Is it Time for your Browser to Retire?

Most people don’t have any idea what browser they are using and especially what version. At MicroFour, we want the best for our customers and to provide information about the newest and best techoloniges, but can anyone stay atop of the new technology curve? Probably not, however no one wants to get lost in the dust. It seems like every year a new iPhone is coming out and anyone who bought the iPhone 5s (9/20/13), is now getting left behind because the iPhone 6 is already on the horizon. [1]

Browser Stats

What does this have to do with Browsers? Well many people don’t even know they are left hanging out to dry due to their browser. StatCounter.com provides statistics for all browsers and it shows that in the last 12 months, the 2nd most used browser version is IE 8 (almost 9% of all users), which was released on March 19, 2009. [2]

Additionally, 37% of all people are using a plethora of various browsers which include some ancient versions. For example some people are still on IE 7, which was released in 2006. [3]

Just to give you an idea of how old the IE 7 browser is, the first iPhone ever released was over a year after this browser. (June 29, 2007) [4]

Why Should I Care about my Browser?

• Security Risks – Out of date web browsers have substantially more security vulnerabilities. Online criminals have had more time to learn how to breach old browser holes and exploit personal information such as emails, banking information, account information, photos, and other sensitive information. [5]

• Better Experience – New browsers have more functionality and display web content more clearly. Just like anyone with glasses needs a check-up, browsers too need to be updated to make sure everything is 20/20.

• Help Retire Old Versions – Most developers and companies are leaving the old browsers out to dry where webpages will not display correctly and not even function. Many of the major companies still spend many hours and people to maintain functionality on these old browsers, but when the herd has finally moved it will all be wasted energy.

What Can I Do?

Are you wondering what you can do about it? Well, it is simple. Check out whatbroswer.org and they will automatically tell you what browser version you are using and provide a link to the top browsers.

Here is their Homepage and my results:

What is MicroFour Doing?

Currently, on all MicroFour websites like practicestudio.net, we support all the major browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, IE, Safari, and Opera. However, when it comes to versions we provide a gentle reminder for those who are using a very old browser. The following users will receive a reminder to either switch browsers or update:

• Users on IE 7 or a previous version

• Users on Mozilla 3 or a previous version

We only want the best experience for our customers and we don’t want them to get left behind on their browser. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about this issue please contact us at support@micro4.com.