Microsoft spins truth on Internet Explorer 8
Spin doctoring, the art of subtly changing the facts to sell a product, person, or concept, is inherent in every aspect of our lives these days, from politics to entertainment. And, it seems, it’s also alive and kicking in the Web browser war, at least as far as Microsoft and Internet Explorer 8 is concerned.
Although I’m someone who writes about Microsoft most days of the week, I’m not a rabid fanboy who soaks up everything Microsoft and spews out gushing news and reviews of every Microsoft product. I am a Windows user, I do actively dislike Apple, but apart from that I’m unbiased. Except when it comes to Internet Explorer, which is so much worse than the competition it shouldn’t even be mentioned in the same breath.
Nothing would get me back using Internet Explorer again, despite the recently released IE8 probably being the finest version of the Web browser Microsoft has produced until now. But that doesn’t stop Microsoft trying to persuade me, and the millions who have abandoned IE in recent years, to return to the fold.
Its latest effort to promote the ailing browser is a campaign titled Internet Explorer 8: Get The Facts. The page on Microsoft.com has eight reasons to choose IE8, a browser comparison chart weighing up IE8 against Firefox and Chrome, and a few examples of “MythBusting.” It’s a good effort but the facts don’t really support the claims.
The ‘Reasons To Install’ are pretty much fine, because these are points which really just show how IE8 is superior to older version of Internet Explorer. IE8 may be “faster”, “easier to use”, “safer”, and more customizable than any version before it. But that’s not really the point is it. What about the competition?
As detailed on WebMonkey, this is where the facts get left behind and the spin begins. For starters, only Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome are listed as worthy rivals. What about Safari and Opera? Then, unbelievably, out of ten categories, IE8 is named the winner in seven, with the other three being classed as draws.
But it gets even worse with the ‘MythBusting’ section. As detailed on Geek Technica, here is where Microsoft really stretches the border between fact and fiction. Each busted myth, on speed, security, adaptability, and Web standards, turns out to actually be true. You couldn’t make it up. But Microsoft has given it a good go.
How about instead of trying to talk up a browser which less and less people want to use, Microsoft concentrates on making IE9 the best Web browser out there. That’s surely not such a crazy idea.
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June 21st, 2009
One thing that I hate about IE8 (and IE7) that no one mentions is the interface… When I open the application, I actually don’t know how to do anything other than type a URL–the menu bar is hidden by default, and the ordering of toolbars and navigation bars across the top is nonstandard (ironically…). With Firefox, Safari, Opera, and even the minimalist Chrome I can find my way around quite easily, but with IE I honestly find myself baffled.
I feel like Microsoft’s interfaces are all in flux and are getting horribly inconsistent; the ribbon in Office 2007 may be some kind of UI “advance,” but both Office and IE ought to offer legacy interfaces for folks like me who don’t have time to loose productivity while learning new interfaces.
I am also a Windows user, but I often envy the UI consistency that Apple offers.