Tech Tuesday
I've decided to start using my powers for good, not that I was using them for evil before, but it's time I gave back to the world that has given me so much... anyway...
I intend to write a little bit about something internet related every other tuesday. I want to keep it broad enough so that anyone can understand it, but even knowledgable people can find a new trick. And if I miss anything, feel free to add a comment and let me know. On to my first entry
Browsers
The program that you are using to look at this page is a browser. Internet Explorer is the most popular with Firefox coming in second. This is not good, let me explain.
Why Internet Explorer is Bad
The biggest reason why you shouldn't use Internet Explorer (IE) is that it is old. It came out in 2001 and a lot has changed since then. There are lots of new things that programmers (like me) want to do, but are unable to because Microsoft has been slow in updating their browser. Also, security has changed a lot; there are hundred of holes that evil people can use to do bad things to your computer in IE. This is complicated by IE being the most popular browser, thus there are more people trying to find these holes. IE is coming out with a new version that will be much much better but it's still around a year away.
What is better?
There a few browsers (ok, every other browser) that are a lot better. My favorite two are Firefox and Opera. They are faster, easier to use, more powerful and safer. The biggest advantage is tabs. Instead of having a new window for every page you want to view, you keep all the web pages open in one window. You can also download tons of extensions to make the browser look and act just like you want it. I'll dedicate a later entry to my favorite extensions. As for security, there are a few known holes, but they typiclly get fixed much much faster than the IE ones do.
Firefox is better if you want to do a lot of customizing but I actually like Opera better. It is faster than Firefox and does a few more cool things. I still use Firefox most of the time, but when Opera comes out with their next version (9) I'm probably going to switch over.
If you are using IE I implore you to download a different browser, here are some links...
Firefox
Opera
This page shows what browsers are being used on this site.
I intend to write a little bit about something internet related every other tuesday. I want to keep it broad enough so that anyone can understand it, but even knowledgable people can find a new trick. And if I miss anything, feel free to add a comment and let me know. On to my first entry
Browsers
The program that you are using to look at this page is a browser. Internet Explorer is the most popular with Firefox coming in second. This is not good, let me explain.
Why Internet Explorer is Bad
The biggest reason why you shouldn't use Internet Explorer (IE) is that it is old. It came out in 2001 and a lot has changed since then. There are lots of new things that programmers (like me) want to do, but are unable to because Microsoft has been slow in updating their browser. Also, security has changed a lot; there are hundred of holes that evil people can use to do bad things to your computer in IE. This is complicated by IE being the most popular browser, thus there are more people trying to find these holes. IE is coming out with a new version that will be much much better but it's still around a year away.
What is better?
There a few browsers (ok, every other browser) that are a lot better. My favorite two are Firefox and Opera. They are faster, easier to use, more powerful and safer. The biggest advantage is tabs. Instead of having a new window for every page you want to view, you keep all the web pages open in one window. You can also download tons of extensions to make the browser look and act just like you want it. I'll dedicate a later entry to my favorite extensions. As for security, there are a few known holes, but they typiclly get fixed much much faster than the IE ones do.
Firefox is better if you want to do a lot of customizing but I actually like Opera better. It is faster than Firefox and does a few more cool things. I still use Firefox most of the time, but when Opera comes out with their next version (9) I'm probably going to switch over.
If you are using IE I implore you to download a different browser, here are some links...
Firefox
Opera
This page shows what browsers are being used on this site.
Kyle on Mar 20, 2006 4:00pm
Ohhh! Extensions! My favorites are StumbleUpon and Adblock.
Justin on Mar 20, 2006 4:00pm
I think I'll talk about extensions next time.
Viking Dusty on Mar 20, 2006 4:00pm
Oooh... So hard to choose. I think I prefer using Opera. But i love being able to "stumble" with Firefox. But you can't beat Opera from being the lazy man's browser with all the nifty mouse gestures and hot keys... and i really like the "notes" feature too.
flexnfx on Mar 20, 2006 4:00pm
What browser can I use on my Commodore 64?
Davin on Mar 20, 2006 4:00pm
IE7 looks very promising.