One Unlikely Browser Controls The MarketOne Unlikely Browser Controls The Market

With Google's surprise announcement of its Chrome browser, a lot of attention has been focused on how Chrome might change the browser landscape. Google's technology certainly has potential, but there's one browser that today defines the boundaries of cutting-edge Web development. No, it's not Firefox, Internet Explorer 7, Opera, Safari, or Google Chrome.Unfortunately, that browser is Internet Explorer 6. This dinosaur of the Web was released in mid-2001 and still haunts progress to the tune of 25% market share. Right now, there are more people using IE6 than use all Firefox, Opera, and Chrome versions combined. This least-common-denominator browser, with the emphasis on least, has so many bugs that it holds back nearly every mainstream Web designer.

Think about that. IE6 is still the second-most-popular browser, after IE7. The IE6 influence in corporate America is even higher. IE6 is the reason why Microsoft worries about "breaking the Web" and cowers in fear of some corporate client with an intranet/extranet site that won't work. Microsoft is haunted by this Ghost of Browsers Past, and frets about moving forward for fear of breaking backward compatibility.

The recent renaissance in browser development -- Google Chrome, Firefox 3, Internet Explorer 8 -- is exciting, but still insignificant in terms of its market impact. No browser is likely to deflate IE6 quickly; IE6 users are either helplessly locked into it by their company, or so technically apathetic that they don't care about updating software on an outdated PC.

There's a chance, somewhat slim, that IE8 might help solve this problem. Corporate clients can configure IE8 to treat their broken intranet sites using IE7 quirks, and often even mimic the misbehavior of IE6 by adding some registry tweaks. Even an upgrade to the middle-aged IE7 would be a step in the right direction. Still, many companies may prefer to just stay with what they have. That would slow progress even more -- just what we don't need.

If you or your company still use IE6, you're part of the problem. Dump it for some other browser -- any other browser -- and become part of the solution. Let's bury the IE6 dinosaur as soon as possible. IE6 must die.