Internet Explorer’s Final Farewell—A South Korean Engineer’s Tribute
For Jung Ki‑young, a developer in Seoul, Microsoft’s decision to retire Internet Explorer was the closing chapter on a 25‑year love‑hate saga.
From Browsing to Stone‑Making
- He spent a month and 430,000 won (S$461) designing a tombstone that proudly featured the iconic “e” logo.
- The epitaph in English read: “He was a good tool to download other browsers.”
- When the memorial hit the cafe run by his brother in Gyeongju, the photo of the shrine went viral.
Why the Browser Still Matters
Exploding out of 1995 as a bundled staple on Windows, it once ruled the world wide web for a decade. But by the late 2000s, Chrome swooped in, and memes painted IE as a sluggish beast.
Jung’s Mixed Feelings
“It was a pain in the ass, but I’d call it a love‑hate relationship,” he told Reuters. “I spent more time making sure my sites worked on IE than on other browsers.”
Despite the frustrations, customers—especially government offices and banks—kept insisting his sites looked right on IE.
Turning a Joke into a Trend
Jung intended the tombstone as a laugh, yet the online buzz surprised him. “Thanks to Explorer for giving me a world‑class joke,” he chuckled. “I don’t miss it, so its retirement feels like a good death.”
