Envato Notes

Announcement: IE8 Compliance is Now Optional

Posted: 20 Nov 2013 02:00 AM PST

ie8 drop

Supporting past versions of Internet Explorer is often one of the biggest headaches of being a web developer. Today, as an early Christmas present to authors, we're pleased to announce that IE8 compliance will now be purely optional for authors.

How Come?

The percentage of users using IE8 has dropped sharply in the past year with the current number well under 8%. Whether this is due to widespread adoption of Windows 8, Internet Explorer starting to auto update or jQuery 2.0 dropping support for IE8, we'll never know. What we do know is that it's time to finally put a stake in its heart!

What this Means

In short, we are no longer requiring that authors compensate for Internet Explorer 8 when uploading new templates. If you're looking to cater specifically to the enterprise crowd or those with a legacy user base, we still urge you to consider supporting it during design and development.

When Should I Include IE8 Support?

Many buyers of corporate/business templates will need one which compensates for this browser, due to company restrictions. To not do so might force them to skip over your item in search of a more suitable purchase.
When you want to be super awesome, and compensate for as many of your viewers as possible – even the ones who still utilize this decade-old web browser.

When Should I Skip IE8 Compliance?

If developing more of a personal blog with a target market of a younger, more technical audience.
If you want to make a statement, and help bring down the fall of IE8!

In Conclusion

Use common sense when determining whether or not to add compliance for IE8. Remember – just because it is no longer required does not mean that you shouldn't still take the extra hour or so to work out some bugs. While IE8 now represents less than 8% of all browsers, that can still potentially represent a very large number. We trust your judgment.

Until further notice, "Internet Explorer 8″ will still be listed as an option within our "upload template" section.

We've closed comments on this thread to keep discussion in one place, so please be sure to let us know if you have more questions via the forum thread covering this announcement and we'll continue clarifying and working with everyone to iron out any pending issues!

Thank You!

eCommerce Essentials: Why 46% of Black Friday Shoppers Will Buy Online

Posted: 19 Nov 2013 07:51 PM PST

photodune-5333318-shopping-s

Black Friday is an incredible opportunity for stores to make money, and shoppers are increasingly looking online. Are you ready? This article will help you gear up for your next online sale.

Nielson have recently published a forecast that less people are planning to visit physical stores this Black Friday. Take that as an opportunity to see the glass as half full, and ramp up your online store strategy.

Here are some interesting stats from the Nielson study:

Only 13% of shoppers plan Black Friday visits to physical stores, down from 17% last year.
But nearly half of shoppers, 46%, plan to shop online, up from 30% of people in 2012.
Overall, this holiday shopping season could be 2% stronger this year.

“That’s a great opportunity, but setting up an online sale is expensive, and isn’t easy,” I hear you say. Well, purchasing an eCommerce template from ThemeForest makes it affordable and achievable.

Check out the examples below. If you don’t already have an online store, get started! If you do, consider running a quick sale over the festive season, or a flash sale like Australia’s highly publicised Click Frenzy.