Comments on: Microsoft drops Mac IE

Microsoft will cut off Internet Explorer support for Mac users this month, and Mac IE availability will end in early '06.

[biggarthomas]

I Could Not Care Less

Of all the browsers that I have, I use IE the least. I find it crude. This announcement will only result in my deleating the program from my computer tomorrow!

[chkaiban]

Is Bill Gates getting stupid?

WOW what a decision, instead of expanding into other platforms, spacially with FireFox gaining huge ground on IE, the infinite wisdom of Bill Gates has decided to cut on the only other platform that IE support other than Windows. I give IE maximum two years and it will dissapear just like the old good Netscape.

[maneeshpan]

I Agree

While Internet Explorer for Mac might not have been a great
browser Microsoft could have improved it with a new version.

I think its stupid and bad business sense for them to discontinue
IE for Mac because with the esception of the Macintosh the only
other platform Internet Explorer has ever run on is Microsoft's
own Windows operating system.

I agree IE was not that great a browser to begin with whether it
was used on a Mac or a PC. It would probably be best for
everyone even Windows users to dump Internet Explorer as soon
as possible.

Had Microsoft continued IE for Mac they could have brought
their MSN Toolbar possibly to Mac to work in IE. There is a new
browser war emerging (this one I am viewing from Mac and PC
desktops) and now a search war with Google.

It would be great if Apple made Safari for Windows and with
Netscape's resurgence (or rebirth) and its commitment to
recontinue development of their browser, the addition of
Mozilla Firefox, and other Mozilla based browsers including
Camino, Opera etc and possibly even a Gbrowser from Google
Microsoft would face intense competition in the market,
consumers would have more choice and be made to play nice.

Because this time they can't win the new browser war by
monopolization, by bundling of Internet Explorer with Windows
(and/or Macintosh which must have had an effect on Netscape's
Macintosh browser development business as well as its Windows
business) but have to play fair. Innovation will emerge and
everyone will benefit.

[nightveil]

Good Business Sense

First, this really isn't "news" since this was a decision made two
years ago, around the time Apple introduced Safari. Microsoft
made the decision that, since Apple was developing its own
browser, MS didn't need to waste resources or money on a
product that was quickly losing market share. Many Mac users
simply downloaded Safari when it was released and relegated IE
to second fiddle.

Firefox has gained some ground on the Mac platform, but many
users use Safari for much the same reason that Windows users
tend toward IE. It's there and, for most folks, it works.

[iakor]

Live ...

I'm just guessing but this move is more about limiting the acess to
features like local.live.com.

[Norseman]

Life is good!

My iBook has been a Microsoft-free zone for about five years now. Ah, life is truly good!

[philpacker]

I'm wIth you

I have been Microsoft free in my life for a year now, and it is
amazing how much more I love computers.

[Thunder Johny]

Microsoft-free zone

http://www.analogstereo.com/smart_roadster_owners_manual.htm

[TV James]

Resetting

My boss seems to get new Macs pretty frequently, but every few months he's standing around for half a day while formatting and reinstalling all his software.

[Earl Benser]

Then he doesn't have Mac's.

Or he's little more than an idiot. Maybe you should ask him which??

[R. U. Sirius]

Then your boss...

>My boss seems to get new Macs pretty
>frequently, but every few months he's standing
>around for half a day while formatting and
>reinstalling all his software

...doesn't know what he's doing.

There's no reason to have to reformat and resinstall OSX unless he had a hard drive failure. Why is he reinstalling software so often?

[Bill Dautrive]

Odd

Windows is the only OS that requires reformatting and reinstalling every 6-12 months.

No other OS degrades over time.

Either your boss is an idiot or this is just silly FUD

[Earl Benser]

A small tempest in a tinier teapot.....

IE was cleaned out of all my Mac's and PC's years ago. So there is
no reason to care about IE. OE and ActiveX also were jettisoned
from the PC's. So as far as I'm concerned, MS's support for IE, no
matter what vintage, is totally irrelevant.

But MS is hardly a total waste of time. I am currently stuck with
XP for the PC's, but with limited updates, XP has been adequate.
So that's one acceptable MS product. MS Office, on the Mac and
on the PC, is another, with the Mac version hands down better
than the PC version. And occasionally, WIndows Media Player
(Mac and PC) get used, although Quicktime (Mac and PC) is
preferred.

So some MS stuff gets used. It's just that the list is very short.

[Maccess]

Will your Mac IE Suddenly stop working?

Mac users need to find another browser quick? What kind of stupidity is that? Just because a company decides to stop upgrading its software, the one you have will stop working?

I can think of dozens of software titles that I use regularly that were published by now defunct companies. Also, a few other titles published by still existing companies that have announced they would drop the product.

So what's the big deal? If the software works fine, it doesn't matter if the original publisher doesn't exist or won't support it. As long as the software works...

IE has been dead on the Mac since version 5.2.3.

Its been dead on the PC since version 6.x.

Get over it.

There is no version 7.x that will run on your Windows. Maybe on Vista, but not on the windows you have today.


It's not even a "switching issue." there is no reason why you can't have multiple browsers on your computer: Mac Or PC. Some sites don't work with Safari? then keep IE on your computer! How big are hard disks today? IE is just the size of a couple of MP3s. What's the big deal?

The article's writer doesn't know what he is talking about. He's just trying to make a buck by making sensational headlines where there is no issue.

[jerrymacGP]

Some sites demand IE

The biggest issue on this for most day to day Mac users will be
those sites that only work with IE. The other day, a family
member of mine went to a site that demanded nothing other
than IE 6; IE 5/Mac wouldn't work, and neither would Firefox or
Safari. With no newer versions of IE being released for the Mac,
these sites will be inaccessible. Do these sites' developers own
stock in Microsoft? It makes a person wonder.

[Earl Benser]

Send the webmaster....

.... a nice note inviting him into the 21st Century and the world of
W3C.

Or just don't bother returning..........

[tsm26]

Stupid comment

If you say that Microsoft has two years you know nothing about business and computers. Microsoft controls the computers of 90% of the world, and even a higher percentage of desktop pcs. That percentage has not significantly declined even with an influx of Linux advertising and Ipod mania. Whether you like them or not they will be there for a long time. People underestimate Bill Gates, and never give him enough credit for his intelligence and business savvy.