Mozilla's Firefox 0.9 - Putting Internet Explorer to Shame
Jul 28 '04 (Updated Sep 29 '04)
The Bottom Line To merely surf the web, use Internet Explorer. If you want to experience the web, switch to Mozilla Firefox. It's 100x better.
Be sure to see my update about the new release!!
If you've ever read my recent reviews or seen my profile, you'll know that I'm becoming a web standards geek. Ever since I started learning about web standards and CSS (after seeing the amazing designs on Dave Shea's CSS Zen Garden), I've been on a kick to learn about standards for web design. I've read books and tutorials, visited noted designers' sites and blogs, learned techniques from some of the best out there, and even started to use them wholesale in my own designs.
Unfortunately, much of what I've learned has made me realize the limitations imposed upon me by one of the very tools that the standards were designed for - Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE). Ever since version 4.0 came out, Microsoft has been speaking out one side of its mouth about standards while ignoring them in every version since (IE 5.5 is notorious for mangling well-written code). But since it came with the OS that 95% of people use (Windows), it became the de facto leader in browsing software.
However, designers and programmers for the web have started a trend to a better experience. On the numerous recommendations of those designers, I went and downloaded a copy of Mozilla Firefox 0.7 (called Firebird at the time). I was amazed - pages loaded quicker, I saw features and things that I had never seen before on pages I visited regularly. Sure, there were some glitches, but the functionality it afforded me over IE was incredible - I was hooked. Life has gotten better since they released Firefox 0.9.
[ • what's a FIREFOX? • ]
Firefox is a web-standard compliant browser being created by Mozilla, a working group of designers and programmers who decided that it was time to end IE's dominance and introduce a web browser that showed web pages as they were supposed to be seen, as designated by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) - the international group which sets the standards for coding, usability and accessability for the web. In the past, Mozilla is known for providing the core code for older browsers like IE and Netscape, as well as their own bare bones Mozilla browser.
Lately, they have worked on creating a next-generation browser, and Firefox was born. An open-source project which allows hundreds and even thousands of programmers to help develop code, fix bugs and create wonderful add-ons, Firefox has caught up to and surpassed IE quickly. It handles HTML, xHTML, XML, CSS and other markup as they were meant to be done, and is fully CSS2 compliant (and mostly CSS3 compliant, although since that standard isn't official, changes will occur).
So What? » What's the big deal about standards' compliance? Well, basically, it means that what a programmer/designer develop a page to look like is what it will look like. If you look at most pages on both IE, Netscape and Firefox, you will see three different versions of the same page (less so if the designers took all three into account - most do not). With IE (and to a lesser extent, Netscape and alternate browsers like Opera and K), programmers have to use numerous hacks to make the pages work correctly and users can still have trouble with the way IE tries to render the web.
[ • what's SO DIFFERENT • ]
Well, to start off, Firefox shows the page the way it was meant to be shown, reading code correctly and offering up truly accessible web pages. [steps down off of high horse, climbs off of soapbox, puts feet onto ground]. But what about people who don't know or care about that - they just want ESPN to look right, to be able to check out the latest American Idol chat group gossip or just need to be able to see some naked ... mole rats?
I'm glad your asked, because there are a ton of reasons that you should think about switching - hell, don't think about it, just do it. Firefox is, above all, super easy to use and offers up tons of ways to customize it to your every need. It's faster than most other browsers and produces nicely represented web pages. But if you still need convincing, check these reasons out.
1) Security » You've seen the news, and you've probably gotten the alerts on your computer, particularly if you have Windows XP: constant security holes and fixes for Windows and Internet Explorer. Hackers constantly find and exploit holes in the IE infrastructure to use to try to gain access to your computer. Worse, because IE is so integrated into Windows, access from your browser can quickly equal access to your computer. Firefox is different - it's not integrated into the desktop, so there is a barrier between the browser and the desktop. Better yet, Firefox doesn't use VBscript or ActiveX support - both notorious hacker targets - or the Microsoft Java Virtual Machine, another security nightmare included in IE. (note: in all fairness, Mozilla did have a security risk in early July called the shell: hack, but a fix was available within hours and installed with a simple install via the download manager.
2) Tabbed Viewing » This might be the best single feature on Firefox. Unlike IE, where you can open multiple windows for each website (creating separate unique sessions which suck up resources), Firefox allows you to look at different webpages in tabs, similar to the innovation that Netscape first introduced a couple of years ago. You continue to have 1 single session (and only one icon on the taskbar) but can open up any number of tabs in that same window. It's a great innovation whose time has come. One other neat feature - you can actually program Firefox to open multiple tabs on startup, thus opening your 2 or 3 favorite sites at once! FYI - to do this, go to Tools>Options>General and in the homepage space type the web pages you want to open separated by the | 'pipe' (it's the character one the backslash key).
