Article 19: The browser wars
A browser provides a way to look at and interact with information on the internet. If you have been surfing the internet for many years, you will remember that originally two browsers were very popular: Netscape Navigator and Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE). However, in the mid 1990's, after a much publicized courtroom battle, Microsoft won the browser wars when it was allowed to bundle IE together with its Windows operating system and distribute it freely Internet Explorer soon captured about 90% of the market and Netscape Navigator faded away.
But it didn't die. The Netscape developers started the Mozilla project, and over the last 6 years developed the Firefox browser which has opened to rave reviews. Millions of people worldwide have already downloaded Firefox (at www.mozilla.org ).
You may be asking yourself—with a perfectly functional browser in Internet Explorer, what do I need Firefox for? Let's take a look at this new browser, and what it has to offer – as well as what it lacks.
A light browser
Firefox is a lightweight. IE6 needs almost 80 MB of space to download and install on your hard drive, while Firefox is a lean 4.5 MB.(The reason: Unlike IE,Firefox doesn't automatically install plug-ins. Plug-ins are software programs that extend the capabilities of your browser in a specific way - giving you, for example, the ability to play audio or view video from within your browser. If you need a specific plug-in to interact with an application or website, Firefox alerts you and helps you download it.)
Tabbed browsing
The more you use this feature, the more you appreciate it. Let's say that you are reading your favorite newspaper online, when suddenly you want to check your Hotmail account and buy something on the Amazon website. You want to switch to these other sites but you don't want to close that interesting article you are reading
If you are using Firefox, all you have to do is press Ctrl+T and a new tab pops up. Now you have two tabs open on your screen – the newspaper tab, and a blank tab with its own Location (or address ) bar. Type in the new URL (in this case, http://www.hotmail.com ) and press Enter. Now both the newspaper site and Hotmail are available to you.
Press Ctrl + T again; a new tab appears, type in the Amazon address, press Enter, and all three sites are running simultaneously.
Switch between the tabs either by clicking on them with your mouse, or by pressing Ctrl + Tab repeatedly.
If you click the smallest red X button on the upper right side of the screen, the page you are currently viewing closes.(Clicking the big Red X above it will close the entire browser, and all the open tabs, so make sure to select the right button).
No more pop-ups!
We have all been plagued with annoying popup windows, advertising all kinds of products. Firefox comes with a Popup-Blocker. With Firefox open, check that you have this option selected:
In the Tools menu, click Options . In the window that opens, on the left side, click Web Features , and make sure that Block Popup Windows is checked.
If there are some sites that you would like to exempt from this rule, click the Allowed Sites button, type the exact address of the site, and click Allow , and OK.
More secure, but somewhat limited.
Firefox doesn't load Active-X controls. Active X is a set of technologies created by Microsoft to enable interactive content on Web sites. While the presence of Active X definitely enhances the web experience, it also provides openings for malicious hackers to plant spyware on your computer. Since Firefox doesn't load Active X controls, your computer is safer – but you also won't be able to view websites that require that technology.
Built-in search tools
At the top right corner of your Firefox browser is a built-in Google search field. Type in the term you want to search for, press Enter, and your search results appear. Click the little upside-down triangle next to the Google logo (a blue capital G) -- additional search tools appear: Yahoo, Dictionary.com and more.
If you press Ctrl + F, a Find toolbar opens at the bottom of your screen. It doesn't cover any of the text, and finds words in the open page as you type them.
Firefox is not perfect
It can't read Active X content. When launching links from an email message, it may not respond quickly, and sometimes not at all. But the pros greatly outweigh the cons. Personally, I have both IE and Firefox on my computer, but I find I am turning to Firefox more and more because of the features listed above and more.