Thanks Microsoft - you Suck!

haha, I had some lady email me the other day and was mad at me because I have IE6 blocked and her IT department won’t upgrade their browsers. It’s not just Microsoft’s fault, they’re just trying to keep supporting their customers (while continuing to produce crappy browsers).

If this is ever going to change, web developers need to stop bending over backwards to keep supporting ancient technology. Or charge $1000 an hour for all work done in IE6 , lol.

I’ve been thinking about a solution to this kind of problem. See, IE7 is just the next IE6 and IE8 will be the next IE7 . Microsoft’s browsers are crap and will continue being a thorn in web developers’ sides for a long time to come. The problem is that the large majority of people don’t upgrade because they are either too scared to, don’t know how or other applications rely on the older browser.

So, what can we do? Take the browser out of the hands of the average web user. Some sort of cloud computing environment maybe or a really simple application that has one sole purpose – connect to a virtual browser (like a service) which is automatically updated for users yet still customizable (like Firefox). The application doesn’t need to be upgraded (or at least as often) because it only has one simple purpose (basically a simple vnc).

Maybe these are dumb ideas but I’d like to see something change.

Edit: Or maybe we can require people to get a surfing license! You have to be able to surf the web legally before you can own and operate a computer.

If this is ever going to change, web developers need to stop bending over backwards to keep supporting ancient technology. Or charge $1000 an hour for all work done in IE6 , lol.

I’ve been thinking about a solution to this kind of problem. See, IE7 is just the next IE6 and IE8 will be the next IE7 . Microsoft’s browsers are crap and will continue being a thorn in web developers’ sides for a long time to come. The problem is that the large majority of people don’t upgrade because they are either too scared to, don’t know how or other applications rely on the older browser.

So, what can we do? Take the browser out of the hands of the average web user. Some sort of cloud computing environment maybe or a really simple application that has one sole purpose – connect to a virtual browser (like a service) which is automatically updated for users yet still customizable (like Firefox). The application doesn’t need to be upgraded (or at least as often) because it only has one simple purpose (basically a simple vnc).

Well said – that sort of cloud-computing application won’t happen for as far as I can see; Americans can’t even hand over basic things to the government OR the market economy without crying “socialist pig!” or “capitalist pig!”, despite several instances where either one might play an effective role. The fact is they demand the choices be left in their individual hands, regardless of how ill informed they might be. Trusting developers and programmers to actually make the right decisions – to us this seems noble, but I can’t see that lady who you referenced even having the slightest motivation to desire someone else to make choices for her. Dumb people globally would revolt at every slight change that’s been made without their individual approval.

Edit: Or maybe we can require people to get a surfing license! You have to be able to surf the web legally before you can own and operate a computer.

Funny, I feel the same way about parenting, lol.

Also: Let’s not forget that a large percentage of IE users are having it forced upon them in work environments (Digg.com conducted a recent poll to that effect), so it’s not like they even have a choice in the matter. If presented with accurate information and a test-drive of each browser, I’m pretty sure not everyone would pick FF, but at the very least there would be an exodus from older builds of IE.

The key here is that there’s little left to do but sit around and wait for all of the computers with IE6 installed on them to break down… sure, there’ll always be another IEX out there, but that’s just a fact of life until we can get all browsers to agree on standards and let the UI featureset of each browser be what differentiates, there’s always going to be at least one rogue in the pack. It’s just unfortunate that the rogue at the moment holds such a high market share.

On another, but similar note: How can a non-profit company like Mozilla produce better products than a massive corporation like Microsoft that’s been in business for 25 years?

They actually listen to what their users want and make sure it works before releasing it.

Microsoft is as big as it is today because way back in the day when they started out, they were doing things nobody else had a clue about. They took over a niche market and dominated by pushing everyone else out of the way with various tactics. There wasn’t the same level of competition at that point as there is today either. Along the way they’ve bought out most of their competition who might’ve had a chance. If there were as many easily usable operating systems today as there are browsers, Microsoft would be a very different company. Unfortunately Microsoft can still afford to ignore most of its customers and listen to lots that don’t know what they’re talking about.