Internet Explorer 6

Internet Explorer 6
Developer(s)Microsoft
Initial releaseAugust 24, 2001; 23 years ago (2001-08-24)
Stable release
Service Pack 3 (6.00.2900.5512)[1] / April 21, 2008; 16 years ago (2008-04-21)
EngineMSHTML
Operating systemWindows NT 4.0 SP6a
Windows 98
Windows 2000
Windows ME
Included withWindows XP and Windows Server 2003
PredecessorInternet Explorer 5.0 (1999)
Internet Explorer 5.5 (2000)
SuccessorInternet Explorer 7 (2006)
LicenseProprietary, requires Windows license
Websitemsdn.microsoft.com/library/cc872847.aspx Edit this on Wikidata

Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 (IE6) is a web browser developed by Microsoft for Windows operating systems. Released on August 24, 2001, it is the sixth, and by now discontinued, version of Internet Explorer and the successor to Internet Explorer 5. It does not support earlier versions.

Despite dominating market share (attaining a peak of 90% in mid-2004), this version of Internet Explorer has been widely criticized for its security issues and lack of support for modern web standards, making frequent appearances in "worst tech products of all time" lists, with PC World labeling it "the least secure software on the planet."[2] In 2004, Mozilla finalized Firefox to rival IE6, and it became highly popular and acclaimed for its security, add-ons, speed and other modern features such as tabbed browsing.[3] Microsoft planned to fix these issues in Internet Explorer 7 by June–August 2005,[4][5] but it was delayed until an October 2006 release, over 5 years after IE6 debuted.

Because a substantial percentage of the web audience still used the outdated browser (especially in China), campaigns were established in the late 2000s to encourage users to upgrade to newer versions of Internet Explorer or switch to different browsers. Some websites dropped support for IE6 entirely, most notable of which was Google dropping support in some of its services in March 2010.[6][7] According to Microsoft's modern.ie website, as of August 2015, 3.1% of users in China and less than 1% in other countries were using IE6.[8]

Internet Explorer 6 was the last version to be called Microsoft Internet Explorer. The software was rebranded as Windows Internet Explorer starting with the release of Internet Explorer 7.

Internet Explorer 6 is no longer supported, and is not available for download from Microsoft.

It is the last version of Internet Explorer to support Windows NT 4.0 SP6a, Windows 98, Windows 2000 and Windows ME, though it is only available as pre-installed in Windows XP RTM—SP1 and Windows Server 2003 RTM.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference sv1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Tynan, Dan (2005-05-26). "The 25 Worst Tech Products of All Time". PC World. IDG. Archived from the original on 15 June 2006. Retrieved 2006-07-18.
  3. ^ "New browser wins over net surfers". BBC. November 24, 2004. Archived from the original on May 13, 2019. Retrieved May 13, 2019.
  4. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4508897.stm Archived 2017-09-25 at the Wayback Machine The assault on software giant Microsoft
  5. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4270449.stm Archived 2009-02-15 at the Wayback Machine Security scares spark browser fix
  6. ^ Goss, Patrick (2009-07-14). "Official: YouTube to stop IE6 support". TechRadar. Future plc. Archived from the original on 2009-07-18. Retrieved 2009-07-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. ^ Krazit, Tom (2010-01-30). "Google phasing out support for IE6". CNET. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 2013-09-08. Retrieved 2010-01-30.
  8. ^ "IE 6 Countdown". developer.microsoft.com. Microsoft. Archived from the original on January 18, 2019. Retrieved May 13, 2019.