History of Internet Explorer

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Historical market share of Internet Explorer, 1995–2019

Windows CE, Windows Mobile, and Windows Phone
.

Beginnings and Spyglass Mosaic (1995–1997)

The first Internet Explorer was derived from Spyglass Mosaic. The original Mosaic came from NCSA, but since NCSA was a public entity it relied on Spyglass as its commercial licensing partner. Spyglass in turn delivered two versions of the Mosaic browser to Microsoft, one wholly based on the NCSA source code, and another engineered from scratch but conceptually modeled on the NCSA browser. Internet Explorer was initially built using the Spyglass, not the NCSA source code.[1] The license to Microsoft provided Spyglass (and thus NCSA) with a quarterly fee plus a percentage of Microsoft's revenues for the software.

The browser was then modified and released as Internet Explorer. Microsoft originally released Internet Explorer 1.0 in August 1995 in two packages: at retail in

newsgroups. Version 2.0 was also released for the Macintosh and Windows 3.1 in April 1996. Version 2 was also included in Microsoft's Internet Starter Kit for Windows 95 in early 1996, which retailed for US$19.99 (~$37.00 in 2022) and included a how-to book and 30 days of Internet access on MSN among other features.[2]

Cascading Style Sheets
(CSS) were also introduced with version 3 of Internet Explorer.

The Browser wars (1997–2001)

Internet Explorer 4.0

Bi-directional text, ruby text and direct XML/XSLT support were included in this release, along with enhanced support for CSS Level 1 and 2. The actual release of Internet Explorer 5 happened in three stages. Firstly, a Developer Preview was released in June 1998 (5.0B1), and then a Public Preview was released in November 1998 (5.0B2). Then in March 1999 the final release was released (5.0). In September it was released with Windows 98. Version 5.0 was the last one to be released for Windows 3.1x or Windows NT 3.x. Internet Explorer 5.5 was later released for Windows Me in July 2000, and included many bug fixes and security patches. Version 5.5 was the last to have Compatibility Mode, which allowed Internet Explorer 4[5] to be run side by side with the 5.x.[6][7] With IE6, there was a quirks mode that could be triggered to make it behave like IE5.5[8] Version 6 was released with Windows XP on August 27, 2001. It mainly focused on privacy and security features, as they had become customer priorities. Microsoft implemented tools that support P3P, a technology under development by the W3C
.

United States v. Microsoft

In a legal case brought by the

US Department of Justice and twenty U.S. states, Microsoft was accused of breaking an earlier consent decree, by bundling Internet Explorer with its operating system software. The department took issue with Microsoft's contract with OEM
computer manufacturers that bound the manufacturers to include Internet Explorer with the copies of Microsoft Windows they installed on systems they shipped. It would not allow the manufacturer to put an icon for any other web browser on the default desktop in place of Internet Explorer. Microsoft maintained that integration of its web browser into its operating system was in the interests of consumers.

Microsoft asserted in court that IE was integrated with Windows 98, and that Windows 98 could not be made to operate without it. Australian computer scientist Shane Brooks later demonstrated that Windows 98 could in fact run with IE files removed.

dynamic link library
files behind.

On April 3, 2000, Judge Jackson issued his findings of fact that Microsoft had abused its monopoly position by attempting to "dissuade

Netscape from developing Navigator as a platform", that it "withheld crucial technical information", and attempted to reduce Navigator's usage share by "giving Internet Explorer away and rewarding firms that helped build its usage share" and "excluding Navigator from important distribution channels".[10]

Jackson also released a remedy that suggested Microsoft should be broken up into two companies. This remedy was overturned on appeal, amidst charges that Jackson had revealed a bias against Microsoft in communication with reporters. The findings of fact that Microsoft had broken the law, however, were upheld. Seven months later, the Department of Justice agreed on a settlement agreement with Microsoft. As of 2004, although nineteen states have agreed to the settlement, Massachusetts is still holding out.[needs update]

Hiatus and security troubles (2003–2006)

Internet Explorer 6.0
Market Share for February, 2005[11]
IE4 – 0.07%
IE5 – 6.17%
IE6 – 82.79%

In a May 7, 2003 Microsoft online chat, Brian Countryman, Internet Explorer Program Manager, declared that on Microsoft Windows, Internet Explorer would cease to be distributed separately from the operating system (IE 6 being the last standalone version);[12] it would, however, be continued as a part of the evolution of the operating system, with updates coming bundled in operating system upgrades. Thus, Internet Explorer and Windows itself would be kept more in sync.

