Firefox, the safer web browser June 27, 2006
Posted by Kathy in Internet, Software.trackback
Are you using Firefox yet? You should be, especially if you’re a Windows user.
Firefox, created by the Mozilla Corporation, is a free downloadable web browser. Of course, a web browser is the software you use to view web sites (like this one). If you have a Windows computer, it already comes with Internet Explorer (IE), Microsoft’s web browser built into the Windows operating system. So why would you need to use a different browser?
IE has been historically been very vulnerable to hacking attacks due to its own security flaws and its support of Microsoft’s ActiveX technology, which, in addition to allowing Microsoft Update to keep your system software current, can also allow bad guys to get bad software on your computer. Firefox does not support ActiveX, but for most of your everyday browsing purposes (besides Microsoft Update) you shouldn’t need it.
In addition to being a bit safer, Mozilla Firefox is highly extensible with hundreds of third-party add-ons. One great example is the highly helpful Google Toolbar, which builds handy Google search functions right into Firefox. Oh, and Firefox is free, and you can use it right alongside IE if you just want to try it out.
You can download Firefox from LTF Tech’s Recommendations page.
Agreed! This is absolutely true, and that is why I wouldn’t trade Firefox for IE. Not to mention that browsing is just so much quicker with tabs and the pages load faster.
Of course, with IE7, many of these worries are greatly alleviated. Not to mention that IE7 is now faster, more standards compliant, a better manager of memory and most websites are coded for IE.
Just try opening a goodly number of tabs in Firefox and see how much memory it takes up and doesn’t let go!
I’ve noticed a speed improvement in the new Firefox 2.0. I admit I have yet to try IE 7: I was reluctant to install it as a beta, but now that it’s official I certainly will (have to). It’s nice to see that IE has incorporated the tabbed browsing that has long been part of other products.
My own opinion is that no web site should have to code for a specific browser. The browsers should comply with the standards (the whole standards, and nothing but the standards), and coders should code to the standards. Alas, such is not reality, I know.