More sites are lining up in their support of Google’s first move to drop Internet Explorer 6 from the internet. This past week saw notices from Salesforce.com, Atlassian, and even Facebook. Whether we credit Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 8 Campaign, or more savvy users, IE8 is currently the market share leader within the IE family. That being said, IE6 still equates to about 15% of global browser use (average of sources @ Wikipedia).

How it impacts your site

Windows XP is slated to be “end-of-lifed” in 2014. At this time, Microsoft will no longer provide updates. Since its release in 2001, Windows XP has been the primary operating system from Microsoft. Vista’s botched release and subsequent reputation did little to dent the XP install base. Now that Windows 7 is out (and ships with IE8), Microsoft appears to be turning a corner. I think it’s safe to say that by 2014, Windows XP will be the minority (by a large margin).

2014? Does this mean Google and company are jumping the gun? Not really. As Matt Moore pointed out in The Future of Flash Content, HTML 5 is “right around the corner.” Google, Salesforce.com, Atlassian, and Facebook all have one thing in common. They are building Rich Internet Applications (RIAs). In the RIA world, a fast, secure browser is key. IE6 doesn’t meet either of these requirements. By beginning the process of dropping support now, they are hoping to help prepare their user base for new, exciting applications around the corner. Since IE8 will install on XP, the stragglers will still be able to use the shiny new applications.

Despite all of that, I think unless you’re in the RIA business, IE6 will be around for a bit longer. However, we can all thank Google and company for shortening the time frame we will need to endure it. Hopefully, we can see that 15% market share drop do single digits within the next year as its support is phased out by major sites. Until then, you’re better safe than sorry — support IE6 for a little while longer.