New feature work did continue in 2003 during the development of Windows Vista; a preview release was released at the Professional Developers Conference in October 2003 which contained an updated Internet Explorer with a version number of 6.05. New features noted by reviewers included a Download Manager, pop-up blocker, add-on manager and a tool to clear browsing history.[13] With the exception of the download manager, which was eventually discarded, these features all appeared in builds of Internet Explorer included with preview builds of Windows XP Service Pack 2 a few months later.

Windows XP Service Pack 2, which was released in August 2004 after a number of delays, also contained a number of security-related fixes, new restrictions on code execution, and user interface elements that aimed to better protect the user from malware. One notable user interface element that was introduced was the "information bar". Tony Schriner, a developer on the Internet Explorer team, explained that the information bar was introduced to reduce the possibility that the user might mis-click and allow the installation of software they did not intend, as well as to simply reduce the number of pop-ups displayed to the user.[14] Most reviews of this release focused on the addition of the pop-up blocker, as it had been seen as a major omission at a time when pop-up ads had become a major source of irritation for web users.[15]

On December 19, 2005, Microsoft announced that it would no longer support Internet Explorer for the Macintosh, and recommended using other Macintosh browsers such as Safari.

New competition (2006–2014)

Internet Explorer
Desktop Market Share
— October 2023[16] via Net Applications[note 1][note 2]
Internet Explorer 80.01%
Internet Explorer 90.01%
Internet Explorer 110.06%
All variants0.08%
  1. Tencent Traveler, and other Internet Explorer shells
  2. ^ This is the last update from NetMarketShare, as it will be retired in its current form.

Microsoft Edge excluded from the list.

Other sources show lower numbers.[17]

From 2006 to 2009 Internet Explorer market share slowly declined, and the policy change (announced in 2003) of only releasing new versions with new versions of the Windows operating system was reversed with plans for IE7. In 2006, five years after the release of IE 6, beta versions of

Cascading Style Sheets 2.1.[25] It was also the first version to successfully pass the Acid2 test.[26] In addition, Internet Explorer 8 included new features such as WebSlices, colour-coded tab groups[27] and an improved phishing
filter.

With Google's popular Chrome browser steadily gaining popularity due to its speed, simplicity, and support of newer technologies like HTML5,[28] Microsoft released Internet Explorer 9 in September 2010, marketing it as showcasing the "Beauty of the Web;"[29] Internet Explorer 9 offered features intended to enhance web browsing, such as partial HTML5 support, hardware acceleration, and better Windows integration. Adobe released a beta version of Flash 10.2 tailored to take advantage of Internet Explorer 9's built-in hardware acceleration capabilities on November 30, 2010.[30] Microsoft tried to make Internet Explorer simpler to use (and thus more desirable) than its competitors, and added features such as the ability to drag URLs and bookmarks to the Windows Taskbar, a unified downloads manager, a redesigned new tab page featuring your most recently visited sites, and the ability to "tear" tabs away from a window, or drag them away vertically to create their own window.[31] All of these functions already existed on alternate browsers though, such as Opera, Google Chrome and Firefox, and a lot of these functions look similar to what other browsers already had.

When it released in December 2010, Internet Explorer 9 required

cross-platform support was met with criticism, and backfired with Microsoft Edge's slow adoption on Windows 10.[33] Google Chrome
imposed no such restrictions, supporting Windows XP until 2014.

Windows 10 and Microsoft Edge (2014–present)

On September 30, 2014, Microsoft, during a media event, announced the next version of Windows, under the name Windows 10. At that time, it was announced that Windows 10 would be the last completely new version of Windows, but Windows would still live on as more of a service with continuous improvements over its foreseeable future. During the event, a successor to Internet Explorer was announced, under the codename "Project Spartan". This meant the inevitable death of Internet Explorer after nearly 20 years, though this fact was not initially stated during the launch of Windows 10.

Later, the new interface and render engine for Project Spartan were leaked to Insiders in a developer preview of Windows 10, which could be enabled in Internet Explorer on Windows 10. On the same date as the launch of the new interface, a page on Microsoft's website announced the new name for Project Spartan—Microsoft Edge.

