# Internet Explorer **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 22, 2000, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100 "2000-03-22T03:58:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![lindsay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3be4f8/32.png) [@lindsay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsay)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/1 "2000-03-22T03:58:00Z")
After trying an AOL “free trial” disk, and uninstalling it, I now have no internet browser on my home computer. Does anyone know how I can find a CD that will re-install the browser? ---
**Author:** ![jazzmine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jazzmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jazzmine)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/2 "2000-03-22T04:00:00Z")
You can go to [http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/](http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/) and download the browser for free. Just select IE 5.01 and your operating system. trisha ---
**Author:** ![lindsay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3be4f8/32.png) [@lindsay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsay)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/3 "2000-03-22T04:16:00Z")
No can do, I have an ISP, but the only browser I see is called Outlook Express, and I don’t know how to use it. The icon for Internet Explorer is empty. So what I need to know is will using a CD to install the browser work? ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/4 "2000-03-22T04:26:00Z")
lindsay, if you have no browser, then how’d you get here? Outlook Express is an email program, by the way. * * * _Louie: young guy, possibly a bit green, but smart as paint._ - Greg Charles ---
**Author:** ![Kilgore\_Trout\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6de8d8/32.png) [@Kilgore\_Trout\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilgore_Trout_1)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/5 "2000-03-22T04:29:00Z")
i am looking forward to this answer. * * * _what is essential is invisible to the eye -the fox_ ---
**Author:** ![Kilgore\_Trout\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6de8d8/32.png) [@Kilgore\_Trout\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilgore_Trout_1)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/6 "2000-03-22T04:30:00Z")
“then how’d you get here?” to this question, of course. * * * _what is essential is invisible to the eye -the fox_ ---
**Author:** ![jazzmine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jazzmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jazzmine)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/7 "2000-03-22T04:38:00Z")
Also, if you had gone to that link you would see that there are no icons for IE or anything else. It’s a drop down list, just select what you want. Though, I do like Louie’s question better. trisha ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/8 "2000-03-22T04:40:00Z")
Me too. Really, how _did_ you get here. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/9 "2000-03-22T06:45:00Z")
Jophiel’s down & dirty easy answer: Go to the local newstand and drop $5.99 for one of the 3000 computer magazines that come with a CD full of “free internet apllications and demos!” or whatnot. Install whatever version of IE or Netscape that is sure to be found on the CD onto your computer. Get on the web and download the full version. Install. * * * “I guess one person can make a difference, although most of the time they probably shouldn’t.” ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/10 "2000-03-22T07:00:00Z")
This is one reason I dislike AOL. When I signed up with Earthlink I refused to run their installation stuff. I called them and said “just give me a phone number and password to configure a new DUN. I don’t want none of yer stinkin’software!” I _hate_ software that hijacks your computer when you install it. Like the ones that steal all your file associations and then you have to go in and undo the mess by hand There oughta be a law! ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/11 "2000-03-22T07:12:00Z")
Lindsay - are you running Windows 98? If so, you have a browser. Unless you did some very fancy footwork in order to get rid of Internet Explorer off your computer, it’s there, baby, it’s _there._ That’s how Win98 is. Makes it almost impossible to get rid of the damned thing. And, most likely if you have Win95 with IE 4, you probably still have a browser as well. Hell, if you have Win98, just open up the “My Documents” folder. Type in an URL in the line at the top that says “Address” in the “My Documents” window. (It’ll have a little icon and say “My Documents” in the window.) Just type in an URL right there, press “Enter” or “Return”, and it’ll take you to that web site (provided you are online, of course.) IE just integrates itself with Windows _that_ closely. Can’t get rid of it, baby! ---
**Author:** ![Flyhalf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ea5d25/32.png) [@Flyhalf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyhalf)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/12 "2000-03-22T12:27:00Z")
Could it be that she’s at work or using a friends computer? * * * When you know that your time is close at hand Maybe then you’ll begin to understand Life down here is just a strange illusion ---
