About a decade ago Microsoft introduced Internet Explorer 6 (IE6). Now the company is pushing to rid itself of the security-hole ridden, long obsolete browser and they are trying to expedite the process by automatically updating users to the newest version of IE.
Microsoft has put up an IE6 countdown site, which aims at ticking down the worldwide use of the browser below 1%. Currently 8.3% of people use that browser worldwide (only about 0.2% of people in the U.S.). The site reads,
"10 years ago a browser was born. Its name was Internet Explorer 6. Now that we’re in 2011, in an era of modern Web standards, it’s time to say goodbye."
So how is Microsoft going to help people migrate away from this long defunct browser? Well, they are going to automatically update people to the newest version of IE via Windows Update. Ryan Gavin, Microsoft's general manager of Internet Explorer business and marketing, discusses this on the company blog.
"We will start in January for customers in Australia and Brazil who have turned on automatic updating via Windows Update. Similar to our release of IE 9 earlier this year, we will take a measured approach, scaling up over time."
The reason for pushing people towards newer versions of the IE browser, and for using Windows Update to do it, is as simple as security. Windows Update gives users a secure way to update their browser and patch out the myriad of security holes that plague IE6.
So what if you are incredibly stubborn and don't want to change your browser? Techincaly you don't have to. In the same post, in a section titled "Respecting Customer Choice and Control," Gavin details that users who do not wish to upgrade to a new version of IE won't have to. There will be options to turn off automatic updating of IE. What's more, if you have previously declined an update to IE 8 or 9 then those browsers will not be installed automatically. He goes on to say,
"Customers have the ability to uninstall updates and continue to receive support for the version of IE that came with their copy of Windows. And similar to organizations, consumers can block the update all together and upgrade on their own. Finally, future versions of IE will provide an option in the product for consumers to opt out of automatic upgrading."
All I can say about this decision to push users away from IE 6 is that it's about time. Getting as many users as possible onto more secure and more frequently updated versions of their favorite browser will keep them just a tiny bit safer online.
Do any of you know someone who still uses IE6? Are you going to try and persuade them to make sure Windows Update installs the latest version for them?
