Microsoft to phase out Internet Explorer with newer Edge browser

Internet Explorer, for years the principal way of accessing any website for a generation of computer users, is to go the way of the dancing baby screensaver and the floppy disk.

Microsoft announced in 2015 it was moving away from Internet Explorer, which had become maligned among many Windows users for its sluggish speed, in favour of its then brand-new browser Edge. The latter was planned as a faster and more advanced browser that would be the default for consumers using the whole range of Windows 10 devices.

By last June, some users were still on Internet Explorer, but Microsoft was saying many websites were no longer being made compatible with the browser.

That month, Microsoft ended support for the browser, meaning it would no longer receive updates that would patch up security holes, thereby no longer effectively protecting users.