People may not understand, but the end of Internet Explorer (IE) is a significant step in advancing progressions in Edtech. But let’s take a step back and remember that IE had a considerable impact on us in the history of the Web since its introduction in 1995. Think about it; it has been around for the past 25 years. Alone in the realm of software, that is a considerable achievement; IE has held its own since the 90s. Some may even miss IE and the soon-to-be nostalgic user interface. But like all things, living and not, they come to an end.

IE was first introduced in 1995 in the midst of what we call the “Browser Wars,” the first war in fact, and meant to be a combat-able software to Netscape along with InternetWorks, Quarterdeck Browser, InterAp, and WinTapestry. In this war, Netscape came out as the victor, short-lived, but they won by introducing ECMA-262, later called ECMAScript (ES). What is ES, you may ask, and how could it have aided the winning of a software war from 1995 to 2001. This may help; ECMAScript was later known as JavaScript. ECMAScript later became the standard of the scripting language and is still to this day called ECMAScript, but let’s face it, JavaScript is way catchier and gave interactivity and further possibility to the World Wide Web.

Internet Explorer had become the most widely used web browser by 2003 with about 95% usage. So why is Microsoft’s Web Browser flagship being kicked to the bucket? The answer is similar to other technologies that sooner or later go to the wayside; the inability to keep up with the times.

IE is missing an inability to interpret more advanced JavaScripts, specifically anything beyond ES5, which is the 5th version of JavaScript. To give context, ES5 was first introduced in 2009, then was updated to ES6 in 2015, and has continued to advance with mobile technologies and more up to ES7, then 8, then now a version called 2018.

So what does that give you;

Slow Learning Experience. According to Top 10 Reviews, IE11 “took 4.53 seconds to boot up and load websites.” While some sites “only took about 2.72 seconds to load,” even that lower time is double the time of the best browsers reviewed by the site. That means the 4.53-second average is about 3.5 times slower than browsers like Firefox or Chrome. 4.53 seconds might not sound like a long time, but consider this: 47% of consumers expect a web page to load in 2 seconds or less. The likelihood of page abandonment also increases the longer the page takes to load, creating a poor learning experience. And when Firefox and Chrome can get the job done 3.5 times faster, IE doesn’t bring much to the table.

Designing and Development Problems. Because IE doesn’t support modern JavaScript standards, keeping IE-compatible courseware means you have to use the JavaScript it supports. To work in IE, JavaScript has to compile to ES5 instead of ES6, which increases the size of bundles up to 30%. That makes performance significantly worse for the portion of your learners that isn’t using IE and limits your ability to use the features that newer JavaScript standards provide. Also, because the browser does not go beyond the advancements of 2015, it does not support modern design frameworks, which means you have to oversimplify your design and code.

Poor Security. IE has a reputation for bad security, but it’s gotten even worse recently. Now just having Internet Explorer on your computer at all can expose you to security threats. John Page, a security researcher, unearthed an exploit in how IE handles MHT files that allow hackers to steal Windows users’ local data. And because MHT files are opened in IE by default on Windows machines, all you have to do is click on an email attachment to open yourself up to this problem. When Microsoft was informed of the vulnerability, they “declined to consider the bug for an urgent security fix.” So, if you like not having all your local data stolen, consider not only dropping support for IE11, but also getting it off your computer completely.

Bad Support. Microsoft’s worldwide lead for cybersecurity, Chris Jackson, calls IE a “compatibility solution” rather than a browser and says the company is not supporting any new web standards for it. He even says that you should only use IE for sites where it’s needed and points users to tools that help you transition to better browsers. IE now only exists to support the sites that use it until modernized, and the people who made it are even saying so. “If the company that made IE is now telling you to stop using it, maybe you should!”.

In conclusion, Internet Explorer will be retired on June 15, 2022. The lack of updates and individually creative courses for working on IE environments leave interactive learning systems at threat when they run on other more advanced browsers. While Microsoft will provide a legacy Edge plugin till Windows 10 is sunset, already main authoring tools and Learning Management Systems to include: Storyline, Captivate, Moodle, Blackboard, and more, are dropping the support to IE specifically. Final words; see the writing on the wall, be ready for the transition, and lastly, sooner before later, get your learning assets ready.