Internet Explorer, which has a user share of 58 percent, may be the most popular internet browser in the world. The percentage is almost triple the twenty percent share held by Google's Chrome which places the browser second in the rank.
However, it turns out that IE had enjoyed a bigger user share in January 2005. According to Computerworld, Net Applications' data reveal that IE had a user share of 89 percent, a far cry from the 6 percent share of second-placer Firefox.
IE's low point occurred in the last month of 2011 when the browser had a 52 percent share. Microsoft had thought that it won the war which could have explained why there was a decision to stop development more than a decade ago.
This time, developers are urging users of Windows to find their way back to IE.
"Oftentimes the decision to not use Internet Explorer is largely based on experiences from a decade ago, and a much different IE," said Microsoft engineer Jonathan Sampson. "That being said, we know it's our job to change the public perception, and to win the hearts of users everywhere. Each person who opens IE, and downloads another browser, is another person we'll be working even harder tomorrow to win back."
IE's market share has plummeted over the years with rivals such as Safari, Firefox, and Chrome trying to outshine each other in the "browser war." Users would remember IE only when they have no other option or when they are into web development.
Recently, Microsoft began to deviate people from the older versions of its web browser and convince them to use the newer ones. Microsoft has argued that compared with earlier releases, the more modern releases of its browser perform better, have wider support on open standards and are more stable.
Perhaps one of the company's most laudable moves so far is when it decided to discontinue delivering security updates for older editions of IE by January 2016. "There was a collective cheer when the policy was changed," said Colleen Williams of the IE team when asked how the other members reacted to Microsoft's browser support policy.
According to Microsoft, it has the plan to update Windows with more compact and more frequent feature refreshes. In other words, the company wants to mimic Google's Chrome and Mozilla's Firefox with regular and frequent upgrades.
IE numerology will remain significant. Microsoft has confirmed that there will be an IE 12. "Only the most current version of Internet Explorer available for a supported operating system will receive technical support and security updates," said Microsoft.
