As a CT Web design company for over 14 years, we have run into performance issues on the Web too many times to count. And, although I hate to point it out 99% of the time it's user error, or more specifcially, old software.
A Web browser is that "thing" that uses to surf the Web. It's how you view or interact with Web sites. For most people, that means that you click on the big blue “e” icon on your desktop. Here’s what it looks like:
This is the logo for Internet Explorer, a Web browser.
This “e” icon is a shortcut to a Web browser made by Microsoft, called “Internet Explorer” (also referred to as “IE”). Over the past 17 years, this browser has been the most popular Web browser. Not beacuse it's good, but becuase it is the default browser that comes with all Windows machines.
And most people never bother to switch or update their browser software, mostly because most people don't even know it's an option. Microsoft likes it this way, and if you remebember the Microsft Antitrust Lawsuits, this has a lot to do with what they were all about. But those days are over. There are a lot of options, choices, and things you can do and modify easily and on your own.
Old browsers (especially Internet Explorer versions 6, 7, and 8) are less stable, and much more vulnerable to viruses, spyware, malware, and other security issues. Those are obviously big problems to be concerned about—especially for people who shop online. So security alone is a very good reason to upgrade. But there’s more to it than that. Poor (or not at all) rendering of new technologies, slow response times, Caching issues and browsers that crash all the time are issues that continue to plague older browsers.
Here is a fantastic Blog article that was found by one of our designers, Josh Briley, that outlines the what and the how. The 'when,' of course, is implied. NOW!
Click Here to read the article.