Windows 10 was released on July 29, 2015 as a free upgrade to existing Windows 8.1 and Windows 7 customers.[34] While Microsoft Edge was featured front-and-center, Internet Explorer 11 remains available to use in the new OS for compatibility purposes, although it is hidden in the Windows Accessories folder. A notable trace of Internet Explorer, though, exists in that the platform version number of the EdgeHTML rendering engine in the first release, version 12,[35] clearly continues the numbering scheme of the predecessor Trident engine used in IE.

Market adoption and usage share

Usage share of web browsers according to StatCounter
Usage share of web browsers on Wikimedia (April 2009 to 2012)

The adoption rate of Internet Explorer seems to be closely related to that of Microsoft Windows, as it is the default web browser that comes with Windows. Since the integration of Internet Explorer 2.0 with Windows 95 OSR 1 in 1996, and especially after version 4.0's release, the adoption was greatly accelerated: from below 20% in 1996 to about 40% in 1998 and over 80% in 2000.

A CNN article noted at the release of Internet Explorer 4: "Microsoft's Internet Explorer has made inroads and various estimates put its share of the browser market 30 to 35 percent from about 10 percent a year ago."[36] By 2002, Internet Explorer had almost completely superseded its main rival Netscape and dominated the market with up to 95 percent market share. After having fought and won the browser wars of the late 1990s, Internet Explorer gained almost total dominance of the browser market. Having attained a peak of about 95% during 2002 and 2003, its market share has since declined at a slow but steady pace. Usage is higher in Asia and lower in Europe.

Firefox 1.0 had surpassed Internet Explorer 5 in early 2005 with Firefox 1.0 at roughly 8 percent market share.[37] An article notes at the release of Internet Explorer 7 in October 2006 that "IE6 had the lion's share of the browser market with 77.22%. Internet Explorer 7 had climbed to 3.18%, while Firefox 2.0 was at 0.69%."[38]

Internet Explorer 7 was released at the same time as Firefox 2.0, and overtook Firefox 1.x by November 2006, at roughly 9% market share.[39] Firefox 2.0 had overtaken 1.x by January 2007,[40] but IE7 did not surpass IE6 until December 2007.[41] By January 2008, their respective version market share stood at 43% IE7, 32% IE6, 16% FF2, 4% Safari 3 and both FF1.x and IE5 versions at less than half a percent.[42]

Approximate usage over time based on various usage share counters averaged for the year overall, or for the fourth quarter, or for the last month in the year depending on availability of reference.[43][44][45][46][47][48]

According to StatCounter Internet Explorer's marketshare fell below 50% in September 2010.[49] In May 2012 it was announced that Google Chrome overtook Internet Explorer as the most used browser worldwide.

Desktop market share by year and version

Approximate usage over time based on various usage share counters averaged for the year overall, or for the fourth quarter, or for the last month in the year depending on availability of reference.[44][45][46][47][48][50][51][52][53][54]

Total IE11 IE10 IE9 IE8 IE7 IE6 IE5 IE4 IE3 IE2
IE1
2013 56.73%[54]Increase 1.25%[54]Increase 11.00%[54]Increase 13.89%[54]Decrease 22.41%[54]Decrease 1.72%[54]Decrease 5.74%[54]Decrease 0.02%[54]Increase 0.13%[54]Increase 0% 0% 0%
2012 53.77%[53]Decrease 0.14%[53]Increase 16.77%[53]Increase 25.87%[53]Decrease 3.49%[53]Decrease 6.81%[53]Decrease 0%[53]Decrease 0.01%[53]Increase 0% 0% 0%
2011 56.24%[52]Decrease 5.30%[52]Increase 32.36%[52]Increase 7.00%[52]Decrease 10.19%[52]Decrease 0.01%[52]Decrease 0% 0% 0% 0%
2010 60.04%[51]Decrease 29.43%[51] Increase 11.61%[51] Decrease 16.79%[51] Decrease 0.02%[51] Decrease 0% 0% 0% 0%
2009 66.92%[50]Decrease 10.40%[50] Increase 26.10%[50] Decrease 27.40%[50] Increase 0.08%[50] Decrease 0%Decrease 0% 0% 0%
2008 72.65%[43] Decrease 0.34%[43] Increase 46.06%[43] Increase 26.20%[43] Decrease 0.15%[43] Decrease 0.01%[43] Decrease 0% 0% 0%
2007 78.60%[43] Decrease 45.50%[43] Increase 32.64%[43] Decrease 0.45%[43] Decrease 0.01%[43] Decrease 0% 0% 0%
2006 83.30%[43] Decrease 3.49%[43] Increase 78.08%[43] Decrease 1.42%[43] Decrease 0.02%[43] Decrease 0% 0% 0%
2005 87.12%[43] Decrease 82.71%[43] Decrease 4.35%[43] Decrease 0.06%[43] Decrease 0% 0% 0%
2004 91.27%[43] Decrease 83.39%[43] Increase 7.77%[43] Decrease 0.10%[43] Decrease 0% 0% 0%
2003 94.43%[45] Increase 59.00%[45] Increase 34.00%[45] Decrease 1.00%[45] Decrease 0% 0% 0%
2002 93.94%[45] Increase 50.00%[45] Increase 41.00%[45] Decrease 1.00%[45] Decrease 0% 0% 0%
2001 90.83%[45] Increase 19.00%[45] Increase 68.00%[45] Decrease 5.00%[45] Decrease 0% 0% 0%
2000 83.95%[45] Increase 71.00%[45] Increase 13.00%[45] Decrease 0% Decrease 0% 0%
1999 75.31%[48] Increase 41.00%[45] Increase 36.00%[45] Decrease 1.00%[45] 0% 0%
1998 45.00%[47] Increase ? Increase ? ? ?
1997 39.40%[44] Increase ? Increase ? ? ?
1996 20.00%[44] Increase ? ? ?
1995 2.90%[44] Increase ? ?

