The exploring is over.
Microsoft has officially retired its web browser Internet Explorer nearly three decades after it launched.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Going back to the 1990s, Internet Explorer was how millions of people first surfed the web, though its popularity declined significantly after the rise of alternative web browsers like Mozilla's Firefox, Google Chrome, and Apple's Safari. According to Digital Trends, the most popular web browser in 2022 is Chrome, followed by Safari, Firefox, Edge, and Opera.
But despite it being a long time coming, Internet Explorer's official shutdown was seen by many as the end of an era — and The Wall Street Journal reported the small group of people who still used it regularly aren't happy. "I've used it for so long — it's the first thing I get on on my laptop," 31-year-old Sam Maumalanga told the Journal.
Microsoft's Sean Lyndersay explained in a blog, though, that "incremental improvements to Internet Explorer couldn't match the general improvements to the web at large," so the company had to start "fresh" with Edge.
"To many millions of you," Lyndersay added, "thank you for using Internet Explorer as your gateway to the internet."
-
Trump sends FBI to patrol DC, despite falling crimeSpeed Read Washington, D.C., 'has become one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the world,' Trump said
-
Aug. 11 editorial cartoonsCartoons Monday’s political cartoons include solar power shunned by Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin's appetite for Ukraine, and another distraction from the Epstein files
-
Celebrating Cézanne in Aix-en-ProvenceThe Week Recommends The beautiful city is paying tribute to its most famous son with a series of cultural events
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with DisneySpeed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B dealSpeed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance mergerSpeed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profitsSpeed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new highSpeed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliablespeed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutinySpeed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress codespeed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
