5 reasons why we are dropping default Internet Explorer support
The glory days of Internet Explorer are in the past, with many great alternatives available. In web development, browser support is a major concern. Internet Explorer has been the cause of many problems in developing clean, fast online platforms, so we are happy to finally drop it from our supported browser list. Here are 5 reasons why.
As a frontend developer I could not be more excited to tell you that we are (finally) dropping Internet Explorer out of our default supported browsers list. Every developer will confirm that IE has been a pain in the proverbial ass for the past few years. These are my top 5 reasons why it’s time for Internet Explorer to pack up and go.
1
Security & stagnation
Internet Explorer is part of the Windows operating system. That means that it is not self-updated, creating a high risk of potential security problems. Internet Explorer uses very old and specific versions of rendering and JavaScript engines. A lot of modern web technologies are not backwards compatible with those old engines, meaning developers will have to include specific code for Internet Explorer or have to avoid using those modern technologies.
As long as we still need to support Internet Explorer, we are limited in the use of modern web technologies.
Elias Swaans
2
Usage
In 1995, the year Internet Explorer was introduced, 70% of the world's population used it as their standard browser. That’s not a surprise, because it was the standard browser on all computers running Windows. But for quite some time now the overall market share of Internet Explorer has been dropped far below 5%. So why ruin the experience for the other 95%?
3
Microsoft is dropping IE support
If even Microsoft is dropping support for their own tools on IE, you know it’s finally time to say goodbye to Internet Explorer. It means that for example users will have a degraded experience or will be unable to connect to Microsoft 365 apps and services on Internet Explorer. Other Microsoft apps will no longer work or be accessible via Internet Explorer. By doing so, Microsoft is hoping to push their users to the new Microsoft Edge browser.
4
Speed
It’s not a secret that Internet Explorer isn’t the fastest browser around. The reason is simple: you need more code to make sure everything works on IE. More code means a longer loading time - for everyone. And more code means more time needed to develop your website. And, as you all know, time is money.
The time I’ve spent in BrowserStack (a tool for developers to debug Internet Explorer and other browsers/machines) is astonishing. Sometimes it takes more time to debug a feature in IE, then to develop the entire feature.
5
Money
As I wrote before, time is money. And supporting IE takes a lot of time. A large webshop, which generates a lot of revenue from IE users, might still want to spend the extra time supporting IE. But is it worth degrading the experience for the vast majority of users by compromising performance and opportunities offered by modern features?
By providing no incentive for developers to care about new browser features, they’re being held back from innovating and building the best product they can. Which, in the end, will mean a subpar user experience for your visitors and less revenue.
The future is now
As of november 2020, Intracto no longer supports Internet Explorer as one of the ‘default supported browsers’ on all new projects. In short, this means that we no longer guarantee a working platform in any version of Internet Explorer.
Of course we will still be able to support Internet Explorer on request if that is still an important business criteria for your platform. If so, make sure to mention that upfront since it will have a significant impact on technical decisions and will also have impact on timing & budget.
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