By Cailin Loesch
For millennials and baby boomers alike, Internet Explorer was an introduction to the internet. Through the browser, millions were first exposed to an enormous wealth of information available at the click of a mouse. Now, 27 years later, the Internet Explorer era is coming to an end.
After first announcing the decision last year, Microsoft will officially shut down the browser on Wednesday. Starting then, according to The Telegraph, most people who try to open the application will be directed to the company’s new browser, Microsoft Edge.
Per PEOPLE, Microsoft shared a blog post in May 2021, in which the company explained that they had begun moving away from Internet Explorer the previous year, in favor of Microsoft Edge. It was then that they announced that the platform will “go out of support” for certain versions of Windows 10 on June 15th.
According to The Telegraph, Internet Explorer became one of the most popular ways of accessing the internet after its launch in 1995.
The Telegraph reported that while its popularity has plummeted over the years, ‘many businesses continue to use Internet Explorer to run internal applications.’ Because of this, though Edge had become Microsoft’s preferred browser by 2016, the company has added an Internet Explorer mode on Microsoft Edge to allow applications to continue using it.
“Not only is Microsoft Edge a faster, more secure and more modern browsing experience than Internet Explorer, but it is also able to address a key concern: compatibility for older, legacy websites and applications,” the company wrote in the 2021 blog post. “Microsoft Edge has Internet Explorer mode (“IE mode”) built in, so you can access those legacy Internet Explorer-based websites and applications straight from Microsoft Edge.”
According to The Wall Street Journal, as of this month, only .28% of internet surfers still use Internet Explorer. In contrast, about two-thirds of people use Google Chrome, and 18% use Apple’s Safari.
“It’s sad to see it go,” one Internet Explorer user told the outlet.
Added another, “I’m still trying to process it.”
