Poll: IE users are kinda stupid...

[Ironic Pirate]

Sooooo...

I'm stupid for using and Internet Explorer? IT'S A FUCKING INTERNET PROGRAM. I thought they were all the same. And isn't Explorer a default browser installed in every windows computer?

They're not the same. IE is the worst of them. It's the slowest and most insecure browser. Get yourself Chrome. You'll FEEL the difference.

THIS!
You're not stupid, you were just unaware of the flaws IE has. Right?
Quickly, get Chrome and discover the magic of tabs and incognito mode!

.... IE9 has tabs and inprivate browsing. your plate isn't offering anything new yet.

Speed, customization, looks better (to me, at least), less virus prone, and (last time I checked) has more extensions (not sure what IE calls them).

For example, I have an extension that lets me suspend tabs instead of bookmark them, which is quite useful for webcomics and that sort of thing, no need to constantly delete useless bookmarks. Quite helpful.

 

[ShadowKatt]

Ah, I get it. I'm stupid for using IE. I'm stupid for holding a job that requires me to use IE. I'm stupid for holding a job. That must mean that all the smartest people are those that are unemployed.

The logic is undeniable.

 

[Thundero13]

Meh, I think that people shouldn't complain about which browser you use, personally I find IE terrible cmpared to the others but if it works well for them then why should I complain

 

[Unesh52]

I only glanced at the data, but they used IQ scores to determine "intelligence," which is not an acceptable metric, IMO. If I were going to speculate (which, being that I'm on the internet, I feel obliged to do), I'd say using IE is merely indicative of relative computer illiteracy. It's just that you don't know better, or don't want to fiddle with finding, downloading, and customizing a better browser.

Ah, I get it. I'm stupid for using IE. I'm stupid for holding a job that requires me to use IE. I'm stupid for holding a job. That must mean that all the smartest people are those that are unemployed.

And there is, of course, the fact that sometimes better browsers just aren't available.

 

[FalloutJack]

or so the study [http://www.pcworld.com/article/236944/internet_explorer_users_are_kinda_stupid_study_suggests.html] seems to suggest.

personaly, I believe there are other factors involved that weren't considered, and the results of the study are unacceptably biased.

Thoughts?

EDIT: in case it wasn't clear, i don't endorse these results. i've only reported them.
don't shoot the messenger. o.o;;

In that case, don't deliver a loaded message. Suggest you change the title to "Study claims that IE users are stupid", so as not to make you look like a troll, an asshole, and uneducated.

ADDITIONAL: I have no patience for people and their heavily-skewed 'studies'.

 

[Zakarath]

No. I know plenty of people who use IE because it often has less compatibility issues (especially for jobs), or just because they aren't particularly computer-savvy.

But you'll probably never see me on anything other than chrome.

 

[ElNeroDiablo]

Sooooo...

I'm stupid for using an Internet Explorer? IT'S A FUCKING INTERNET PROGRAM. I thought they were all the same. And isn't Explorer a default browser installed in every windows computer?

To quote a certain Scottish squirrel: "Not Really!" Internet Explorer isn't "installed" on every windows machine as much as it FORMS THE BASIS OF THE WHOLE FRACKING GUI WITH A DIFFERENT SKIN ON TOP!
Hell, when Microsoft got taken to court by the US Government shortly after the release of Windows 95 (yes, that friggen far back!) for default "installing" Internet Explorer in an attempt to push Netscape out of the market, Microsoft told them plain and simple that they could NOT remove the Internet Explorer code from the GUI and would have to rebuild Windows 95 from the ground up if they did when told they would have to remove it, as they used the IE kernel to drive the GUI and simply gave it a different coat of paint and name.
This once again came up when Microsoft got taken to court by the EU Government about Windows 7 coming with IE8 already woven in and Microsoft came up with the idea of the European-Only editions of Win7 having the Web Browser Installation Screen that would get (via File Transfer Protocol or FTP) an alternate browser (say, Firefox 4) and install it after the bulk of Win7 was already installed, JUST to please the EU courts so they could sell more copies of windows there.

So when you use a Windows machine (unless you're manually-building a system with a European-Only version of Win7), you get pretty much no say at all in the matter if IE is actually installed or not other than hiding the IE6/7/8/9 GUI as a choice of web browser.

 

[Esotera]

The data doesn't lie, it clearly shows that the IE users who took the IQ test performed worse than other browsers. Anyone still using IE6 deserves their IQ to be below 85 - that program has caused so much pain for web developers.

This is talking about averages - it doesn't say everyone who uses IE is less intelligent, just that on average they are. There's probably a child genius out there that uses IE6, but he's outnumbered by people with low IQs.

Dude, you're reading it backwards, man! Low IQ has existed for a REALLY long time.

So in actuality, low IQ causes Internet explorer!

[A cookie to the man who gets this reference!]

xkcd?

 

[Hawk of Battle]

i use IE9, and it functions like a web browser should. i can surf the net, and it's stable. why would i want to fix something that's not broken? and why should my intelligence be insulted for acknowledging a functional browser?

Pretty much this.

There's fuck all wrong with IE people, stop feeling so fucking superior.

 

[cameron196789]

It's the worse out of them, but that does not mean they have a low IQ, my friend gets nothing but A's and he uses IE, you kinda sound stupid for saying such a thing.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

xkcd?

Now where did I leave that cookie.....

Spoiler: Oh here it is!

I really liked that XKCD comic. XD

 

[Noswad]

Well in my humble opinion IE is a brown streak on the face of the internet, people who use it are not stupid, merely ill-informed. I cannot think of a single person i know who went back to IE once they'd tried chrome, carrier pigeons or the royal mail, all being infinitely faster. As for security i don't think Browsers make much of a difference, so long as you practice common sense when on the internet.

