There may be a handful of players who use IE successfully with this game but most (I guess) would use one of the browsers suggested and downloadable from HERE.
I don't know for sure if it makes any difference when you are using Windows 8 in desktop mode but you could try disabling the 'live' tiles on the metro screen as these are updating regularly and as such are using your internet connection.
Although I don't think this next annoyance will make your meter go past the ding, it may well make it stutter, and that is Windows indexing function. It's part of the file search function in Windows and helps you locate stuff, so it is a good thing, but if it's running when you are playing, it isn't.
If the indexing is complete, as I've indicated above, then all is well and this function at least won't be screwing your game up! but if it's running then it will indicate that, but there will be an option to disable it for, I think, 15 minutes. But I prefer to let it run until it's done its job which, if you have very many files, might take some time.
Anyway, you can find it by typing out (from the Metro screen in Windows 8) 'Indexing options'. If you don't know about searching for things in Windows 8 you just start typing from the metro screen, no need to open any search windows or the like, just type what you are looking for.