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Web Developers: help rid the world of IE6 with a simple script
@staringispolite has created a simple, open source way that you can help drive the IE6 demon out of our Internet. The Google Code project is called, aptly enough, sevenup. It's inspired by both Google's effort and the movement started by a group of Norweigan websites.
It's a 1k javascript that displays a polite CSS reminder to people who visit your site using IE6 that they should seriously consider upgrading their browser to something a bit more modern. It's respectfully done, though, and includes an option for the user to dismiss the reminder and never be bothered again.
Sure, you could do this on your own from scratch, but sevenup is ready to use and easy to integrate. Do your part to save less tech-savvy web surfers from their browser!
Comments
18
Subscribe to commentsMiguelMar 20th 2009 3:06PM
I would love to implement something like this on the website I work on. I am really not looking forward to having to test three IE browsers and am sick of users who have opted to keep IE6.
KenMar 20th 2009 7:14PM
IE7 has a horrible user interface, and all but rquired a complete rebuild of my XP machine. I tolerate it on my wife's Vista box, but won't allow it on myine. I'll stick w/ firefox or chrome.
caseyMar 21st 2009 12:18AM
I think I am going to apply this to my sites... with a little improvement
I am going to rewrite the "here" url to go to http:// getfirefox .com
nanoMar 21st 2009 12:51AM
I'm a web programmer and I quickly dismiss pop up windows as being ads or those fake virus detection windows that alert you to install something. I would be afraid that my visitors would think that my website is filled with this kind of garbage.
asurrocaMar 21st 2009 4:04PM
I agree. I think the best route might be a notification area above your navigation area, which many sites use to notify users of new features (I'm thinking Facebook, Digg, Flickr for example).
AddyMar 21st 2009 2:39AM
And half of the computers in my university still run on IE5...
Tom MoitieMar 21st 2009 10:04AM
Most IT dptmnts have IE6 installed across their entire company. These people have no option but to use IE6, so you'd be alienating a lot of users.
KorangulationMar 21st 2009 11:13AM
One of the best ways to get me to close your website and go away is to tell me to use a different browser. I'll just find another website that doesn't tell me what to do with my computer.
This is coming from a web developer and an Opera user.
KibMar 21st 2009 2:48PM
Our IT dept still has 75% of the machines running Win 2K. IE 7 and up is not an option.
MalteserrMar 21st 2009 3:03PM
I'm all for upgrading to IE 7, but our network administrator is a nazi that doesn't let anyone mess with the system... and he refuses to upgrade from IE6.
???Mar 21st 2009 4:34PM
I still have IE6. I just don't bother to use it...unless it's for something like checking my other Gmail account (and I don't want to sign off the one on FF)
LuisMar 21st 2009 10:59PM
I'm not trying to plug this guys site, I just like how he's gone about promoting better browsers:
http://mulder.dummwiedeutsch.de/home/?page=home
GlenMar 21st 2009 6:14PM
Web developers unite! If we all block IE6, and I mean ALL, from using websites we develop. Then the dark ages of the web will pass.
If google did the same it would happen alot faster!
The nazi it departments will be forced to get of their bums and install something better.
The barely tech literate users at home and the lazy will follow the instructions on how to install firefox.
Then all those wasted hours of writing ie6 support can go into advancing the web.
QuikboyMar 22nd 2009 3:17PM
The problem isn't limited to upgrading - You still have a bunch of websites that these companies need to use that only work in IE6. Sad, but that's just plain true. Until those website makers fix their sites up, there's not much hope.
Bear BottomsMar 22nd 2009 5:56PM
Include one small JS file in the header of your page, and call the testing function like so:
...
I loaded the file sevenup.0.2.min.js on my server in the root directory of my homepage. I included the two lines of code above in the header section of my website. It didn't work, and was not W3C compliant!
RanManMar 23rd 2009 10:26AM
Just to add to the comments regarding the use of IE6. . . . my wife does a lot of "at home" work for several companies (Fortune 100) and she is forced to use IE6. The online customer service applications only operate on IE6. I am not talking about a few, I am talking about dozens of these companies applications are restricted to IE6 and that's just the ones she works for. There are probably hundreds of companies still using IE6. Until the use of IE6 actually starts to impact their "bottom line", especially during these tough economic times, it is unlikely they are going to spend the money and IT resources to update their applications to support anything but IE6. We have tried the apps with IE7 and even Firefox and they simple do not work. Critical windows required to perform her job for companies like Staples, Carnival Cruise lines, etc. do not work properly or don't open at all.
KeithMar 30th 2009 4:43PM
My company actually REQUIRES our customers to use IE6.
DoranwenApr 18th 2009 10:05PM
I stick with IE6 for a couple reasons:
1. I mainly use Firefox anyway, so I'm not really worried about security (the only pages I load in IE are ones I know are safe but need IE to work properly).
2. When I do use IE, I can't STAND the look of IE7. The buttons are UGLY! Plus, I can't stand that IE7 all of a sudden locked up how much customizability control one had over the system. With IE6 I can drag buttons around, maybe not as much in Firefox, but I have some control. With IE7 I'm stuck with THEIR configuration. And that's annoys the heck out of me. So I won't touch it if I can help it.