Battle of the browsers
A web browser is basically software that allows a user to access music, pictures, video, text and other data on the internet. The first web browser was the Internet Explorer (IE) which was introduced with Microsoft Windows 95 and became extremely popular with the next edition of Windows, Windows 98. It was the most widely used web browser at that point of time with more than 90% of internet browsers preferring it over any other software. The Internet Explorer has constantly changed and evolved with every advanced version of Windows including the latest Internet Explorer to accompany Microsoft Vista, the very latest Operating System from Microsoft. Though it had earlier been created for Macintosh laptops, that version was discontinued. The drawbacks of IE include the fact that the earlier version was slower compared to other browsers released later and it did not provide for tabbed browsing.
Mozilla Firefox was released in 2003 and was an improvement on the Internet Explorer and provided many additional features that IE did not. The new features include tabbed browsing which IE did not provide for until its latest version and plug-ins, another very attractive feature. Mozilla Firefox and Google also have been associated since Mozilla signed a referral agreement with Google. Internet users are quickly shifting to Mozilla Firefox, especially the tech-savvy crowd.
Another popular browsing software is Opera Browser which includes many features such a tabbed browsing, page zooming and an integrated download manager. This software is compatible with Windows, Mac OS, Linux and some other Operating Systems. Though received as a good and well performing browser, the majority of Opera users are those who use browsers on their phones, including SmartPhones and PDAs. Some users have also been critical of its user interface and the fact that it is quite different from Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer, has caused some confusion.
Filed under: Browsers