Industry adoption

search engine companies and third parties for creating add-ons that access their services, such as search engine toolbars. Because of the use of COM, it is possible to embed web-browsing functionality in third-party applications. Hence, there are a number of Internet Explorer shells, and a number of content-centric applications like RealPlayer
also use Internet Explorer's web browsing module for viewing web pages within the applications.

See also

References

  1. ^ Sink, Eric (April 15, 2003), Memoirs From the Browser Wars, archived from the original on July 15, 2006
  2. ^ Microsoft Internet Explorer Web Browser Available on All Major Platforms, Offers Broadest International Support
  3. ^ Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0 HTML Support MS IE3 release document archive
  4. ^ Paul Thurrott (January 22, 1997). "Microsoft and Spyglass kiss and make up". Windows IT Pro. Penton Media Inc. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved February 25, 2007.
  5. ^ Microsoft Support: How to install and use Compatibility mode in Internet Explorer 5 or 5.5 KB197311
  6. ^ http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/community/columns/historyofie.mspx MS History
  7. ^ Microsoft Support Unable to Use Internet Explorer 4.0 Compatibility Mode MS Article ID 237787
  8. ^ "Quirks mode in IE 6 and IE 7". Archived from the original on May 31, 2017. Retrieved September 4, 2008.
  9. ^ How to remove Internet Explorer from Windows 98, May 12, 2005
  10. ^ U.S. v. Microsoft: Court's Findings of Fact, May 12, 2005
  11. ^ Market share for browsers, operating systems and search engines
  12. ^ Microsoft to abandon standalone IE, January 23, 2006
  13. ^ Brewer, Matt (December 12, 2003). "New Internet Explorer on Longhorn 4051". OSNews. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  14. ^ Tony Schriner (March 21, 2004). "IE in XP SP2 (Part 2): Information Bar - Stopping the modal dialog madness". MSDN Blogs. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  15. CNet. Archived from the original
    on January 13, 2008. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  16. ^ "Browser Version Market Share". Net Applications. October 2023. Retrieved December 2, 2017.
  17. ^ https://gs.statcounter.com/#desktop-browser_version-ww-monthly-202310-202310-bar
  18. ^ Automatic Delivery of Internet Explorer 7, Retrieved on 2006-09-22
  19. ^ Internet Explorer: Automatic Updates Distribution Process
  20. ^ Internet Explorer 7 'mhtml:' Redirection Information Disclosure
  21. ^ IE7 Vulnerability already? Not really
  22. ^ Internet Explorer 7 Window Injection Vulnerability
  23. CNET News.com. Archived from the original
    on May 13, 2008. Retrieved March 11, 2008.
  24. ^ Reimer, Jeremy (May 2, 2007). "Microsoft drops hints about Internet Explorer 8". ars technica. Retrieved May 2, 2007.
  25. ^ "How do I make my site light up in Internet Explorer 8?". Microsoft. Retrieved March 7, 2008.
  26. ^ "Internet Explorer 8 and Acid2: A Milestone". Retrieved March 7, 2008.
  27. ^ Mukherjee, Abhijeet (November 8, 2010). "A Guide to Tab Groups in Internet Explorer 8". Guiding Tech. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
  28. ^ "Top 5 Browsers from Dec 09 to Dec 10". Retrieved January 8, 2011.
  29. ^ "Beauty of the Web". Archived from the original on November 24, 2011. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
  30. ^ "Adobe Labs - Adobe Flash Player 10.2". Archived from the original on January 5, 2010. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
  31. ^ "The best new features in IE9". Retrieved January 8, 2011.
