Comments on: Microsoft’s Removal of IE from Windows 7 Will Have No Effect

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 03:31:55 +0000

If Microsoft has to remove IE, then therefore Apple should also.

By: Dan Grossman

Dan Grossman — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 14:40:42 +0000

@molona: How do the DLL libraries that offline applications use to render HTML harm the web if IE isn’t installed and they are never used to show an online webpage? How does merely having web components on the computer harm the browser market?

By: molona

molona — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 14:36:48 +0000

Well, the resolution comes rather late. Yet, the issue is not that Windows 7 comes with IE installed or not. The whole issue was that IE couldn’t be fully uninstalled because is part of the OS. And, well, still is and it will still be.

I think the resolution, in that sense, is right. Microsoft has harmed the market and stopped web evolution because no matter what, if you used windows, you couldn’t get rid of it even if you wanted to.

By: skunkbad

skunkbad — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 06:59:06 +0000

I’ve always thought that the nature of a monopoly was such that there really weren’t any other choices, and so said monopoly could take advantage of their customers. In the case of computer operating systems, this really isn’t the case, because nobody said, “You must buy a computer with Windows on it”.

I hadn’t really paid attention to the EU anti-trust investigation, and I’m surprised that Opera would have anything to do with it. I have to say, I’ve never really liked Opera, and I think it’s pathetic that they try to punish MS. I’m no MS lover, but I do use Windows, Mac, and Linux daily, and I don’t appreciate attempts to bash any O/S.

Tonight I was styling a form on my website, and I’m not kidding, Opera was the only browser that didn’t look exactly like the others. I test in IE6, IE7, IE8, FF3, Opera, Chrome, and Safari. Some may say that Opera is more standards compliant, but I think it has a host of odd display issues, and would never use it as my primary browser unless I was forced to.

By: sitehatchery

sitehatchery — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 23:25:48 +0000

An automatic update including IE8, made after the purchase, might not necessarily be considered a “bundled” service. The user has to specifically agree to download such software after the purchase, which they could decline at will. So the “bundle” issue could turn into a semantics game, with the outcome being nearly the same.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 20:12:47 +0000

they should just stick IE8 on a CD or memory stick and let the user install it

it’s not like they’re forcing IE8 on the user…

but seriously though, the anti-MS bullshit has to stop, completely agree with Angry Free Man (also secoif!)

By: secoif

secoif — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 01:51:03 +0000

I second Angry Free Man.

On another note, Sitepoint, how about a ‘this comment is good’ button?

By: Angry Free Man

Angry Free Man — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:08:04 +0000

I’m an almost decade-old Sitepoint reader and this is my first post. I’m frankly sick and tired of people arguing for their own interests to legitimize the shake-down of a company (Microsoft) that for all its flaws and virtues has acquired dominant market share thru constant innovation and extreme marketing savvy. This has been going on for years. You work at Opera? Finally get some marketing books and do something more unusual that will get you noticed. You think your product is superior? Why don’t you follow your wits and learn how to cheaply advertise it? You argue that people are ignorant about other browsers, so why don’t you follow your heart and advertise it more effectively? But no, you take the ‘easy’ route and resort, not to peaceful competition, but to government force. Microsoft will be critized NO MATTER what it does. If it caves in to the rule-by-brute-force crowd, it will only encourage the whiners to get away with more. If it doesn’t, it will be forced to comply with the ‘law’ anyway, no matter how abritrary it is. The internet is about freedom, but apparently when you become successful in this environment, it’s ok for whiners to resort to their primitive instincts and dress them up as ‘consumer protection’ and ‘rule of law’. It is neither. The only thing you accomplish is legitimizing the penalisation in people’s minds of success for being success. Think what it does to an entrepreneur’s aspirations. It’s easier than competing like a real businessman, isn’t it? By the way, I use Firefox. It was very easy to install on Vista so as to make it my default browser.

By: PatrickSamphire

PatrickSamphire — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:04:07 +0000

It does seem to me that the EU decision is rather dated. A few years ago, IE really did dominate in Europe, but these days, Firefox has put an enormous dent in that. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Firefox draw level with IE pretty soon without any heavy-handed intervention.
Personally, I use Firefox 90% of the time and safari the other 10%, but I don’t think IE needs to be smacked down like this.

By: Ross

Ross — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 13:36:38 +0000

Looking at the comments, I can’t believe that Microsoft has been so successful at winning public opinion over. Just the result they are looking for! (don’t be fooled)