Google has announced it will soon no longer support Internet Explorer 6, joining others who have made it their mission to kill-off the 9 year old browser.
Google’s move is only the latest in a year-long string of major Web properties dropping support for IE6 or urging users to replace it with a newer browser. The campaign began in February 2009, when Facebook prompted IE6 users to upgrade
It then accelerated last summer when Google’s YouTube did the same, as Digg announced it would curtail IE6 support and as a California site builder led nearly 40 Web start-ups to urge their users to dump the browser. Meanwhile, an "IE Must Die" petition on Twitter has accumulated more than 14,000 signatures.
Even Microsoft has attempted to encourage people to upgrade but admitted it is sometimes difficult to persuade companies and individuals because the old browser is still mandated by some enterprises. In particular, IE6 also accounts for half the browsers used in China, according to recent data from metrics company NetApplications.com. But as the Internet changes, computer users will eventually be forced to make the shift.
Last July a leading technology website described IE6 as "outdated" and suggested users would find themselves unable to use the Internet properly if they did not upgrade.
Mashable, a website that draws over 5 million readers every month, said that with the release of HTML 5 (Hyper Text Mark-up Language) many IE6 users may find themselves unable to use the web.
HTML is the language of the web, and HTML 5 will provide greater functionality. But while old browsers may still work with websites written in HTML 5, they will not obtain the best experience or functionality. With more companies dropping support for IE6 many users may be left out in the cold.
It is estimated that between 15 and 25 percent of Internet users browse the web with IE6, partly because it is the browser that came with the most used operating system Windows XP. But many individuals and companies have simply failed to upgrade. Digg, a social news website made for people to discover and share content from the Internet, suggests that more than 70 percent of those using IE6 were forced to do so by their company.
The failure of companies to adapt is shortsighted, according to Shane Richmond, who writes for the Daily Telegraph’s technology column. In an article he wrote last year he said, "Any IT manager who forces his company to run IE6 in 2009 is dangerously incompetent and should probably not be in charge of anything more complicated than buying biscuits."
He conceded there may be reasons behind the decision to keep using IE6 despite its age. "It’s possible that they’re doing this because their company uses an intranet, or some other custom-built web service, that was designed to work in IE6 and is useless in any other browser," Richmond said.
But now there are "far superior browsers like Firefox, Safari, Opera and Chrome, as well as Internet Explorer 8," Mashable’s Ben Parr said, "IE6 was fine enough for use in 2001, but for web apps to evolve and grow into tools that run just as seamlessly as desktop apps, the browser that requires the most hacks, time, and energy to make things work must be set aside."
As more websites drift away from providing support for IE6, so too might Internet users think about changing their browser, says Ben Parr. "The only way at this point that people will upgrade is if their favorite web tools don’t work in IE6."
Google’s latest move may force that shift. "Many other companies have already stopped supporting older browsers like Internet Explorer 6.0 as well as browsers that are not supported by their own manufacturers," said Rajen Sheth, Google Apps Senior Product Manager.
"We’re also going to begin phasing out our support, starting with Google Docs and Google Sites. As a result you may find that from March 1 key functionality within these products - as well as new Docs and Sites features - won’t work properly in older browsers."
The company isn’t just promoting its own Google Chrome browser however. It also recommends, and links to, Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari homepages. Google’s new list of supported browsers omits IE6, as well as other older programs, including Mozilla’s Firefox 2.0, Apple’s Safari 2.0 and Google’s own Chrome 3.0. IE6 is by far the oldest browser of the bunch, with an August 2001 debut. In comparison, Firefox 2.0 dates to October 2006, Safari 2.0 to April 2005 and Chrome 3.0 to September 2009.
People running older browsers should upgrade to a newer version, said Sheth, who posted links to downloads of IE8, Firefox 3.6, Safari 4.0 and Chrome 4.0. The latter is available in final form only for Windows; Chrome 4.0 for the Mac still remains in beta.
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