Why You Shouldn’t Use Internet Explorer

Since our company is in the interactive web design business, we know everything about internet browsers. And one thing that we just can’t stand is how people are still using Internet Explorer to surf the web.

Not only is Internet Explorer outdated for today’s Web 2.0, but it’s also slow and unsecure. Just viewing a page can cause a virus to be downloaded and installed to your computer, without you even doing anything! In addition, Internet Explorer does not follow the Web standards that are set out by the W3C. IE has a huge issue with displaying pages correctly, where there will be text overflowing the areas that there suppose to be in, among many other visual problems.

The speed of IE is extremely slow as well. For example, here is a comparison between IE, Firefox and others, where the shorter the bar means a faster time:

In addition, Adrian Kingsley-Hughes of ZDNet did a complex comparison between them all as well.

Even Google has officially stated that they will no longer support IE6 with their GMail, and recommend using either Firefox or Chrome.

Now, imagine being able to surf the web 3 times faster, without having to worry about clicking on links that contain viruses. A better web experience is out there. Below are just a couple web browsers that we use regularly, ranked from first to worse:

1. Mozilla Firefox (version 3) - This is by far the king of the web. It’s the most secure and at the top for the fastest. You can also customize the look of it with themes.
2. Google Chrome - Just recently released, Google’s own web browser is perfect if you want a minimal interface and more space for the web. Just watch out, it does use a lot of RAM, so you need a fairly good computer.
3. Apple Safari - If you like the look silver look of Apple (iTunes, Mac, etc) then Safari might be right for you.
4. Opera
5. Internet Explorer - The worst of them all.

But My Computer Came With Internet Explorer!

When you first use any Microsoft Operating System, such as XP or Vista, the default web browser is Internet Explorer. That doesn’t mean you’re forced to use it, and it certainly doesn’t mean its the best out there. Microsoft is trying to create a monopoly in the internet browsing market, by forcing computer users to run IE instead of having the freedom to choose your own browser.

Change Is Good:

As computer technology and the web advances, it makes updating the browser not only a good idea, but a necessity. If you’re still using Internet Explorer 6, then you’re three years behind. Microsoft no longer even supports this web browser. But instead of upgrading to 7 or 8, you should free yourself from Microsoft’s evil regime and try a free, fast, and secure alternative!

You Can Switch and Keep All of Your Bookmarks, Passwords, Saved History and More…

One thing that I can’t stress enough is that you can keep all of your settings from IE. You won’t miss anything from Internet Explorer. In this example I use Firefox.

When you first run Firefox, it will allow you to “import” all of your favorite websites and other settings from IE. If you already have Firefox opened, you can go to where it says File, then click Import, and the wizard below will open:

Now your Firefox will have all of your favorite settings and sites from IE, but it will run more than triple the speed. Not only will your experience be more fun on the web, but it will be safer too, with Firefox’s built in security features.

So download it and give it a shot, and see the difference for your self. If you still don’t like it, you can easily hit uninstall and have IE be your browser again.