Microsoft has announced that they are finally ending support for Internet Explorer. It will no longer be available after June 15, 2022. 

Internet Explorer is over 25-years-old and was once known as the most powerful and modern Internet browser. However, that time was ages ago, and Internet Explorer no longer holds that title. It is now known as the slowest, buggiest option available. Other options like Google Chrome allowed people to stop relying on Internet Explorer so heavily, which led to its steady death. 

Even Microsoft has stepped away from their early product; in 2015, Microsoft introduced Internet Explorer’s successor (Microsoft Edge) to the public. It was advertised as an improved and superior Internet browser compared to its predecessor. Then in 2020, Microsoft software teams completely cut Internet Explorer out from their own devices. 

In their announcement, Microsoft claimed that Internet Explorer was too slow and impractical to continue operating today. Microsoft had allowed it to exist in Windows for 25 years because many corporate applications continued to rely on it to function. They were aware that corporations were slow to adopt new browsers and technologies. However, they have upgraded Microsoft Edge to support web applications that were originally built for Internet Explorer. This means that users can continue to use their old apps without having to ever see Internet Explorer again. 

People paid their respects to the product’s long legacy on social media. Many acknowledged that although it was the slowest browser that could have possibly existed, it was still the blue “e” that everyone knew. Internet Explorer most definitely won’t be missed, but it will be laid to rest alongside other discontinued programs like HotMail and Clippy the Office Assistant.

by Nathan Park