Why You Should Get Rid of IE
Usually when I browse the Web or when I work, I use a combination of Google Chrome and Firefox. Actually I’d be glad to solely use Google Chrome, but there are simply a few add-ons for Firefox which I can’t live without yet (Firebug is a great example for such an add-on). It will take some more time until there are fully functional Google Chrome versions of these plugins (the recent Chrome version with plugin support has been released only recently), but I have a feeling that we won’t have to wait too long.
But today at work, a client application forced me to use Internet Explorer in order to download a set of codes I needed to work with. At first I couldn’t believe that there are STILL programs and websites defaulting to IE. But this application simply didn’t work with any other browser – it flat out refused to with an error message. Now, I was already pissed that I had to search for that IE icon somewhere in the trashcan next to Lolcat-Pictures, but when I finally managed to open IE, I saw at one glance why I would NEVER touch this browser voluntarily again.
The whole browser was so CLUSTERED with fancy bars, that programs had installed over time, without me even knowing (and yes, usually I read carefully what’s being installed and check/uncheck according to my preferences). But that browser window looked like a damn banner farm with 1000 flashy icons everywhere and search bars in every single one of those bars. The space that was left to actually view a site was ridiculously small. Makes you feel like punching your screen if you are obliged to use IE. Luckily in most cases one isn’t but if you still lack reasons to ditch this most annoying of all browsers in the history of annoying browsers, here are some more:
1. Security
You probably wonder why the browser that comes with the most popular OS is so vulnerable. Well, that is actually one of the reasons. IE has been the standard for surfing the Web for quite some time now, so the security leaks are well known to anyone who’d like to exploit them to install stuff on your computer. There are several loopholes in IE that make it much easier to access your computer than it would be with any other browser. And yes, even governments start to issue mild warnings against using IE.
2. Bad CSS and XHTML support
Anyone who has ever tried to tweak a theme/template will know what I’m talking about. Something that works in just about any browser won’t work in IE. Don’t ask me how they managed that.
3. Features other browsers offer
Firefox as well as Chrome have great features you simply have to try for yourself. They will immediately help you speed things up as most of them are used intuitively. Tabs, plugins, Chrome’s homepage feature, shortcuts, optimized bookmarking support and many other things. How long did it take for IE to implement tabs for example? Way too long! Just using another browser for half an hour will already make you want to switch…
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Girl Goes Tech (GGT) is about a 26-year-old, female tech-addict exploring her geeky side and writing about social media, mobile trends and applications.