[RozG]

can the stupid thing be deleted from my comp? i'm perfectly happy with just firefox but this stupid IE....grrrrrrrr

[lenjan]

I think if you have a Windows-based machine, IE is embedded in it and there's no getting rid of it. I hate it too -- Firefox, while still buggy here and there, is much better.

[pachyderm]

What happens if you leave IE there but don't vountarily use it? Does it get automatically launched sometimes?

I am not familiar with its behavior under Windows.

[lenjan]

It's been my experience that if you click on a link within, say, a mail message or something, it will default to IE, no matter what mail program you use (I only have Yahoo mail). No matter what I do, and I have Firefox installed at home and work, I can't get stuff like that to default to Firefox.

[RozG]

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pachyderm said:
What happens if you leave IE there but don't vountarily use it? Does it get automatically launched sometimes?

I am not familiar with its behavior under Windows.

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sometimes what happens is...like today...i went to download smileycentral.com...and though it took me straight to the page for firefox users...it automatically downloaded it onto my I.E. ..and when i tried getting it on my firefox too it wouldn't allow it coz it said already detected on browser. yeah but wrong browser. and sometimes when i add new things it automatically defaults to I.E. but usually in a way that's unusable whatever browser i use. maybe it's just me?

and thank you for answering.

[RozG]

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candybear said:
It's been my experience that if you click on a link within, say, a mail message or something, it will default to IE, no matter what mail program you use (I only have Yahoo mail). No matter what I do, and I have Firefox installed at home and work, I can't get stuff like that to default to Firefox.

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((((candybear))))

yeah i've found that too. my biggest irritation atm is my stupid ISP e-mail service...for some reason goes automatically thru my IE plus outlook express...wouldn't mind but i can't access my outlook express. i did manage to get round that though by using yahoo thru firefox. grrrr...i just hate comps some days.

I think that you can delete it. If you have the original install disks then you should be able to put it back if you ever wanted or needed to do that.

I'm not sure if that would make firefox handle that stuff instead, however. So... Not sure that that would solve the problem.

[RozG]

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alexandra_k said:
I think that you can delete it. If you have the original install disks then you should be able to put it back if you ever wanted or needed to do that.

I'm not sure if that would make firefox handle that stuff instead, however. So... Not sure that that would solve the problem.

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thanx i'll give that a go and see what happens

found this:

Internet Explorer can be a security risk so why keep it?

There's no doubt that Internet Explorer has been a prime target of attack for spyware merchants and other ill-intentioned goons. That's why many folks have turned to alternate browsers for their web surfing.

If you are using another browser and don't use Internet Explorer anymore, there's a case to be made that you should remove it from your system. It is, after all, a potential security threat so, if you don't need it, why not get rid of it?

Except, getting rid of IE is not that easy. In fact, with later versions of Windows there's no satisfactory way of removing it completely without risking crippling Windows itself.

That hasn't stopped folks from trying to remove IE, however, and you can find several techniques documented on various web sites. Instead of removing IE I favor the simple and safer approach of disabling it. Sure, it may not provide the same degree of security as complete removal but that's a small price to pay compared to the cost of potentially de-stabilizing Windows.

There are several disabling techniques but I suggest the method below as it's simple, easy to reverse and doesn't interfere with the operation of the Windows Update service.

Step 1. From IE select Tools/Internet Options/Connections/LAN Settings.

Step 2. Put a tick in the check box next to "Use a Proxy Server for your LAN ...”

Step 3. Type in "0.0.0.0" in the address box and "80" in the Port box. Don't type in the quote marks of course, just what's inside them.

Step 4. Click OK.

What you've done is set up a dummy proxy server 0.0.0.0 that goes nowhere. With these setting IE cannot make an HTML connection to the internet and vice versa. You have simply and effectively disabled IE.

There's no magic in the 0.0.0.0 address, any dead proxy address would work just as well. I've used that particular address to keep things simple.

If you ever need to re-enable Internet Explorer start it up and select Tools/Internet Options/Connections/LAN Settings from the toolbar and un-check the box "Use a Proxy Server for your LAN ...”

