Stop using Internet Explorer!
Posted 15th August, 2007 in by Federico Pistono
While looking at my blog's statistics:
I noticed that roughly 25% of my visitors still use Internet Explorer. I will put it as simple and as clear as I can.
Don't do it.
Stop using Internet Explorer, seriously, it's bad. There's so much discussion and documentation on the topic that I find it pointless to list all the innumerable reason not to use it, so I'll just point out the a few sites that talk about the subject.
Thank you.
3 comments so far:
Steve (not verified) says: Firefox vs. Internet Explorer
Frankly I'm not convinced. I just went to the link you provided http://switch2firefox.com/ and read through the 10 reasons to switch and what I read doesn't seem like it's really any/much better than IE.
1) I have a cable internet connection which I understand can be up to 100 times faster than regular dial-up and my web pages open almost instantaneously. 2) I have a pop-up blocker that works great. 3) I can search very quickly going to Google or Yahoo. 4) I can clear my cookies quickly and I don't seem to have any other actions that annoy me. 5) I can save or bookmark any page addresses in my Favorites and go them very quickly and easily. 6) I don't use keyboard shortcuts - I do almost everything with the mouse. My browsing is very fast and I don't have annoying lock-ups. 7) I don't really use the toolbars for browsing, so customizing doesn't really apply. I don't need a theme. 8) I don't download very much and with cable it's very, very fast anyway. 9) I'm not sure what that all means, so I guess it doesn't apply. 10) There was nothing for me to set up - I use IE straight out of the box. I use a 21" monitor - not much need to have more space for the pages to be bigger.
I guess I would really have to see it and use it, but by the descriptions given, it's like comparing a Cadillac to a Lincoln - some things are a little different here and there, but basically the same overall.
Federico Pistono says: @truth about IE
[quote=Steve]
1) I have a cable internet connection which I understand can be up to 100 times faster than regular dial-up and my web pages open almost instantaneously.
[/quote]
I have even a faster connection, and they were NOT referring to "How fast you load that page", it's something completely different, it's about usability. Recent versions of IE have that, I take it, just because M$ found out they were so much behind they could not make a new release without copying Firefox' functionalities. It's something you just have to try, it's like explaining to somebody jacked into the Matrix what the World is like without showing showing them. You can't do that, they have to try themselves.
Even google, the first search engine in the World, suggests that you use Firefox.
http://www.google.com/tools/firefox/safebrowsing/
[quote=Steve]
2) I have a pop-up blocker that works great.
[/quote]
Was that "out of the box", or did you have to install a third party application?
[quote=Steve]
3) I can search very quickly going to Google or Yahoo.
[/quote]
It's not the same. You can always use Google (who says: Use Firefox, BTW) or Yahoo, but again, until you use, you won't understand.
[quote=Steve]
4) I can clear my cookies quickly and I don't seem to have any other actions that annoy me.
[/quote]
In two clicks? Out of the box? What about the other personal data, that as well, so easily? Are you aware of the fact the IE sends your personal information directly to M$, given that you agreed to the terms of service nobody reads?
Secondly, it's not about cookies only, it's about having real control ofyour machine out of the box.
Check these videos out:
http://www.firefoxflicks.com/
[quote=Steve]
5) I can save or bookmark any page addresses in my Favorites and go them very quickly and easily.
[/quote]
Again, just becasue you're happy with the way are things now, it doesn't mean there can't be something muche better, free and effortless to install that awaits you. Think about gMail, for instance.
[quote=Steve]
6) I don't use keyboard shortcuts - I do almost everything with the mouse. My browsing is very fast and I don't have annoying lock-ups.
[/quote]
Bad habit. ^_^
[quote=Steve]
7) I don't really use the toolbars for browsing, so customizing doesn't really apply. I don't need a theme.
[/quote]
It's not about the toolbars. Firefox has so many useful extensions you could never imagine, becasue you never even heard of them on IE.
[quote=Steve]
8) I don't download very much and with cable it's very, very fast anyway.
[/quote]
I have a faster connection, and in 2GB file having a real download manager helps, I can tell, even though I use wget or curl nost of the time.
[quote=Steve]
9) I'm not sure what that all means, so I guess it doesn't apply.
[/quote]
[quote=Steve]
10) There was nothing for me to set up - I use IE straight out of the box. I use a 21" monitor - not much need to have more space for the pages to be bigger.
[/quote]
That is the most important issue. It means that websites were created deliberately badly in the past so that IE users were able to see them. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) develops interoperable technologies (specifications, guidelines, software, and tools) to lead the Web to its full potential. If you follow their rules, you are on the right track.
Firefox, Opera, Safari, Konqueror, Camino, Shiira and all those browsers have very good w3c compliance, IE very bad.
http://www.webdevout.net/browser-support-summary
[quote=Steve]
I guess I would really have to see it and use it, but by the descriptions given, it's like comparing a Cadillac to a Lincoln - some things are a little different here and there, but basically the same overall.[/quote]
I'm sorry Steve, but that's not it. It's like having a free Toyota Prius hybrid car that has incredible performances, respects the environment and does not bother anyone against an expensive, old, slow, with a sealed cowling that pollutes all over the place, and that every few months needs an upgrade (of course not for free), and sometimes that upgrade screws up the car.
You see, it's not quite the same. ^_^
I mean, it's free, you won't lose any previous information. Just give it a try. ^_^
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Steve says: My Response
Ok - let me first answer your questions.
Yes, my pop-up blocker is from a third party and was included in my internet protection software and subscription.
No, I can't delete my cookies with two clicks - it takes three.
As for your responses - I will have to admit that you are much more focused and detailed about using your computer and the internet than I am. It is part of your life and livelihood - not as much mine except for the graphics I do, but that doesn't include the internet. My use of the internet is mostly for pleasure and in a very casual nature. I am on the internet everyday, but mostly checking e-bay auctions or to find something I need or want for my car or motorcycle or other collections or reading your blog.
Let me explain it this way -
You own a bicycle - correct? What kind of bike is it and is it a very expensive one with high tech components and is made of very light weight, but very strong materials? I may certainly be wrong, but I would guess not, as it is probably used mostly for commuting and not for any competitive efforts. I was a bicycle racer for 15 years and own 7 bicycles with three of them purely for racing. I raced on the road, the track and off road. To me the type of bike I had and the equipment for it were very important as they needed to be of racing quality to hold up to the rigors of a race, plus be comfortable and built just for me.
In comparison to using the internet - you are the racer and I'm the commuter. At first glance you would most likely look at my bikes and not notice any differences unless I pointed them out to you and you actually rode them. Even then you might not notice anything different unless you really rode aggressively. The differences might only be subtle, but very important to me as are the differences between IE and Firefox to you. It just seems that in the brief descriptions I read I didn't see anything other than subtle differences and probably most of them I wouldn't notice anyway with how I use the internet.
I suppose one day I will give it a try, but as I stated earlier, I'm not convinced at this time. Maybe if I saw someone else use it, then I would have a better understanding, just as it was when I was thinking about getting my first racing bike - I needed to see others ride and ride their bikes.
BTW - I probably wouldn't take the Prius as I think they are pretty ugly and just not for me.
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