THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After 27 years of service, Microsoft has retired the oldest browser, Internet Explorer. The web browser has largely been unused by most of the consumers for years and Microsoft has finally rendered it inoperable from June 15.
The browser was first released in 1995 as part of the add-on package for the Windows 95 operating system. It set of an e-revolution and attained a peak of 95 per cent usage in 2003. Microsoft discontinued new feature development of the browser in 2016 in favour of its new Microsoft Edge. However, its user base started to decline with the launch of its competitors like Firefox (2004) and Google Chrome (2008) which offered faster internet speed and better user interfaces.
Microsoft has also said that if though the Internet Explorer retires, user’s of the Internet Explorer’s desktop app will be redirected to Microsoft Edge in the coming months and the old app will be gradually disabled. “There was a time when people were completely dependent on it. Just like its name, it was a platform to explore. Seeing the unused Explorer icon in my desktop everyday makes me nostalgic. Technically, we tend to go for user-friendly options. So, shutting down IE would have little to no effect on people. We started inclining towards the other web browsers with time. It is a part of technological progress. On a personal level, Explorer is something close to my heart,” says Technopark employee Suryajith S.
Renjith Ramachandran, a technology consultant at Technopark, says Explorer was liked by many people and those who used it since the 90’s may have great memories. “It would be the first word that pops up in their minds when ‘Internet’ is mentioned anywhere. The evolution of the Internet is rapid. Thus, it was the right decision for Microsoft to shut it down and continue with their new Edge browser. Human beings have to build themselves and evolve with technology. Development is essential as the demand for more sophisticated tools escalates. What we see today may not be the same tomorrow,” he says.
Hari Shankar Muralidharan, an IT consultant working with E&Y, still remembers the first time he used the Explorer, when his father got a computer for his business requirements. “It was in 1997, a time when computers were a luxury,” he says. “We used computers majorly for two things -- one, to chat with others on Microsoft Messenger and two, to get information from the net. There was a lot of excitement in doing these, as if it was a big accomplishment. I will never forget the light blue icon that opened a doorway of information.”