IE6 Update

Help kill
Internet Explorer 6

IE6 is like an illness that just won’t go away, but we have the medicine.

IE6 Update looks like IE’s Information Bar, but instead of offering your visitors an ActiveX plugin, it offers a browser update.

Click here to see a demo! - Read the blog post.

Doctype

with Nick Pettit and Jim Hoskins

It's a show about making websites, from the creators of IE6 Update

Watch the Teaser

Install IE6 Update on your website

Download the Code

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Already using IE6 Update? Tell us about it!
Like #ie6update? Follow @Done21 on Twitter.

F.A.Q.

How do I add IE6 Update to my website? And why would I want to?

To add IE6 Update to your website, simple copy the code in the blue box above, and paste the code into your website before your closing </body> tag. Adding IE6 Update to your website will help encourage your Internet Explorer 6 visitors to upgrade to a newer version of Internet Explorer.

What does IE6 Update look like for users?

When an IE6 visitor comes to a website that utilizes IE6 Update, a yellow bar will appear at the top of the page, similar to Internet Explorer's Information Bar. The bar notifies the user that a browser update is available, and when the user clicks on the bar, it takes them to the official Internet Explorer website. From there, they can decide whether or not to upgrade.

Does IE6 Update install anything onto the user's computer?

Absolutely not. The IE6 Update bar simply provides a link to the official Internet Explorer website. From there, users can decide whether or not to upgrade.

Can I put IE6 Update on my WordPress site?

Yes, check out the excellent WP-IE6Update WordPress plugin.

This is great! Why didn't anyone think of this before?

Actually, someone did think of it before. IE6 Update code is derived from another Creative Commons project, Activebar2.

Can I make IE6 Update point to another browser's website? (i.e. Mozilla Firefox)

While we don't officially recommend this, you can change the URL that IE6 Update points to by overriding the default URL in the IE6UPDATE_OPTIONS object. For example:

var IE6UPDATE_OPTIONS = {
  icons_path: "http://static.ie6update.com/hosted/ie6update/images/",
  url: "http://www.example.com/"
}

Why does IE6 Update point to the official Internet Explorer site and not to another browser? (i.e. Mozilla Firefox)

We did this for a consistent user experience. Most users of Internet Explorer would expect to upgrade from one version of their browser to the next.

Can I modify the wording used in the IE6 Update bar?

Definitely. You can change the message that IE6 Update displays by overriding the default message in the IE6UPDATE_OPTIONS object. For example:

var IE6UPDATE_OPTIONS = {
  icons_path: "http://static.ie6update.com/hosted/ie6update/images/",
  message: "This is an example message..."
}

Is IE6 Update internationalized?

Not by default, but in the same way that you can override the default wording of the message in the IE6UPDATE_OPTIONS object, you could easily translate the message in a way that's appropriate for your audience. For example:

var IE6UPDATE_OPTIONS = {
  icons_path: "http://static.ie6update.com/hosted/ie6update/images/",
  message: "Este mensaje es un ejemplo..."
}

Is this ethical?

We think so. Read our blog post announcing IE6 Update for more.