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Comparing Web Browsers: The Top Three
by Aaron Turpen of Aaronz
WebWorkz
There are three major Web browsers contending for the Windows
PC market: Microsoft's Internet Explorer, the open-source Mozilla
(basis for the Netscape browser), and Opera Software's Opera
browser.
I use each of these fairly regularly, though I do have my
favorites; however, recent changes in favoritism are what prompted this
article. Each of the browsers has its merits and problems. For
this discussion, I'll be listing them in order of their usage 'Net-wide
and for the 4-point scoring system, Internet Explorer is the
"benchmark" as it is the most widely used browser online (by far) and thus
earns two stars per category.
I rate the browsers on useability,
functionality, speed, and
reliability. Useability is based on the browsers
intuitive design
features such as side bars, tabbed browsing, etc.
Functionality is based on the browsers "extras" like use of plugins, browsing
options, etc. Speed is obvious and reliability is based on how often
the browser "locks up," "crashes," or incorrectly displays a
website.
Internet Explorer 6.0
Useability: **
Functionality:
**
Speed: **
Reliability: **
IE is used by nearly 90% of the Web's
users and comes standard on most machines sold as it is built into the
Windows operating system. There are a lot of bonuses and drawbacks to using
IE as your primary Web browser. It is highly adequate, most websites are
tuned to IE-specifics, and it is free to use. On the down side, however,
most scams and viruses are aimed specifically at IE because it is so
widely distributed. IE also foregoes many of the browsing features many
of us love; such as tabbed browsing.
Until recently, IE was my
most-used browser as the Web began to surpass the capabilities of Opera.
Regardless, as a developer, I use IE for testing regularly as it is the
benchmark.
Mozilla 5.0v1.6
Useability: ***
Functionality:
****
Speed: ***
Reliability: ***
I wasn't very impressed with the early
versions of Mozilla. We do have the open-source developers to thank for some
of the innovations we take for granted in browsers now, but earlier
renditions of this browser were slow and clunky. The latest version of
Netscape, based on this browser, had a rough breaking-in period and many of
us stopped using it outright thanks to its reliability and useability
issues.
The latest rendition of Mozilla, however, has converted me over
to using it as my primary browser again. This browser is adequately fast,
has lots of great features, and is free to use. It has crashed on me (though
only the browser, not a full system crash) once or twice, but not in a big
way. Overall, I find it the nicest of the group.
Opera
7.23
Useability: ****
Functionality: ***
Speed: ****
Reliability:
*
Opera used to be my favorite browser by far. It's the
fastest-loading browser I've seen and it was early in adopting the cool
features now taken for granted. It comes in a free (ad-based) and a
purchased version - identical except for the banner ad delivery at top.
This browser has long been a favorite of many developers, especially
since it so closely adheres to the letter of W3C standards.
However,
thanks to that adherence and its ignorance of IE-specific extras on pages,
many sites look downright silly and very jumbled in this browser. Ad to that
its recent propensity for crashing with this latest edition and you've got a
questionable browser at best. I was disappointed to see how difficult it was
to get basic functions like Java support to work correctly in this browser
and finally gave up on it despite its great features and
useability.
Conclusion
So I'm using Mozilla almost exclusively as my
browser now. It took a little time to get used to hitting Ctrl-T instead of
Ctrl-N to open a new tab instead of browser instance, but otherwise it's been
awesome. It's fast, reliable, renders well, and has all the requisite
plugins you expect. Not to mention the cool dinosaur symbol. :)
I
still have IE since it's the browser used by most surfers, thanks to its
connection with Windows. It's good for testing, but otherwise I rarely use
it. I've removed Opera from my system altogether thanks to the headaches
this latest version gives. When it goes through anotherbig overhaul, I'll
consider trying it again as I did love many aspects of the browser:
especially its lightning speed.
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Aaron Turpen is the
proprietor of Aaronz WebWorkz, a full-service company providing services to
business online; including development, consultation, and more! http://www.AaronzWebWorkz.com
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