Internet Explorer Still No. 1…but Fading

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We started looking at some of these statistics when Google announced they will discontinue support of IE 6 on March 1.  To continue to use some of Google’s services, users will have to upgrade to at least IE7.  Recent cyber attacks, via a flaw in IE6, against Google and other companies have created this move from IE6, but there remain a high number of users continuing to use IE6.  Personally, I believe whatever browser you use, you should upgrade to the most recent version. 

Google set the baseline for other browsers; with Firefox 3.0 or higher, Chrome 4.0 or higher, and Safari 3.0 or higher. “…you may find that from March 1, key functionality within these products–as well as new Docs and Sites features–won’t work properly in older browsers,” Google said.  Google continues to drive a lot of how the internet is accessed and utilized.  This kind of gives me a flashback to my blog back on December 15th, “When Will Google Take Over the World”. 

Stats for January 2010, from Net Applications, shows IE users make up 62.2% of internet browsers.  This is down from 62.7% in December 2009.  Firefox users are also down slightly from 24.6% to 24.4%.  Chrome continues to grow and is at 5.2% in January, and Safari is staying level at 4.5%.  IE 8 (22.3%) actually passed IE6 (22.1%) users during the month of January.  IE 7 users follow at 14.6%.   

This prompted me to take a look at what browsers MedicalGPS users access our website and tools.  Comparing January 2010 to January 2009, here’s what I found.

                                                  2010               2009

Internet Explorer                      68.09%            82.39%

Firefox                                     21.88%            11.90%

Safari                                         6.89%             4.57%

Chrome                                     2.38%             0.31%

Other                                         0.76%             0.83%

A further analysis of just IE users shows how the versions of IE have changed from January 2009 to January 2010.

                                                  2010               2009

IE7                                          46.19%           68.53%

IE8                                          27.63%             0.75%

IE6                                          25.85%           30.68%

Older IE                                    0.33%             0.04%

Internet Explorer will continue to lead the pack for the foreseeable future, but as other browsers become more sophisticated, secure and competitive we will see Internet Explorer Still No. 1…But Fading.

—Marty Hudson

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