What is Internet Explorer (IE)?

Internet Explorer (IE) is a web browser developed by Microsoft. First released in 1995 as part of the add-on package Plus! for Windows 95, it became a essential part of the Microsoft family of operating systems. For many years, Internet Explorer was the dominant browser in terms of usage, mainly because it was the default browser on Windows machines, the most widely used desktop operating system.

Internet Explorer became popular because it was bundled with the Windows operating system, which had a dominant market share. Its integration with Windows and features like ActiveX controls gave it an edge over competitors.

Here are some of the most important features of the IE Web browser –

User Interface: Internet Explorer had a simple and familiar interface. It included a menu bar, navigation buttons (like back, forward, refresh, and stop), an address bar where you could type the URL of a website, and a favorites bar where shortcuts to frequently visited sites could be stored. This made navigating the web straightforward and user-friendly.

Favorites and Bookmarks: This feature allowed users to save their favorite websites in a dedicated folder called “Favorites.” You could easily organize these bookmarks into folders, making it simpler to manage and access sites you visited often.

Security Features: Internet Explorer included several built-in security features to protect users from malicious websites and downloads. These features included a pop-up blocker to stop unwanted advertisements, a phishing filter to warn against suspicious websites, and settings to manage privacy and security levels. Over the years, Microsoft added more advanced features like SmartScreen Filter, which helped detect and block malicious websites and downloads before they could cause harm.

Compatibility with Windows: As a Microsoft product, Internet Explorer was deeply integrated with the Windows operating system. This meant that it could leverage various Windows features, like updating through Windows Update and offering support for ActiveX controls. ActiveX allowed developers to create interactive content, but it also posed security risks, which were addressed in later versions of IE and Windows.

Browsing History: Internet Explorer kept a detailed record of all the websites you visited, which could be accessed through the history menu. This was useful for returning to a previously visited site without remembering the exact URL. Users could also clear their browsing history for privacy reasons.

Add-ons and Extensions: Although not as extensive as those available for browsers like Firefox or Chrome, Internet Explorer supported add-ons and extensions. These could enhance the browser’s functionality, such as adding toolbars, ad blockers, and other utilities that extended what you could do with IE.

Internet Explorer supported a variety of programming languages and technologies for web development throughout its lifespan. Here are some of the main ones:

1. HTML (HyperText Markup Language): This is the foundational language for creating web pages. Internet Explorer supported various versions of HTML, evolving its support as the standard developed over time.

2. CSS (Cascading Style Sheets): CSS is used for styling web pages. Internet Explorer’s support for CSS improved over its versions, although earlier versions were known for having issues with CSS compliance, which sometimes led to inconsistencies in how pages appeared compared to other browsers.

3. JavaScript: This is a scripting language used to create dynamic content on websites, such as interactive forms, animations, and other user interactions. Internet Explorer included support for JavaScript, but its implementation was often different from other browsers, which could lead to compatibility issues.

4. VBScript: A scripting language similar to JavaScript but based on Visual Basic, VBScript was supported primarily by Internet Explorer. It was used mainly in enterprise environments within intranets or on Windows-based web applications. Over time, its use declined in favor of more universally supported scripts like JavaScript.

5. XML (eXtensible Markup Language): Internet Explorer supported XML, a tool used for data storage and transport. IE included features to parse XML data and transform it using XSLT (eXtensible Stylesheet Language Transformations).

6. XHTML (eXtensible HyperText Markup Language): This is a stricter version of HTML, which follows XML formatting rules. Internet Explorer supported XHTML, allowing developers to write cleaner and more error-free code.

7. ActiveX: While not a programming language, ActiveX is a framework for defining reusable software components in a programming language like C++ or Visual Basic. It allowed Internet Explorer to host applications and interact with the Windows operating system more deeply. ActiveX was powerful but also posed significant security risks, which led to its decline.

8. AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML): Internet Explorer supported AJAX, a technique for creating fast and dynamic web pages. AJAX allows web pages to be updated asynchronously by exchanging small amounts of data with the server behind the scenes. This means it is possible to update parts of a web page without reloading the whole page.

9. JScript: Microsoft’s implementation of the ECMAScript standard, which is the standardized version of JavaScript. JScript was developed by Microsoft and supported in Internet Explorer alongside JavaScript, offering some proprietary features not found in standard JavaScript.

Internet Explorer was the main web browser included with Microsoft Windows for many years. Because it was set as the default browser, it was the first one that people would use when they started their computers and went online. This made Internet Explorer very popular, especially in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Being the default browser meant that most people used it for browsing the web unless they decided to download and install a different browser. Over time, as other browsers like Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox became available and offered better performance and more features, fewer people chose to use Internet Explorer. Despite this, it remained important for many users, especially in businesses and organizations that relied on older web technologies compatible with Internet Explorer.

What is Internet Explorer?

IE is a web browser that was developed by Microsoft. It was one of the most widely used browsers during the early days of the internet. IE allowed users to access and navigate websites, view multimedia content, and interact with online applications.

What is Internet Explorer IE mode?

Internet Explorer mode lets users view legacy IE websites not supported by other browsers, which can increase productivity and improve security for IT administrators.

What is Internet Explorer called now?

Support for Internet Explorer ended on June 15, 2022. The same Internet Explorer 11 apps and sites you use today can open in Microsoft Edge with Internet Explorer mode. Microsoft Edge is the faster, more secure browser recommended by Microsoft.

What was the first browser?

The first web browser – or browser-editor rather – was called WorldWideWeb as, after all, when it was written in 1990 it was the only way to see the web.

.