Microsoft pulls the plug on Internet Explorer; support service to end in June 2022

After being in operation for 26 years, Microsoft's ailing Internet Explorer will finally be put to sleep

It will be hard to believe but there was a time when Microsoft's Internet Explorer was the holy grail of web browser's. It had a monopoly on the browser market and Microsoft (much like Google is now) was accused of unfair competition since it was bundled with Windows.

Eventually, Internet Explorer fell to the wayside in the face of stiff competition and just disappeared from the popular psyche after a while. Even Microsoft moved away from the ailing browser to the more modern Edge and Internet Explorer was kept on life support and hobbled on in meek existence within Windows 10.

Come June 15, 2022, Microsoft will finally put Internet Explorer out of its misery by pulling the plug. The company confirmed that long term servicing for the product will remain active till the end of next year before support for all versions of the browser will come to an end.

It is always tough saying goodbye to something that has been part of life for so many 90's kids. I mean who can forget the first time they booted up the browser and saw that famous 'e' logo, while waiting for a page to load on dial-up modems (remember those?).

It's been fun but we can all agree that Internet Explorer has far outlived its usefulness and survived only because it was part of Microsoft's legacy. It will now be replaced by the newer Edge browser and while the company has not made it clear whether IE will come bundled with Windows after June next year, it is a safe bet to assume it won't.

So long and thanks for all the fish.