Getting a non tech person to download a product that they already have is a challenge. My mom probably can’t tell the difference between OS X and Vista, yet you want her to download o new version of IE? Oh and from a special website? Yeeeaahhhh, it COULD happen, but only if it comes at the end of a video showing a dangling kitten while it installs 30 different viruses.

One piece of the effort is a charity push in which Microsoft will donate meals to a food bank for each person that downloads IE 8 via a special “Browser for the Better” Web site. Technically, the company is donating $1.15 per completed download, up to a maximum of $1 million.

Although Microsoft is also pushing out Internet Explorer 8 over Windows Update and including a version of it with Windows 7 (except in Europe), the company is trying to build awareness of the latest version and spur active usage.

The software maker has seen its browser share–which once topped 90 percent–continue to decline, with Mozilla’s Firefox having gained considerable ground. The company also faces competition from Apple, Google and others in the browser arena.

You know how you get people to get on the bandwagon? You push the porn privacy mode. That would get people on board REAL quick.

(Via CNET.)