Saying Goodbye to Internet Explorer 6.0
Effective January 2009, we stopped supporting Internet Explorer version 6.0 (IE6). A lot has changed since it's release in August 2001 and we had to move on in order to provide modern web functionality, and improved security to you.
Please upgrade your browser. The good news is, browser software is entirely free.
Below is text from our original announcement to cancel support for IE6, published in January 2009.
Past Its PrimeWhat do the following have in common: Xbox, Hummer H2, Nintendo Gamecube, iPod, the television show 24 and YouTube? They are all
younger than IE6. Believe it or not, IE6 was released
two weeks before the World Trade Center Towers fell.
Age alone isn't reason enough for putting IE6 out to pasture. The main reason is that IE6 was ‘broken’ from its original release date.
Internet Explorer 6 was a package of problems right from the start. Within a year of release, Microsoft silently declared that IE6 would not make enough money for them to continue supporting. The result has been numerous
security problems, unfixed browser bugs, and a daily migraine for developers. In order for IE6 to display a web site ‘properly’ like its better-functioning cousins requires an immense amount of extra programming to compensate for its bugs. And any new developments in web technology have to be worked around with hacks to get IE6 to behave properly.
A Lesson from BlockbusterBack in 2003, Blockbuster announced it was phasing out carrying VHS-based movies and stocking only DVDs. This decision was based on three things. First, DVDs were by far better than VHS. The audio and video quality was sharper on the DVD disk than on the magnetic tape within a VHS cassette. Also, DVDs lasted significantly longer than VHS. They stood up to the wear and tear of constant use much better than its older counterpart.
Secondly, the switch from VHS to DVD reduced maintenance costs for Blockbuster. This applied in not only having to replace damaged movies less, but also in the dreaded task of having to rewind movies returned that weren't rewound.
Lastly, Blockbuster would not have made the switch if the marketplace wasn't already moving toward abandoning VHS altogether for DVD. Research has shown this was the case with sales of DVD players rising steadily and Blockbuster's own sales of DVD rentals were outpacing VHS rentals.
Time for the MoveAs stated earlier, IE6 was loaded with display problems and bugs from the start, and Microsoft never invested the time or money to fix them. Consequently, the time and money needed to get IE6 to work with web sites fell on the developers of the sites themselves. As technology for the web improved, more and more work was increasingly required for IE6 to be able to enable newer technologies and formats to display reasonably well within it.
There is an increasingly growing movement in the Internet industry to allow ‘old technology’ to die, or at least expose its flaws for its users to see just how bad it is, and encourage them to switch to a browser that works better. Not only will this help remove outdated technology from the equation, but also allow web sites to use newer technologies and formats they wouldn't have in the past due to limitations in IE6. This will also reduce programming time needed to get IE6 to behave the way newer and better browsers do. For organizations that contract out their web services, it reduces costs significantly.
The catalyst, however, for this move is the marketplace. Studies show that IE6 users are increasingly dwindling. Microsoft strongly encourages all Windows users to upgrade to IE7 and eliminate IE6. In fact, system upgrades for Windows automatically do this for you. Corporations are moving away from IE6 on their company computers, mainly due to security issues that were never properly addressed in IE6 to more secure browsers.
Even our TCS client websites are confirming this trend. In the first quarter of 2008, IE6 users equaled about 60 percent. However, by third quarter 2008, that number had dropped to 30 percent, and continues to dwindle. As such, we believe it’s time for the switch. To not do this now would be a disservice to our clients and their members. This move will save our clients money in the long run and will allow us to keep their sites up-to-date with the times.
Better Browser Alternatives:
Further Reading on IE6 support issues: