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Web Browser Roundup – October 2012

7 minute read time · Updated February 13, 2025 · First published October 5, 2012

There’s plenty going on in the world of web browsers at the moment. Our web based scheduling software, MIDAS relies on a web browser. So we take a keen interest in the ever-changing browser landscape. Here’s our round up of what’s been happening recently with the 5 major browsers:

Internet Explorer – Google Apps dropping IE8 support.. and still no word IE10 for Win7?
Chrome – More popular than IE? Depends on who you talk to!
Firefox – 10 years old.. and Windows 8 “modern” app round the corner
Safari – No further updates for Windows users?
Opera – Development continuing at pace!

Internet Explorer

Google have announced that starting from November 15, their suite of “Google Apps”, which includes services such as Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, will no longer be officially supported Internet Explorer 8. We predict that it won’t be long before other major sites begin to drop support for IE8.

Internet Explorer 8 is now nearly 4 years old – a long time in today’s fast changing browser landscape. Consequently, it now offers poor support for today’s web technology standards.

So why are people still using Internet Explorer?

Well, one of the main problems is that if you’re still running Windows XP (which many people still are!), you can’t install Internet Explorer 9 on it! This is a bad decision on Microsoft’s part we feel. In fact, they’ve pretty much shot themselves in the foot by not allowing Windows XP users to upgrade their browser past IE8!

By not allowing Windows XP users to upgrade past IE8, it’s allowed other browsers (such as Firefox and Chrome) – which can run on Windows XP, to steal a lot of the market share that Internet Explorer has. This is simply because end-users want to use a fast, up-to-date, modern browser – something which IE8 isn’t by today’s standards.

Sadly, at the moment, this could be a trend that Microsoft continues with their upcoming Internet Explorer 10. Internet Explorer is currently only available to users of Windows 8. Windows 8 sees its full release later this month on October 26. Users of Windows 7 are presently unable to update from Internet Explorer 9 to Internet Explorer 10. Microsoft have said that IE10 will become available for Windows 7. Yet they’ve been very vague and noncommittal about exactly when this will happen.

If you’ve used IE10, you’ll know how much better it is than IE9. Not least in terms of speed/performance, but also compliance with the latest web standards. We hope Microsoft make IE10 available to users of Windows 7 as soon as possible!

MIDAS, our web based scheduling software, is currently supported in Internet Explorer 8,9, and 10! However, for the best experience, we recommend IE9/10. We have no immediate plans to drop support for IE8, as Google Apps are doing. However, there will come a time when we no longer support such an old version of a web browser.

Therefore, you should always keep your browser up-to-date with the most recent version available to you. If you’re still using Windows XP, and have no plans to upgrade to Windows 7/8 in the near future, you may wish to consider installing one of the other modern browsers that will work on your system.

Google Chrome

Still somewhat on the subject of Internet Explorer – opinion continues to be divided as to which browser – Internet Explorer or Google Chrome is currently the most widely used browser in the world. It all depends on who you talk to!

Last month’s figures from one leading company, Net Applications, show that IE 8 is the most popular web browser for PC’s, with 24.09% of the market share, followed by IE 9 with 19.45%. Chrome 21 (which was updated to Chrome 22 last week), has a 14.32% shared of the web browser market.

Net Applications - Browser Market Share - Sept 12 — Source: Net Applications

However, StatCounter, another leading company, have very different numbers for September. They show Chrome 21 in a clear lead with 27.34%. IE9 comes second with 17.93%, followed by IE8 at 13.06%.

StatCounter - Browser Market Share - Sept 12 — Source: StatCounter

Why such a difference between the two sets of statistics? Well, both companies use very different ways for assessing browser usage. Net Applications only counts “unique visitors”. StatCounter however counts browser hits, regardless of whether they are unique. For example, if someone views the same page 10 times, Net Applications would count that once, StatCounter would count that ten times.

It’s also worth noting that the Google Chrome browser has a “pre-fetch” function. This can silently fetch web pages in the background that it thinks you’re going to visit – so this has the potential for skewing the data slightly.

That said, if there is one thing that both Stat Counter and Net Applications are in close agreement on, its Mozilla’s Firefox place in the web browser standings. Firefox 15 comes 4th on both lists. Net Applications shows a market share of 10.91% and StatCounter fractionally more at 13.01%.

MIDAS is supported in Chrome 9+ (v22+ recommended)

Mozilla Firefox

Firefox celebrated it 10th birthday a couple of weeks ago! Firefox has come a long way in its 10 year history, although it wasn’t actually called “Firefox” until 2004. Originally, it was called “Phoenix” in 2002. Several months later, after complaints from BIOS manufacturer Phoenix Technologies, that name was dropped in favor of Firebird. The community didn’t like “Firebird” either as there was – and still – a database server carrying the same name. Instead, the name “Firefox” was adopted in early 2004.

Firefox became quite popular thanks to Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 6, which didn’t receive significant updates for many years. Firefox however introduced a lot of people to tabs, RSS-feeds in the bookmarks bar, themes and extensions. In February 2008, Firefox had been downloaded 500 million times. It established a record with version 3.0 several months later, with the “Most Downloads of a Software Application in 24 Hours,” according to Guinness World Records.

Today, Mozilla are busy on developing a special Windows 8 “modern” version of their popular browser in time for the launch of Windows 8 later this month.

MIDAS is supported in Firefox 4+ (v16+ recommended)

Apple Safari

Apple’s Safari browser was recently updated to version 6. However, if you’re a Windows user, Safari 6 isn’t available to you. Safari 6 has only been made available to iOS users. The most recent version of Safari available to Windows users if 5.1.7. Yet even this has now been quietly removed from the Safari download page. (at time of writing 5.1.7 is still available to Windows users with an earlier version of Safari already installed via their “Apple Software Update” application).

No reason has been given by Apple as to why Safari 6 hasn’t been made available to Windows users. The speculation is that the move was made because Safari 6 is more tightly integrated with features only found in iOS6. We hope that this is only temporary, and Apple will make Safari 6 available to Windows. However, as Safari has the smallest market share of Windows-based browsers, they may now just be focusing on their own operating systems.

MIDAS is supported in Safari 4+ (v5+ recommended)

Opera

The Opera name has been with the browser since the very beginning. In fact, Opera v1 was first released back in 1994. Often overlooked, this well established browser has retained a small, but loyal following over the years. Although historically not enjoying the same user growth as other browsers have, for the last year or so, development work on Opera has really gathered pace! Opera software have been regularly putting out developer snapshots and beta builds – sometimes several times a week! All this work culminated with the major release of Opera 12 back in June.

We’ve been quite impressed with Opera 12’s speed and compatibility with the latest web technologies and standards. Plus the work the Opera team are putting into their software shows no signs of slowing down any time soon! Opera 12.10 was released as a beta last week, so expect a public update to Opera very soon.

There were also rumors earlier in the year that Facebook may be gearing up to purchase Opera in the not too distant future. Whilst unsubstantiated, if true, Opera’s market share may see a significant increase as a result of an acquisition of Facebook. So if Opera’s slipped under your radar, or you’ve perhaps dismissed it in the past – maybe it’s worth taking another look!?

MIDAS is supported in Opera 9+ (v12+ recommended)

Tags: Apple, browser, chrome, facebook, firefox, google, internet explorer, iOS, microsoft, mozilla, opera, safari

Firefox 13 out now, IE10 updated, Chrome beats IE, Facebook to purchase Opera?

3 minute read time · Updated December 11, 2025 · First published June 4, 2012

Well, it’s been a busy few days in the web browser world! We’ll try and summarize what’s been happening for you!

Internet Explorer 10 Updated

On Thursday, Microsoft released Windows 8 Release Preview. Along with it came an update to their Internet Explorer 10 browser. This is the browser that will ship when Windows 8 is fully released later this year. Sadly, IE10 isn’t currently available for Windows 7, but we very much hope it will be before too long, as IE10 sees some significant leaps forward for Microsoft’s browser.

Firefox 13 Out Now

The latest version of Firefox – version 13 – is now available to download from Mozilla (even though it’s not “officially” released until tomorrow!). Notable changes in this version, according to Mozilla, relate to the “Home” and “Tabs” pages. The “home” page can now be customized with bookmarks, history, sync, and previous session data. The “new tabs” page has also seen a feature introduce that has been knocking around in Chrome and Opera for a while. This feature shows thumbnails of recently/commonly viewed pages

Chrome overtakes Internet Explorer

Statcounter also reported recently that Google Chrome has now overtaken Internet Explorer in terms of market share. According to StatCounter, Chrome now accounts for 32.76% of the worldwide browser market. This compares to 31.94% for Internet Explorer and 25.47% for Firefox. This is the first time that a browser other than Internet Explorer has commanded the largest share of the browser market. Ok, so it’s not a massive lead – in fact, Chrome’s lead is only 0.82%. Still, this is quite an achievement for a relatively new browser, which was first launched less than 4 years ago!

Facebook to purchase Opera?

It’s also been rumored this past week that Facebook may be gearing up to buy the Opera browser!
That’s according to a report from Pocket-Lint.com. The article claims (via unnamed sources) that Facebook is looking to purchase Opera Software. Opera Software are the makers of the long-running Opera web browser. Details are sketchy, but the story claims that Facebook is looking to compete in the web browser war that already has Microsoft, Google, Apple and Mozilla among its big players.

The Opera web browser has historically always had the smallest market share of any of the 5 major desktop browsers. That said, Opera has gained some ground most notably in the mobile web browser market. Facebook is currently very focused on the “mobile” side of their operations. This is due to an increasing number of users regularly using Facebook on their mobile devices. So, Facebook could be about to purchase Opera Software as a shortcut towards making a browser that could compete in the smartphone and tablet space?

The Facebook purchase could actually be very good for the Opera browser. Such a move has the potential to become much more of a “threat” to the other 4 browsers. This in turn will likely see increased development, competition, and a race to strive to produce the fastest, most “standards compliant” browser.

We’ve been closely monitoring Opera developments in recent months. Opera Software are about to release Opera 12, and we’ve been impressed with what we’ve seen so far from the nightly developer “snapshots”. Opera 12 is a substantial improvement on Opera 11 – it’s faster, and far more standard-compliant

MIDAS Booking Software is compatible ALL major browsers

Our browser-based software, MIDAS, is fully supported on Internet Explorer (including on IE10 in Windows 8), Firefox (including v13), Opera (including v12), as well as the current versions of Safari and Chrome.

…and there’s still time to take advantage of our very special Diamond Jubilee discount!

Tags: browser, chrome, facebook, firefox, google, internet explorer, microsoft, mozilla, opera

Internet Explorer to update automatically in 2012!

2 minute read time · Updated February 13, 2025 · First published December 15, 2011

Internet Explorer Automatic Updates Microsoft’s Internet Explorer team have just announced that in 2012, their web browser will begin updating automatically itself to ensure you’re always using the most up-to-date version for your operating system!

Ryan Gavin, General Manager for Internet Explorer Business and Marketing, writing in a blog post today said that from January onward, Microsoft will automatically update older Internet Explorer versions on Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7.

Auto Updating Browsers

Mozilla’s Firefox and Google’s Chrome browsers have been keeping themselves up-to-date automatically for some time now, with no user intervention (other than a restart) required.

Now, finally, Microsoft is following the trend – well, sort of. Your Internet Explorer will only begin keeping itself updated if your computer is set to automatically receive Windows Updates. If you have Windows Updates turned off or set to manual, you won’t automatically receive updates to IE.

Still, it’s a step in the right direction following The Great IE6 Debate… Are Microsoft Holding Back The Web?

Keen to migrate people using older versions of Internet Explorer, Gavin had this to say on the new approach:

“We want to make updating to the best protection possible as fast and simple as we can for Windows customers. IE is how millions of Windows customers connect to the Web, so keeping that part of Windows updated at all times is critical to keeping them safe online. With automatic updates enabled through Windows Update, customers can receive IE9 and future versions of Internet Explorer seamlessly without any “update fatigue” issues.”
– Ryan Gavin, General Manager for Internet Explorer Business and Marketing

Gavin’s blog post also offers links to “Automatic Update Blocker toolkits [to] prevent automatic upgrades of IE for Windows customers who do not want them”, however, for individuals there is very little reason to use such “blockers”, and we would strongly advise against it!

Keeping up to date

You should always ensure you’re running the most up-to-date version of your favorite browser. Not only does this help ensure you’re protected from new security threats and vulnerabilities that are discovered all the time, but also so that you can view web pages, and web apps – such as MIDAS just as the developer intended, taking advantage of the latest web technologies and standards!

MIDAS is fully compatible with Internet Explorer 7, 8, 9, and the forthcoming version 10!

Tags: browser, internet explorer, microsoft

The Great IE6 Debate… Are Microsoft Holding Back The Web?

6 minute read time · Updated July 21, 2023 · First published July 20, 2011

In developing a web based app like MIDAS, we had to make some decisions as to which web browsers we were going to support. When we started work on MIDAS back in 2005, there were only really two main players in the browser market. These were Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox, and we supported them both.

Today, there are now 5 key players in that same market. Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Opera, and Apple Safari… all compete for a market share. There was a time when Internet Explorer dominated the market, with nearly a 90% share at its peak. Internet Explorer’s dominance however has been steadily declining in recent years. We can see this from our own website visitors so far in 2011:

From our own statistics, we see that 6.96% of Internet Explorer users are still using IE6. This is surprising slightly more than are using the latest version, IE9 (only 6.92%)). Most Internet Explorer users currently use IE8 (67%) or IE7 (19%)

Current versions of our web based room booking system, MIDAS, will run in recent versions of all 5 main browsers. We did however finally drop support for Internet Explorer 6 last year.

Yet we know that many organizations around the world are still forcing employees to use Internet Explorer 6 on their corporate networks. Why is this? Why do companies insist on using a browser that’s now a decade old, given how fast the Internet has evolved during that time!? We decided to try and find out why…

From IE6 to the present day..

Internet Explorer 6 logo Internet Explorer 6 was first released back in August 2001 just a year after the release of IE5.5. Since IE6’s release, Microsoft have subsequently released 3 major versions of their Internet Explorer software. IE7 was released in October 2006, IE8 in June 2009, and this year saw the release of Internet Explorer 9, with IE10 already well in development. But there was a long gap between the release of IE6 and IE7 (5 years in fact!). This allowed for widespread adoption of IE6 by IT departments the world over during this period.

The importance of keeping up to date

Now, any home user knows it’s important to keep their web browser up-to-date. This not only ensures the best possible viewing experience with the latest web technologies (which are moving at a very fast pace these days!), but also, and more importantly help keep their browser and computer protected from new security vulnerabilities and exploits. Browser updates are always provided free of charge and are readily available. Some browsers even automatically update themselves! So why do corporate IT departments stick with IE6 and not keep their software infrastructure up to date?

Should Corporations & IT departments be doing more?

We’d always assumed a key reason why organizations haven’t updated from IE6 was down to laziness. We spoke though with one IT professional about her own experiences of a recent corporate roll-out of IE8, which paints a different picture:
“We went from (Internet Explorer) 6 to 8 and it’s a nightmare. It’s random things like some of our web based apps which use Windows authentication no longer work, others that use the “remember me” option now don’t log you out properly. We have issues retaining our proxy settings and to top it off it’s so slow! … (IE6) works better!”

So are corporations simply not upgrading due to usability and compatibility issues with their existing software infrastructure? At MIDAS, we ensure that our web based room scheduling app is compatible with the very latest versions (and development builds) of the 5 major browsers. Should other developers of web apps be doing the same? We believe so!! …but could Microsoft themselves be doing more too?

Should Microsoft be doing more?

Ditch Internet Explorer 6 Whilst Microsoft do provide some helpful resources for corporate IT departments looking to migrate from IE6, Microsoft have committed to continue support for IE6 until 2014 (coinciding with the “End of Life” of Windows XP), primarily because of this corporate sector! In our opinion, Microsoft should have ended support for IE6 a long time ago. If they had, it would force corporations and developers alike to upgrade and modernize their software. Ultimately, this benefits the wider Internet community! Developers can then utilize new and emerging web technologies, such as HTML5, CSS3. This in turn provides a better user experience, rather than developers having to instead spend time trying to make their modern software backwards compatible with a decade old obsolete browser!

The future for IE6

Google, YouTube, Hotmail, WordPress, and many other well known sites have already dropped support for IE6 in recent times. Here at MIDAS HQ we took the decision last year to no longer focus on ensuring IE6 compatibility for our web based app, MIDAS. Our main reason was because this was holding back development, preventing us from implementing new features, taking advantage of new and emerging web technologies.

Conclusions

Whilst we’re encouraged by Microsoft’s recent reinvigorated approach and commitment to further development of Internet Explorer, they should never have left IE6 to stagnate for as long as it did before releasing IE7. This has led to many corporations becoming too dependent on an outdated and vulnerable browser. Microsoft’s pledge in continuing to support IE6 until 2014 is, and will continue to hold back development of the web.

We would urge any organization or IT department still using IE6, not to wait until its “End of Life” but to upgrade as soon as you feasibly can! If there’s compatibility issues with your 3rd party apps or software, contact the publishers/developers of that software. Developers who are as committed to their software as we are to MIDAS, will want to ensure full compatibility of their product with the latest web browsers. If they can’t do this, perhaps it’s time to start looking for alternatives now before it becomes too late!

We’re really excited about the future direction the web is taking, with new standards and technologies emerging. But we need corporations and business to help drive the web forward! This is currently hindered by the continued use of IE6!

Tags: firefox, google chrome, ie6, internet explorer, microsoft, opera, safari