kennethreitz.org / Essays / 2008 / Browser Wars The Saga Continues

Browser Wars: The Saga Continues

Every computer-savvy technocrat is partial to their own web browser of choice. I’ve used every major one out there, and have to come to the conclusion that there is no one-for-all browser that everyone should use. That should go without saying though.

Okay, so… Let’s list the major browsers then:

So, lets start out with Internet Explorer.

I honestly don’t use it. Ever. I did back in the day, but now I honestly see no reason to. The average grandmother or design professional with no technological experience at all cannot even comprehend the concept of a web browser, so this accounts for its widespread use I assume. I don’t know anything special about it, aside from the fact that it allows very easy access to lower-level system calls for malicious code to be run. Oh joy. This problem seems to be fixed in new versions, but still. It’s slow, it’s cumbersome, it’s a little shiny. I’m not going to stop you from using it, but I think you’ll have much better luck with other browsers, not to mention a much more enjoyable browsing experience.

Alas, the almighty Firefox 3.

Cutting-edge technology. Very fast rendering engine. Muti-platform. Countless number of addons that range from anything from video-grabbers, text scramblers, and porn guzzlers (btw, I am in no way endorsing such activity). Why not use Firefox? It’s incredibly robust, completely open-source, very secure, and runs an just about anything from an IBM mainframe to a pocket calculator. This was my personal favorite, and, in a way, still is. We’ll get into that in a moment though.

The forbidden Safari 3.

A once OSX-only browser, Safari was to OSX as Internet Explorer was to Windows. Little known to most people, actually, is that Microsoft and Apple made a deal back in the day, and for a few years, Internet Explorer was included on every Apple computer. But back to my point, there are others available now for OSX. As a matter of fact, I believe even Internet Explorer can be natively installed. Don’t hold me to that though. Anyway, Safari is also avaible for Windows now. It works very very fast. Not quite as fast as Firefox 3, but it’s very smooth. Looks great too. Not to much as addons are concerned, but it works wonderfully. If you’re not a software-freak then I see no reason not to use this. Its great if you don’t want many features. It’s a no-crap browser. Although, I’ll have to admit, you should be careful while using it. There’s no SSL support, which means no secure browsing, which could mean no privacy… but hey, just don’t use any credit cards. ^_^

OMG! Google Chrome!

At last, Google Chrome. It works well. It’s fast. It’s only made for Windows. Oh, and Linux users, here. You don’t have to miss out anymore. Crossover Chromium! Give it a shot. Built in Gears and Prism support is a huge plus, as I use each of those every day. Process-independent tabs is also a fantastic plus. Firefox should adapt this as soon as possible. Mozilla is attempting to integrate both Prism and Gears into the Firefox code base I believe so there isn’t too much advantage in that for long. It’s a nice refreshing look at a browser that actually works. Also perfect for someone who doesn’t do much online. There’s a lot of power behind that ease-of-use though, if you know where to look. Google Chrome.

Opera? What’s that?

Who knows why it’s not as popular as it should be. It’s fast, it’s sleek, its insanely compliant, it’s powerful. The main reason I don’t use it is it’s lack of addons. It has addon support, but not many people use it, so few are available. I encourage everyone to check it out at least. If they just marketed it, I think it’d be really popular. Opera.

And now, for Flock: my personal favorite.

While all of the browsers have their strengths, Firefox stands out to me as a power user. It allows me

I’ve always found myself fiddling with social addons that allow me to connect to my social networking sites and easily share nuggets in the web that I discover with my friends. Never really could find anything good enough. And then there was Flock. This is by far my favorite browser. It has all of the power and robustness of Firefox, plus built in support for all of my favorite websites. It even comes with a Blog Writer client. Much more useful than what I’ve been resorting to using in Linux, Drivel. Doesn’t compare to Windows Live Writer still, but hey, I’m not complaining. It also has a wonderfully useful web clipboard. If you are a user of any major social networking site, like to share links with people, use Google Apps, Delicious, or anything else, this browser is or you. Oh, and it’s compliant with almost all of Firefox’s plugins and addons. So what do you have to loose?Flock.

Oh, and just the the record, anyone who considers Firefox or Chrome/ium an “Operating System” should be shot… Yes, I’m being seirous. People have actually written this. Seriously… Why? Becacuse we need better journalists in the Tech industry, that’s why. Ted Dziuba, thank you for this.