So long, Internet Explorer. The browser is finally retiring
San Francisco, Jun 15: Internet Explorer is finally headed out to pasture. As of Wednesday, Microsoft will no longer support the once-dominant browser that legions of web surfers loved to hate and a few still claim to adore. The 27-year-old application now joins BlackBerry phones, dial-up modems and Palm Pilots in the dustbin of tech history.
IE's demise was not a surprise. A year ago, Microsoft said that it was putting an end to Internet Explorer on June 15, 2022, pushing users to its Edge browser, which was launched in 2015.
The company made clear then it was time to move on.
Not only is Microsoft Edge a faster, more secure and more modern browsing experience than Internet Explorer, but it is also able to address a key concern: compatibility for older, legacy websites and applications, Sean Lyndersay, general manager of Microsoft Edge Enterprise, wrote in a May 2021 blog post.
Users marked Explorer's passing on Twitter, with some referring to it as a bug-ridden, insecure POS or the top browser for installing other browsers. For others it was a moment for 90's nostalgia memes, while The Wall Street Journal quoted a 22-year-old who was sad to see IE go.
Microsoft released the first version of Internet Explorer in 1995, the antediluvian era of web surfing dominated by the first widely popular browser, Netscape Navigator. Its launch signaled the beginning of the end of Navigator: Microsoft went on to tie IE and its ubiquitous Windows operating system together so tightly that many people simply used it by default instead of Navigator.
The Justice Department sued Microsoft in 1997, saying it violated an earlier consent decree by requiring computer makers to use its browser as a condition of using Windows. It eventually agreed to settle the antitrust battle in 2002 over its use of its Windows monopoly to squash competitors. It also tangled with European regulators who said that tying Internet Explorer to Windows gave it an unfair advantage over rivals such as Mozilla's Firefox, Opera and Google's Chrome.
Users, meanwhile, complained that IE was slow, prone to crashing and vulnerable to hacks. IE's market share, which in the early 2000s was over 90%, began to fade as users found more appealing alternatives.
Today, the Chrome browser dominates with roughly a 65% share of the worldwide browser market, followed by Apple's Safari with 19%, according to internet analytics company Statcounter. IE's heir, Edge, lags with about about 4%, just ahead of Firefox.
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PM Modi attends opening ceremony of Arabian Gulf Cup in Kuwait
Kuwait City (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday attended the opening ceremony of the 26th Arabian Gulf Cup as the chief guest at the Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium here, on his two-day visit to the Gulf nation, the first for any Indian prime minister in 43 years.
Modi is visiting Kuwait at the invitation of Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.
The prime minister joined the Emir, the Crown Prince, and the Prime Minister of Kuwait in witnessing the grand opening ceremony.
The event also provided an opportunity for an informal interaction of the prime minister with the leadership of Kuwait, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a press release.
Kuwait was scheduled to play Oman in the opening game of the eight-team tournament.
Kuwait is hosting the biennial Arabian Gulf Cup with participation from eight countries, including GCC nations, Iraq, and Yemen.
The tournament is one of the most prominent sporting events in the region. Kuwait has won the tournament maximum times among the participating countries.
Earlier, addressing a large gathering of the Indian community at a special event ‘Hala Modi’ at the Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Indoor Sports Complex in the city, Modi praised the diaspora's contribution to global growth and said that India has the potential to become the “skill capital of the world”.
“Every year, hundreds of Indians come to Kuwait. You have added an Indian touch to Kuwaiti society. You have filled the canvas of Kuwait with the colors of Indian skills. You have mixed the essence of India's talent, technology, and tradition in Kuwait,” Modi said.
The prime minister expressed happiness about the presence of Indians from diverse corners of the country in the gulf nation and called it a “mini-Hindustan.”
Modi is set to meet the Emir, the Crown Prince, and the Prime Minister of Kuwait on Sunday.
