Please stop.
IE will, of course, continue to be the default browser in Windows. I do appreciate that the IE team continues to make small attempts at making the browser suck a little bit less, which I can appreciate in that I have had to use IE at times, since most companies don’t want to waste money designing web pages for functional browsers vs. IE.
You should be happy about IE8 hitting RC1, and please do celebrate your successes (privately).
But the next time I hear “InPrivate” (i.e. porn mode) talked about as some groundbreaking feature, I’m going to scream. The next someone describes IE8 as being the only browser with cross-site scripting protection (even though what IE8 has is a complete joke), I’m going to hit someone.
The next time I read about how IE8 is nn% faster than competing browsers in micro-benchmarks (that, surprisingly, nobody outside of your team can reproduce), I’m going to assume that you are making everything up.
The problem is that you have no credibility – for too long, IE sat in a pool of its own filth (that we also had to wade around in, using it) because it didn’t “need” to be any better. You defeated Netscape, not on merit of course, but on shear douchery, so kudos for that.
But you hurt all of your users by doing that.
When I think about IE, I think of the amazing and unique possibility that you have – you are a product that is forced upon bazillions of people every day, and every small fix you make will improve the experience of those people.
But nobody trusts you anymore, because you’ve proven, time and again, to be completely full of shit.
I remember when IE7 was coming out, and you guys were describing tabs like the rest of us had never heard of them before.
It’s ok to come late to the party, but stop announcing that everything you do is original or useful.
This also goes out to windows mobile – I’ve yet to meet anyone who is pleasantly surprised with their windows mobile phone (well, any part of the phone that is created by the windows mobile team). The best compliments I’ve heard about windows mobile phones are about HTC phones, and they generally are along the lines of “well, the phone is cool, until you actually have to use the windows mobile features and not the stuff HTC layers on top of it.”
So, nobody trusts you, and what do you do?
You go scientific in the tobacco-science style. Making bold statements about how you are inventing great new things, are so much better and faster than every competitor, and creating real value.
You know what the problem is with things like IE and Windows Mobile?
The worst press you get about your products is from the people who actually (have to) use them.
Take a look at Win7 and the windows team – they are promising very little, being very open about the process, acting humble in their pursuits, cutting features, and trying to get as many people to use it as they can.
And the result?
People love Win7. People who loved to hate Vista love Win7. People who love to hate Windows and Microsoft love Win7. Well, maybe they can just “stand” win 7, but that’s a gigantic step in the right direction for this company.
You should strive for your product to be its own best marketing, not the largest detractor to people wanting to use it.
Make IE8 smaller. Make it faster. Make it more stable (sounds like you’ve been working on that a bit, so thanks). Cut useless features. Make it streamlined. Make it enjoyable to use. Be public, honest, and humble about your work.
(Same goes for you, windows mobile)
You don’t need to market IE8 – people are going to get it by default, and the people who may care enough to install/not install the product will do so based upon the opinions of people they can trust and count on (read: absolutely not from the IE or windows mobile marketing efforts).
And your problem is that the people that they depend on have actually tried IE8 and the plethora of windows mobile devices.
Stop concentrating on marketing a product that we are all forced to use – all it does is piss off the people who already know you are full of shit, and that number is rising all the time.
Oh, and I’m sure you’re going to whine about how Microsoft is held to a higher standard, or how Microsoft always gets (unearned) bad press, and how everyone just hates Microsoft, and that is the problem.
But I distinctly remember Chome being held to the same standard when they came out with a new browser, and their numbers (which they backed up with evidence) even proved to be iffy in places.
But you know what saved them? People used chrome, and it was actually pleasant to use.
Chrome is chrome’s best advertisement, and it feels like it “fits” on Win7 much better than IE8.
How sad is that? Google’s browser seems a much more natural fit on the Win7 than the browser that the same company produces.
So I’ll continue to use IE8 at work, and it will continue to frustrate me to no end. I would use chrome, if not for the plethora of internal websites that break on it.
So please stop spending time on marketing, and re-route that budget to people who can actually make the browser better.
Thanks.