  32. ^ Usage share of operating systems
  33. ^ Bott, Ed. "Microsoft Edge: What went wrong, what's next". ZDNet. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  34. ^ https://blogs.windows.com/bloggingwindows/2015/07/28/windows-10-free-upgrade-available-in-190-countries-today/
  35. ^ "Understanding versions in an evergreen browser". September 21, 2015.
  36. ^ A CNN article noted at the release of Internet Explorer 4, "Microsoft's Internet Explorer has made inroads and various estimates put its share of the browser market 30 to 35 percent from about 10 percent a year ago". "It's out: Microsoft unveils Internet Explorer 4.0 –". CNN. September 30, 1997. Archived from the original on February 9, 1999.
  37. ^ "Market share for browsers, operating systems and search engines". marketshare.hitslink.com.
  38. ^ Nestor, Marius (February 5, 2008). "IE7 and Firefox 2.0 Are Slaughtering Internet Explorer 6 – Out with the old, in with the new". Softpedia.
  39. ^ "Market share for browsers, operating systems and search engines". marketshare.hitslink.com.
  40. ^ "Market share for browsers, operating systems and search engines". marketshare.hitslink.com.
  41. ^ "Market share for browsers, operating systems and search engines". marketshare.hitslink.com.
  42. ^ "Market share for browsers, operating systems and search engines". marketshare.hitslink.com.
  43. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y "Market share for browsers, operating systems and search engines". marketshare.hitslink.com. Retrieved February 9, 2011.
  44. ^ a b c d e Borland, John. Browser wars: High price, huge rewards, ZDNet, April 15, 2003. Accessed June 2, 2012.
  45. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t "TheCounter.com: The Full-Featured Web Counter with Graphic Reports and Detailed Information". Thecounter.com. Archived from the original on October 3, 2008. Retrieved October 17, 2008.
  46. ^ a b "TheCounter.com: The Full-Featured Web Counter with Graphic Reports and Detailed Information". Thecounter.com. Archived from the original on October 2, 2008. Retrieved October 17, 2008.
  47. ^ a b c "CNN — Behind the numbers: Browser market share — October 8, 1998". Cnn.com. Retrieved October 17, 2008.
  48. ^ a b c "Web Analytics | Online Business Optimization by Omniture". Omniture.com. Archived from the original on April 20, 2008. Retrieved October 17, 2008.
  49. ^ Goldman, David (October 6, 2010). "Internet Explorer usage falls below 50%". CNN. Retrieved October 6, 2010.
  50. ^ a b c d e f "Browser Version Market Share". marketshare.hitslink.com. 2009. Retrieved September 26, 2010.
  51. ^ a b c d e f Market Share 2010 overall Market Share 2010 browsers
  52. ^ a b c d e f g Market Share Version Share
  53. ^ a b c d e f g h i Market Share Version Share
  54. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Market Share Version Share

Further reading

  • "Microsoft Windows Family Home Page". Windows History: Internet Explorer History. Retrieved May 12, 2005.
  • "Microsoft Knowledge Base". How to determine which version of Internet Explorer is installed. Retrieved November 6, 2005.
  • "Index DOT Html and Index DOT Css". Browser History: Windows Internet Explorer. Retrieved May 12, 2005.
  • "IEBlog". Windows Vista & IE7 Beta 1 Available. Retrieved July 27, 2005.
  • "IEBlog". Standards and CSS in IE. Retrieved July 29, 2005.
  • "IEBlog". IE7 Is Coming This Month. Retrieved October 9, 2006.
  • "IEBlog". IE7 Platforms And Outlook Express. Retrieved May 12, 2005.
  • "Microsoft Press Pass". RSA Conference 2005 - Gates Highlights Progress on Security, Outlines Next Steps for Continued Innovation. Retrieved May 12, 2005.