If you're one of the many people who are still using Microsoft Internet Explorer 6, you may not be getting the best experience that the Web has to offer. There was a time when IE6 was considered the holy grail of web browsing, offering advanced features and better security than other browsers. Unfortunately, that was 10 years ago. Today, viewing a website in IE6 can be a confusing and sometimes frustrating experience. Display problems and bugs are very common with IE6 and have become all too familiar for web developers.

Not only will IE6 often render web pages poorly, there are also many security problems that can lead to visitors' computers being compromised. Even with the latest security patches installed, hackers continue to find and exploit security holes found in IE6 that would otherwise not be an issue using an up-to-date browser. Many hackers take advantage of IE's ActiveX system, which allows websites to download and install software onto users computers, sometimes without them knowing. USA Today said in a recent article, "Using Microsoft’s Internet Explorer Web browser to surf the Internet has become a marked risk — even with the latest security patches installed." Other sources such as The New York Times, The Inquirer, and eWeek also warn against security flaws found in Internet Explorer 6.

Some websites such as Digg.com disable important features for IE6 users due to all the extra time and money spent modifying and testing to make sure users are getting the same experience. Many web development companies have stopped supporting IE6 completely.

Updating your browser to Internet Explorer 8 is easy and only takes a few simple clicks. IE8 offers many new features, better security, and supports the latest web standards. There are also alternative browsers that are available for free including Firefox, Safari, Opera, and Google Chrome. All of these browsers offer better security, better support for web standards and actually render web pages the way they were meant to be seen. With all of the problems with Internet Explorer 6 and the benefits of newer versions, it may be time to think about upgrading your browser.