03-29-2009, 06:55 AM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 29,160
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Calling all Internet Explorer 6 Users
This is somewhat random, but humour me. I've been involved in a discussion over email about browsers - specifically Internet Explorer 6 - and why people are still using it (and if they have a choice in the matter). In the case of Pocket PC Thoughts, in the past month 42.6% of all visitors are using some sort of Internet Explorer, and 42.3% are using Firefox. Of those Internet Explorer users, I was very surprised to see that 21.8% of them are still using IE6. IE6 is a highly problematic browser for developers to code for - so much so that there are several online movements to banish it once and for all - yet it's still being used in surprising numbers. So if you're using IE6 on your computer that you use to access any of Thoughts Media Web sites, tell me why - I'm really curious! Is it that you're on a corporate computer and they've locked down installing any newer version of IE? Is it that you like IE6 and don't want to change to a newer version? Is it that your computer is messed up and IE7 or IE8 wouldn't even install? There are no wrong answers here, and I'd like to hear from as many of you as possible, so chime in...
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03-29-2009, 07:45 AM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Nov 2005
Posts: 68
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At work, the only authorized browser is IE6. At home I don't use it.
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03-29-2009, 08:56 AM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,350
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Lack of choice in a very locked down work setting. IE is mostly used for intranet utilities, and only very limited generic web surfing is allowed. People at work don't care how the outside world looks through IE.
__________________
enjoy being here while getting there
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03-29-2009, 08:59 AM
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Pupil
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 10
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This is down to the corporates.
Our corporate build is actually IE6 (I don't use the corporate build) because a number of (very expensive) web based enterprise applications don't work in IE7 (or FF or Chrome for that matter).
It's the same with any sort of patching for Windows.
Corporate laptops are typically the worst offenders for being patched. Home users tend to switch on Windows Update and then forget about it. MS then push our the patches each month and the end user just lets it get on with this. IE is pushed out via the same method so as a home user you will be running the newest version just as soon as MS pushes the button. Corporates don't use Windows Update.
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03-29-2009, 02:11 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Apr 2005
Posts: 26
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The corporation is my excuse...
We haven't moved past IE6 at work. It'll take a Vista Upgrade...or maybe they'll ditch Vista and go with 7, either way it's an OS upgrade before I'll take away from your IE6 numbers.
At home though it's IE7 or FF.
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03-29-2009, 03:21 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 20
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My work won't let us upgrade from IE6 because some of their applications will only work in IE6. Or at least that is what they tell us. At home I use Firefox.
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03-29-2009, 03:36 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 350
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Add me to the "IE6 at work but something else at home" list. My work too has some expensive apps from expensive companies that only works well on IE6.
I know that the larger the company, the harder it is to roll stuff out to everyone, due to app compatibility, testing, etc. Like others have said, it will be awhile before they migrate us to Vista, probably about the time 7 rolls out.
It's the expensive, web-based apps from major companies that only support IE6 that gets me. Or like MS, the vendors maybe saying, "Oh we support newer browsers, but you must migrate to the latest & greatest version of our software. (at a substantial price, of course)".
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03-29-2009, 04:58 PM
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Neophyte
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 1
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IE6 Work Environment
I, too, am stuck with IE6 at work on most computers. As a tech, I don't have to use most of the web apps the way that most employees do, so we as a department upgraded to IE7 almost a year ago when we were told that there was going to be an enterprise-wide push. We even used the corporate install package that was supposed to be used. But, the testing department apparently came back and pulled the push. Now, almost a year later, we still have no defined timeline for an upgrade to happen. And, I (and all the rest of the techs plus the few users that were "testing" it) have not found a single problem that would appear to be because of a "non-standard" browser.
I will say that we get asked probably once a week when we will be getting IE7 by the users, so it is wanted.
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03-29-2009, 05:54 PM
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Neophyte
Join Date: Sep 2007
Posts: 4
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There really isn't any compelling reason to move from 6 up to 7 or 8 for the folks that use IE. If you knew enough to use a better browser, you'd be on Firefox or Opera or... well... or anything other than IE. For the average non-power user, all newer versions of IE add is bloat and confusing UI changes.
Granted, your target audience is probably more tech-savvy than that, but from a basic user's perspective, there's nothing wrong with IE 6.
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03-29-2009, 06:23 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 135
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Put me in the same "corporate" situation, except that we just finally switched to IE7 within the last month -- after many months of testing and modifying old browser-based apps. With currently >7000 PCs to maintain, the testing was absolutely necessary (and expensive).
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