!”, Added @mn_google, who noted that you can’t download another browser without IE!
IE joined club 27 – or did it?
Despite the fact that the browser actually failed to reach its 27th anniversary / birthday, which is technically still two months away, several users have suggested that IE has joined the famous “27 Club” of musicians, artists and actors who died at the age of 27. Among those in Club 27 are blues musician Robert Johnson, Rolling Stones’ Brian Jones, Jimi Hendrix, Janice Joplin, Jim Morrison, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Kurt Cobain and Amy Winehouse.
“no [sic] internet explorer joins club 27 “, tweets @mountbellyache.
@chrisforfree also tweeted “oh no IE joined club 27”
“Internet Explorer is ready to join Club 27. Statcounter shows the sharp decline in IE on desktops (blue line – let’s not even go into how mobile browsing dominates visits these days). Bye IE, unlike Kurt, Jimi, Jim, Amy et al., You didn’t shake my world, “joked Evan Kypreos (@EvanKypreos).
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“Unlike the rest of Club 27, IE looks a bit far from first-class,” added @willkanellos.
IE seems to be only part of the history of our browser now.
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