If you really want to remove IE more completely then you can check out these resources but, as I said, I don't recommend it.

and try this:

http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/...efault+browser

[Rhapsody]

Yes you can delete it - just go to your "Control Panel" and then click on Add / Remove Programs and you can delete it from there.... this way all components of the program is deleted off your computer.

[RozG]

Rainbowzz....

I have windows xp so trying to delete IE probably isn't a good idea...and THANK YOU SO MUCH for this info coz this stupid IE...grrrrr...and thanx for the link too

oh and a big hug for Jeremy, he's so cute!

[RozG]

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Rhapsody said:
Yes you can delete it - just go to your "Control Panel" and then click on Add / Remove Programs and you can delete it from there.... this way all components of the program is deleted off your computer.

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Hi Rhapsody

I actually did that and then rebooted but for some reason the stupid thing won't delete.

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Kalamity_Jane said:
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Rhapsody said:
Yes you can delete it - just go to your "Control Panel" and then click on Add / Remove Programs and you can delete it from there.... this way all components of the program is deleted off your computer.

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Hi Rhapsody

I actually did that and then rebooted but for some reason the stupid thing won't delete.

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Thats because its literally built right into the windows shell(the windows program) so though it may come off the list, it won't uninstall completely.

[lenjan]

SWEET! I am totally going to do this right now on my work machine, and on my home ones when I get home! Thanks for the tip, Bowzz!

[Perna]

You're probably a complicated affair, KJ, since you're in the UK. Our machines and software sold in the US is often different than that sold in Europe and how you've set your machine up, etc. makes a difference.

What version of Microsoft's Internet Explorer does your machine have? Your e-mail is not the same/as related to your browser; I would call your ISP and get that sorted with them or Firefox as they can easily tell you how to get your e-mail working the way you want and you should be able to set up Firefox so you don't "need" your IE browser just sits there; it shouldn't be getting in the act, that's a setup thing I think where it's defaulting somewhere that needs to be turned off.

Go to your Control Panel, Internet Options, Programs Tab and make sure you have the right stuff in all those places for e-mail and default browser, etc.

[RozG]

thanx for the advice Perna, i will do that.

and for any brits reading this...i've only had probs since Virgin became my ISP....grrrrr

[Christina86]

Don't have any advice... but I'm having the exact OPPOSITE problem. I've never used Firefox in my life, always using IE. Until... well two days ago when my friend installed it for me. Now I cant figure things out for the life of me... and things arent *really* that different.

I'll try to look around for info to help you out though!

[Pseudonym]

You can do what I did on my windows machine, and rename iexplore.exe to something else, like iexplore_sucks.exe. That way, programs launching won't be able to call it by name, and if you absolutely need it for some site that's built to support IE (and not firefox, which is irritating, but somewhat common), you can launch it manually or just type the address into any windows explorer window.

Does the trick for me. Good for you for ditching that zero and getting with a hero. All my web developer buddies will thank you. (you too Christina) =)

[Mystry]

just thought I would chime in with my 2 cents...IE can be deleted actually from the whole system...go to control panel...add/remove programs...on the left hand side you will see add/remove windows components...go through the list and uncheck IE...to reinstall this just download it and away you go...

[RozG]

my problem was i actually tried that....going to add/remove windows components to remove I.E. and it didn't work. it doesn't matter though, i just disabled it as suggested instead...

....oh ya gotta love technology...grrrr...

lol. i wanted to delete IE off my old computer, too. because it really really sucked. i was worried that something might happen with firefox, though, so i left IE on my computer as a backup.

now i've got safari. i was going to download firefox... but safari seems to be working out just fine (and it is meant to be a little faster). though to tell you the honest truth the slowest thing is basically my connection...

i downloaded camino, too. it was odd but safari wasn't updating when i chatted at this other site. camino works pretty well..

[DocClyde]

As an aside, Alex, do you like Safari? I thought about downloading it myself (from my nephews IPod), but I dunno if I would like it.

Do you like it compared to the others?