EDIT: study is complete rubbish I just like Chrome and exaggerations.

 

[vxicepickxv]

IE9 is a much, much better browser than 8 and below. It's closer to actual web standards, and is much more friendly for programmers. Now, if only we can force everybody to move to 9.

 

[mklnjbh]

Feel free to question my expertise, as I have none, but do you realize that the IQ score is ONLY to be used to classify people with severe mental handicaps to determine their ability to function on their own? Using it to classify (I apologize for the term) "normal" people is a waste of time, as it doesn't imply any cognitive fluctuations. The man who developed IQ tests (his name escapes me) asserted the test was useless on people without mental handicaps, and their results do not correspond to greater or lesser intelligence. The fact that IQ is used as a fallback for scoring people is just an easy way for people to look at a number, rather than accept that some questions have complicated answers, or that our refusal to believe that any two aspects may not share a connection.

TL;DR IQ tests are pointless, ergo, study means nothing. Use IE if you want.

Sources: http://www.rice.edu/sallyport/2002/fall/features/testing/testingtesting.html
Dr. Baranschk, Psychology Department, Kutztown University

 

[Princess Rose]

personaly, I believe there are other factors involved that weren't considered, and the results of the study are unacceptably biased.
Thoughts?

Idiotic study is idiotic.

They are getting their results backwards. What that study indicates is that people who are already stupid have a tendency to use default programs and not examine their other options. An intelligent individual, meanwhile, is more likely to shop around and choose a program best suited to that individual's needs.

I use Internet Explorer. And Chrome. And Firefox. Each for different websites.

Searching Google? Firefox.
Browsing the Escapist? Chrome. Sometimes Firefox if the site is being slow.
Online Roleplaying (as in, text play-by-post)? Internet Explorer.
E-mail? Chrome for G-mail, IE for Yahoo.
Amazon? Chrome or IE.
Wikipedia? IE.

Basically, I use the right browser for the right job.

Anyway, the point being that the study has missed the point. Stupid people don't CHOOSE IE - stupid people don't choose at all. Then again, neither do LAZY people, people who just don't care, or people who are forced to use a program at work. So basically, the study is meaningless - numbers without context or purpose, because the survey writer didn't ask useful questions.

 

[Nuke_em_05]

Probably not the best indicator.

IQ tests are worth about... nothing. Even then, an online IQ test says more about internet proficiency than general intelligence. So, savvy users will use "better" browsers, and will test better.

Also, IE is a lot better than it used to be. I still use Chrome by default, but when I need to use IE, for websites written with IE in mind, there really isn't that big of a difference.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

I prefer firefox, and tend to install it on every new computer I build for others to give people a choice in the matter. Also I educate people I do work for on the differences and similarities between browsers and the whole security issue. Still, it doesn't matter what browser you use in the end, if you're insistent on visiting certain less-than-reputable sites or clicking on whatever "cool" ad you see, you're bound to catch something.
However, what browser you use doesn't have anything to do with intelligence, just how informed you may or may not be on computer programs, their issues/flaws/strengths/etc.

 

[FalloutJack]

Well in my humble opinion IE is a brown streak on the face of the internet, people who use it are not stupid, merely ill-informed. I cannot think of a single person i know who went back to IE once they'd tried crome, carrier pigeons or the royal mail, all being infinitely faster. As for security i don't think Browsers make much of a difference, so long as you practice common sense when on the internet.

Maybe not the best avatar to be discussing computers and run-speed in.

So many critical people on this matter, so many skewed opinions. You act as if other browsers do no wrong. Well, I'm here to tell ya that they DO and you'll have to live with that. The reason the 'study' is a load of bullshit is because it's all a matter of choice, circumstance, and what works for the individual. I'll give you an example.

I have both IE and Firefox on this computer, the one I'm on right now. Firefox takes longer to load things and it won't always do my flash right. Like, I'll be trying to play a game on Newgrounds and it flubs it up. Everything's up to date, no doubt. Still does it wrong. I don't even have Chrome, but I hear as many liking it as not.

I think the problem is that many of you are feeding a bias because your system stats ON TOP OF your browsers are good as well. Now, can we get over this shit already? It's a bit flamey in here.

 

[Da Orky Man]

I tend to use Chrome, simply because it runs noticeably faster on my netbook. and I mean 2-4 times faster.

 

[Xanadu84]

Welcome to the wonderful world of Correlation. A Magical world where wild implied causalities can be extracted from completely arbitrary numbers.

Take the smarter people in the world, those with at least some computer knowledge. Many of them will switch to a different browser, because they are knowledgeable enough to make an informed choice. Smart people will be distributed amongst those browsers.

Amongst those intelligent people, plenty will choose Internet Explorer.

Now take the less intelligent people with no computer knowledge. They simply won't change the default. Meaning they will all "Choose" IE.

If Firefox were the default browser on computers, then Firefox would be the lowest IQ average. All that means is that you need to be reasonably intelligent to have an opinion in the first place. Once you are amongst the group of intelligent people who make informed choices, you aren't going to find any appreciable difference.

Throw in social pressures amongst "Smart" groups that have nothing to do with actual intelligence, shortcomings of an internet IQ test, shortcomings of IQ tests in general, and any unforeseen selection bias, and you firmly arrive at absolutely no causality. I'm sure the correlation exists, and that correlation might be helpful, but it says absolutely zip about your choice of internet browser as a predictor of your intelligence.