Internet Explorer Logo Reputation

One day, on a cold winter evening, I went for a cup of tea to my friends — a young couple with a child of primary school age. People are good, but very far from information technologies. There is a computer in their house, of course, but its role is reduced to a video player and a pot stand. And so, over a glass of tea, the mistress of the house remembered that I was a “programmer” and asked to remove from their computer some kind of “abomination that it was not clear how it turned out there”. I was already ready for a hotbed of viruses and lectures on the relevant topic, but the “abomination” that caused the resentment of my friend turned out to be Internet Explorer.
No, my friends did not suddenly become fans of Firefox \ Chrome \ Opera (as I said before - people are far from IT and have not heard about the browsers listed above). Moreover, they didn’t even have Internet at home. And hostility to IE and the desire to remove it - were. How so?



I think many have already guessed what it was about. Let's go back a few years to the past and remember the rapid reforms in the field of gambling. For those who do not know - it was banned. Ukraine and Russia carried out reforms a little differently (Ukraine banned the casino completely, Russia left a couple of legal zones), but with the same effect. Nothing changed. All the slot machine clubs remained in place, simply changing the signs to “Computer Club” or “Game Club” or “Internet Club”. On these very signs something was needed to paint. Luxury cars, slot machines and mountains of money in an explicit form to depict (just in case) did not want to - we have the same type of solid institution, the Internet club! Well, they began to draw what people associate with the word “Internet”. And, as public opinion polls have repeatedly been shown, the answer to the question “What is the Internet?” Is well known to people and does not suggest any options - “This is such a blue letter“ E ”on the desktop!”. Well, that's it, and began to draw. I will not speak “for all of Odessa”, as we know, it is very large, but in my hometown 60% of high places have Internet Explorer logo on their signboard. Here are a couple of photos (from different cities):

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And then proceed to the arguments of ordinary people. There is “like an Internet club”, in which, as before, there are slot machines (now disguised as computers), where windows are sealed, where cigarette smoke hangs so that you can hang an ax, where alcohol is often poured (and sometimes even freebie). Before entering this institution, strong young guys of nervous appearance hang out, girls of not very difficult behavior walk around, you can often buy boxes of magic grass and easily get involved in debts and troubles. And the Internet Explorer logo is shining proudly over all this! We have a complete picture.

As a result, depending on the level of awareness in computer technologies and the riot of fantasy, such thoughts are born about the IE logo:

• This little blue letter is the logo of the office that deals with gambling.
• It is a symbol of gambling - well, like "jackpot", "one-armed bandit" or "777"
• This symbol is somehow connected to the Internet, which means that on the Internet this is just such a mess.
• This is the casino software logo.
• I do not understand what it is, but it is connected with the world with which I do not want to have anything in common

Here is some of the above thoughts and settled in the head of my friend, who, not wanting to deeply understand the topic incomprehensible to her, just wanted to protect her husband and child from all those things that she associated with gaming clubs (and, as a result , with the logo of IE). I, of course, explained to her the essence of the question, but this is not the point. And even that is not the case, why in our countries with the gambling business everything turned out the way it did. Everything is just clear here - money, business, roof, corruption, etc. Old and not interesting.

The question for connoisseurs is different : why does Microsoft, having patents and copyrights for every bug in its programs, every copywriter, and every half-pixel of its logos, allow you to use the Internet Explorer sign in the signs of gaming clubs? Well, imagine if there was written “the Ministry of Culture” or “BMW cars”, and inside it there was an illegal business. Yes, in a moment, the lawyers of the respective offices would have raised a terrible screech. Immediately - silent. And in the minds of millions of people there is a subconscious aversion to the symbol of the Microsoft browser (well, through him and to the company itself). Any thoughts on the topic?