IE6 finally hears the Death Rattle

Internet Explorer 6 is like a bad date that just won't take the hint.  The long standing browser has been causing headaches for web developers and designers since 2001, and until recently people have done nothing but accept the abuse. Recent news, however, suggests we may have finally had our fill of abuse from IE6.

Internet Explorer is the main web browser that many of us nerds learned to surf the web on.  Back in the early part of the decade, IE6 did its job and did it well.  This was in large part because no other options existed.  Before Microsoft was legally forced not to, they had the ability to bundle the browser with the Windows operating systems, which led to Microsoft experiencing a 95% market share for internet browsers.  And when that many people adopt a product, it then becomes impossible to move away from.

Today, we have far superior browsers in the market like Firefox, Chrome, Opera, and Safari, as well as Internet Explorer 8 (I hate to say it, but IE8 is pretty slick).  These browsers are not only standards compliant, which IE6 is not, but they have evolved into all-encompassing utilities that reach far beyond the internet and into your everyday lives.  I can't imagine life without FF and all of its plugins, let alone surfing the web without it.

I liken the IE situation to one of your grandparents living until 204 years of age, and then thinking they could adequately compete in the NFL for a starting RB position.  In 2001, IE6 was just what we needed, but for the web to continue evolving and growing, the browser that requires the most time, energy  and effort to make things work must be permanently retired.  Not just retired, but banished from even coming close to a computer connected to the internet.

IE6 has stifled web innovation and design for long enough.  Companies like Digg and YouTube recently announced they will no longer be supporting this browser.  They are just the tip of the iceberg in a long list of web junkies looking to rid the world of the IE6 disease, a list the nerds at Brice Cheddarn Development are on.

Some might ask why web nerds don't like IE6?  The quick version (because to do the full version justice would take a few years) is for not recognizing transparent PNG images, or not adequately rendering CSS, or lack of security, or lack of standards compliance.  Constructing a website to render correctly in IE6 without the use of any standards or proper CSS is like trying to haul 4 truckloads of cargo up a hill behind a moped.  Ya, it can be done...but it's going to take 42 times the effort. 

A huge responsibility for the continued use and dependency of IE6 falls on corporate America.  The current economic climate, coupled with the long legacy IE6 applications have, has prevented many businesses from upgrading their browsers.  Since so many applications were developed with IE6 as a dependency, the costs of such a corporate wide upgrade are huge. With the economy being in turmoil over the last couple of years, companies have used this as an excuse not to move forward.  The economy is also another reason people grasp to what they know and why they fear change when change is what is needed to recover and move forward.

It is far past time to stop making excuses for why we still cling to IE6.  The web has evolved far beyond what IE6 was prepared to handle, and the longer we continue to embrace it, the more we limit our opportunity to see the true potential of the web.  Hordes of people on Twitter and all over the internet have finally started to take a stand against IE6.  And so have the nerds at Brice Cheddarn. 

From this point forward, no more of our websites or applications will be tailored to IE6.  While we pride ourselves in making cross-browser friendly and standards-compliant websites, we need to move on and stop wasting our time tailoring to a browser that just won't listen.  In order for us to do our clients justice, we have to stop the madness.

Rest In Peace, IE6.

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