Internet Explorer

Internet Explorer (formerly Microsoft Internet Explorer and Windows Internet Explorer, commonly abbreviated IE or MSIE) is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, starting in 1995. It was first released as part of the add-on package Plus! for Windows 95 that year. Later versions were available as free downloads, or in service packs, and included in the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) service releases of Windows 95 and later versions of Windows.

Internet Explorer was one of the most widely used web browsers, attaining a peak of about 95% usage share during 2002 and 2003. This came after it managed to win the first browser war against Netscape, which was the dominant browser in the 1990s. Its usage share has since declined with the launch of Firefox (2004) and Google Chrome (2008), and with the growing popularity of operating systems such as OS X, Linux, iOS and Android that do not run Internet Explorer. Estimates for Internet Explorer's overall market share range from 17.11% to 51.59% or by StatCounter's numbers ranked 3rd, just after Firefox (or even as low as 10.3% when counting all platforms, then after Safari), as of September 2015 (browser market share is notoriously difficult to calculate). Microsoft spent over US$100 million per year on Internet Explorer in the late 1990s, with over 1,000 people working on it by 1999.

Internet Explorer 6

Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 (IE6) is the sixth major revision of Internet Explorer, a web browser developed by Microsoft for Windows operating systems. It was released on August 27, 2001, shortly after the completion of Windows XP.

It is the default browser shipped with Windows XP and Windows Server 2003, and was also made available for Windows NT 4.0, Windows 98, Windows 98 SE, Windows Me, Windows 2000, and Windows Home Server (a derivative of Windows Server 2003). IE6 SP1 is the last version of Internet Explorer available for Windows NT 4.0, Windows 98, Windows 98 SE, Windows Me, and Windows 2000. IE6 SP2+ and IE7 only included (IE6 SP2+) or available (IE7) for Windows XP SP2+.

This version of Internet Explorer has been widely criticized for its security issues and lack of support for modern web standards, making frequent appearances in "worst tech products of all time" lists, with PC World labeling it "the least secure software on the planet."

Despite dominating market share (attaining a peak of 80% in mid-2004), it was infamous for its security holes and outdated features. In 2004, Mozilla finalised Firefox to rival IE6, and it became highly popular and acclaimed for its security, add-ons, speed and other modern features such as tabbed browsing. Microsoft was planning to fix these issues in Internet Explorer 7 by summer 2005, but it was delayed until an October 2006 release, over 5 years after IE6 debuted.

Microsoft Edge

Microsoft Edge (codename "Spartan") is a web browser developed by Microsoft and included in the company's Windows 10 operating systems, replacing Internet Explorer as the default web browser on all device classes. Microsoft claims it is designed to be a lightweight web browser with a layout engine built around web standards. It does not support ActiveX and Browser Helper Objects but adds new features such as integration with Cortana, annotation tools and a reading mode.

Features

Microsoft Edge is the default web browser on both the PC and Windows 10 Mobile, replacing Internet Explorer 11 and Internet Explorer Mobile. Microsoft initially announced that Edge would support the legacy MSHTML engine for backwards compatibility but later backtracked, saying that due to "strong feedback", Edge would use a new exclusive engine, while Internet Explorer will continue to provide the legacy engine.

The browser includes an integrated Adobe Flash Player, a PDF reader and supports asm.js.

Edge does not support legacy technologies such as ActiveX and Browser Helper Objects, and will instead use an extension system. Internet Explorer 11 will remain available alongside Edge on Windows 10 for compatibility purposes; it will remain nearly identical to the Windows 8.1 version and not use the Edge engine as was previously announced.