I am a big fan of Windows. I almost like all the microsoft products. Except one, the browser, the browser that is a common name in most households . Its the one that most geeks hate, hate with all their coding power, Internet Explorer. There are tons of websites that have the hate IE campaign and have Bill Gates morphed with horns that make him look like a demon.
I want to give atleast 7 basic reasons to convince people why they would need to move away from IE.
1. Security
We have tons of viruses on the internet waiting to take over your computer and millions of malwares that want to suck information from your computer. We make sure that we have the latest and best anti-virus which could protect our computer from any virus and this anti-virus usually comes with a built in firewall which is like the Great Wall of China, nothing can come through it. But we have internet explorer which acts like a gateway to all the spywares and malwares and hence nullifying the reasoning behind having the best anti-virus.
The other browsers in the market don’t allow spywares to install through them easily without knowing it. IE makes it relatively trivial through two features called ActiveX and Active Scripting. These technologies were designed specifically for the purpose of giving websites more control over a user�s computer. Unfortunately, as we have seen with exploit after exploit - that�s not always a good thing.
As some of the Microsoft knowledge base articles suggest, there are so many new ways to take control of one’s computer through internet explorer. This is a serious security threat.
2. Standards
All the web designers have to maintain a standard in order that their web pages/applications to be useful on all platforms and on all browsers. Infact, the browser concept came from having a standard that would not require a specific platform or an application. There is a set agreed upon standards which everyone around the world follow to make internet more user friendly and efficient. But internet explorer is set to change the world for the bad. Microsoft, for some odd reason, seems bent on breaking stride with these agreed-upon standards.
I am a web designer and I know that in CSS, there are so many features that would not work on IE but works on all other browsers. This restricts me from being creative and efficient. Many times, I am forced to change my design to suit IE and I sure am cursing IE all the way.
Microsoft wants to propose their own standards which is suitable for them, because they can. Its a multi-billion dollar company which has its effect on most computers throughout the world and they know that they can call the shots and they are being adamant by not going with the wave.
3. Does not work on all Platforms
Internet Explorer is so Microsoft dependent that it is made only for Windows and it hasn’t been coded for Linux. This is a big disadvantage especially if you are somebody who works on different platforms. We all get used to one application and the specific way we like to tweak it, but IE wouldn’t let you do it if you work on different platforms.
4. Not Extendible
What you get with Windows is what you get. No more additions nor subractions. You cannot add any more features like other browsers. If I take any other browser, there are tons of extensions which would make my life so much better than IE which is as rigid as Bill Gates’ smile.
We have a cell phone that works as a camera, video recording, palm pilot and the list goes on. We want to use one application for all(most) the needs. But, with IE, strictly browsing and gateway to viruses.
5. Reject Anarchy
How long can we allow one company to make the rules and rule the world? We need to bring an end to the Microsoft’s rule and it can very well start with rejecting IE.
I was so excited when I heard that Google was buying Opera because Google has the potential to trounce players like Microsoft and they can bring out quality products.
6. Better Options
Mozilla has the best product right now in the market. Its free. Its a household name for geeks, Firefox. Firefox is the best alternative that I have found so far which is very secure, the web designers love this browser as it follows all the standards all the way. It has tons of extensions which would turn your browser into all-in-one application and makes browsing so much better.
If you haven’t switched over yet from Internet Explorer, I would urge you to make the move now. Better late than never. You need to do it before you get taken over by viruses and hackers.
There are other players in the browsers field like Netscape, Opera, Flock and others. What makes Firefox better than the others is that Firefox has a huge community working behind it. Opera and Flock are in the Firefox mould but Netscape is obsolete with no improvements.
7. You are Smart
God made us human beings to be smart and rule over everything. This means, rule over things that are not genuine. We all know that Internet Explorer is not the best out there (infact one of the worst) and we have better options. Why not make a move towards something that is really good? Let me know me if you made the switch or not.