**Author:** ![Glenoled](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Glenoled](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Glenoled)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/13 "2000-03-22T12:57:00Z")
If you’re a hard-core user, I’m sure you’d be able to use the DOS FTP client… 🙂 if you know what Microsoft’s ftp site is, and have a pretty good idea how to find the right directory/file, it IS possible… maybe someone else can help with this… * * * I don’t suffer from insanity… I enjoy every minute of it! ---
**Author:** ![Glenoled](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Glenoled](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Glenoled)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/14 "2000-03-22T13:02:00Z")
Wait a sec… wouldn’t she be able to just use her Win9x CD, and reinstall IE? (that is, if she still has it) * * * I don’t suffer from insanity… I enjoy every minute of it! ---
**Author:** ![quadell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/b9bd4f/32.png) [@quadell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quadell)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/15 "2000-03-22T16:28:00Z")
My roommate had a perfectly good ISP, but he went ahead and installed AOL anyway for the free month trial, just to see if he liked it. He didn’t, so he uninstalled AOL. After that, he no longer had Winsock installed (!), so he couldn’t use his old ISP. He tried to reinstall Winsock from the Win95 CD, but he found innumerable problems with that. (The worst: when he tried to run SetUp from the CD, he got an error that said he needed to reboot before he could run SetUp. He’d get this error no matter how many times he rebooted.) These errors, to be fair, may or may not have been AOL’s fault. Eventually, though, he had to back up a lot of data, wipe the disk, and reinstall everything from scratch. I believe AOL intentionally makes it hard on you when you try to quit using their service. But that’s just my suspicion. Your Quadell ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/16 "2000-03-22T16:50:00Z")
Get Opera from [www.opera.com,](http://www.opera.com,) its a browser that fits on one 1.44 floppy. Use it to get to Microsoft & download IE. ---
**Author:** ![Shagrath\_Borgir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/46a35a/32.png) [@Shagrath\_Borgir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagrath_Borgir)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/17 "2000-03-22T16:58:00Z")
Format your hard drive. Say 2,000 hail marys. That is your pennance for installing aol. * * * “…the dark side of the mirror always threw our malice back…” ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/18 "2000-03-22T20:26:00Z")
Like I said before, if you have Win98, you _have_ IE. Even if you don’t see a shortcut for it on your desktop. YOU HAVE IT. You can run, but you can’t hide from IE! IT’s THERE! Just open up My Documents (or My Computer, or anything) get online, and type in a web address in the “address” window on the top. It’ll take you to that web page. Microsoft is determined that you will _never_ be browserless! Trust me on this, baby! (I’m a Netscape girl myself, so my advice would be to get online, and go to [http://www.netscapre.com](http://www.netscapre.com) and download their latest version of Communicator.) Opera is also good - I have a copy of that as well. ---
**Author:** ![quadell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/b9bd4f/32.png) [@quadell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quadell)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2000, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/19 "2000-03-22T21:24:00Z")
Yosemite, you can, however, delete it. And AOL can delete it (or important components of it) as a part of its installation or uninstallation. I don’t know that it _does_, but it certainly could. Your Quadell ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2000, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100/20 "2000-03-23T06:48:00Z")
I don’t get this…I don’t think it works like this. If Windows 98 is still functioning correctly on a computer, then (to the best of my knowlege) IE is still there. I remember times when I _wanted_ to get rid of IE on my older computer (IE4 was a RAM hog) and it never would really leave. And this was on Win95, which is not as tightly integrated with IE as Win98. IE is glued into Win98 _forever._ In fact, it is such a bitch to get rid of IE, that some programmer created this special (and somewhat complicated) program called (if memory serves) “Windows Lite” that supposedly will do an “Internet Explorer-ectomy” for you during the installation of Windows 98. It’s a difficult and tricky task to get rid of IE on Win98. I don’t believe that AOL got “rid” of IE if it were that easy to get rid of it, who would need “Windows Lite”? AOL’s uninstall may have removed shortcuts to IE, it may have removed it’s listing from the “Programs” menu, but it is still _there_, like a cockroach. Trust me. Like I suggested before, just open up a folder (like “My Documents”) type in a web address in the “address” window (while connected online) press “Enter”, and see what happens. I’ll bet ya 5 bucks that you’ll go the the web address you typed in the “My Documents” window. If you have a Win98 machine, do it right now. This trick should work on all Win98 machines. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/internet-explorer/9100.md?page=2)