3) Extensions » One of the best things that Firefox offers are the Extensions, tweaks to the system written by programmers and reviewed by the development team and then offered on the Mozilla site. These tweaks often address issues/wish list items from users, creating new functionality from scratch or enhancing existing functionality to make the browser that much better. One great example are the enhancements to the tabbed browsing. Two downloads allow you to use a double-click to close a tab, while another lets you retrieve a tab that you accidentally closed. Very useful (so useful, in fact, that they might end up integrated into the final product). Other extensions allow you to enhanced the Download Manager, improve bookmarking or - my personal favorite - add a web developer tool that allows designers to pick apart, examine and test websites in a 100 different ways. As of 7/27/04, there were 118 extensions available for download - some very helpful and others just fun things.
4) Themes » Themes aren't something unique to Firefox. There are several programs that you can use to change the look and feel of Internet Explorer out there. Unfortunately, those that don't cost you usually come with some sort of spyware. Firefox did it right by adding a Theme Manager right into the browser, making it easy to download and install new themes to change the look of Firefox. Themes are mostly aesthetic changes, although some people do tweak placement a bit. Best of all, if you want to create your own theme, the program includes instructions on how to create your own unique theme! (Better instructions are on the site, though - fyi).
5) Pop-up Blocker » Firefox comes with its own pop-up blocker, and from what I've been able to see, it is far more effective than those used by AOL and Earthlink. I use NIS 2004 (when it's working), so I had a Pop-up blocker anyway, but I turned it off to try out the Firefox version and save resources. The blocker uses a 'whitelist' functionality, and offers an icon in the tray every time a pop-up is blocked. If you are expecting it - or want to have that particular pop-up, simply click on this icon and the pop-up will appear. [NIS2004 note: because Norton uses javascript blocking to prevent pop-ups, it also blocks other javascript pop-up window functionality - including when you deliberately click on a window to open a smaller window. Firefox does NOT block this.]
6) Privacy Control » Firefox's privacy control panel handles everything you need to protect your privacy on the web. You can set basic settings (history, download history, cache) to delete after preset amounts of time. Saved Form Info allows you clear or turn off form fill. But the main functions come in the managers. Saved Passwords gives you the ability to actually SEE what passwords you saved - and remove them if necessary.
Cookie Manager is a very powerful tool that allows you to not only control how cookies are put onto your computer (Accept normally, Accept for Current Session only or Ask for each), but also lets you block any cookies that aren't from the website where you actually are - a great way of blocking ad trackers from 3rd parties. You can also set up an exception list for sites that you NEVER want to allow to set cookies - nice for sites you visit but don't want to be tracked on. Lastly, you can view your stored cookie info. This section shows you the site and cookie name, as well as content, domain and other critical information to help you decide whether you want it there or not. And if you find you want to delete a cookie from a site, you also set Firefox to deny that site the ability to set a new cookie.
7) Download Manager » This is one feature that I truly love. Download Manager tracks all of your downloads, and lets you install them straight from Firefox most of the time. If a download fails for some reason, this manager also allows you to go back and try again. And you can even set the applications to use for each download from within Firefox - no more having to use a Windows folder to fix it!
This manager is particularly adept at downloading and installing Firefox functionality, such as the extensions and themes. Highlight the particular download you want, and use the icons to the right of it do delete, install or update that file!
8) Constant updates » Firefox is updated constantly - there have been 3 new versions since last October, and the big version 1.0 release is scheduled for 9/14. The releases aren't like IE's security patches (although they did release that security patch earlier this month, their FIRST), but real functionality additions that integrate user and programmer feedback to make a better product. Unfortunately, I have experienced some problems saving my settings from v0.8 to v0.9, but that was a minor problem.
9) File Size » The Firefox download is only 4.7MB - barely noticable on most of today's hard drives.
10) Other » Some other cool things that Firefox offers:
• Inline dictionary using Smart Keywords, that will link you to sites
• Better bookmarking
• Searchable history allows you can quickly find a site that you visited before, even if you can't remember the URL.
• Printing Control similar to what you normally find in a text editor
[ • beating MICROSOFT • ]
IE took the world by storm, wresting control from champion Netscape when it was included in the Windows 95 operating system. With a browser already integrated into their desktop - and the many applications that Microsoft produced, Netscape took a major hit to their market share. With subsequent OS upgrades, Internet Explorer became more and more integrated into Windows and users turned to it as their default browser. Soon, Netscape was a shadow of its former self, and barely holds any market share. IE was king, controlling upwards of 95% of all browser visits.
But Firefox has been making waves ever since it was first released as an alpha and now as a beta product (don't worry, this is one of the best 'beta' programs I have ever used). At first, it was only the programmers and designers who noticed - finally, they had a browser that matched their vision. But lately, the program is starting to pick up even more users and is quickly posing a major threat to Microsoft's dominance. Like Safari for the Apple, people are realizing how easy it is to use Firefox, AND how much better it is.
At the beginning of the year, IE (versions 5, 5.5 and 6.0) controlled about 84 - 92% of the browser market (depending on who's data you go by). As of July, that share has dropped significantly, to about 78-88% of the market, while Firefox has gone from a paltry 7-8% up to a significant 13%. Using the stats from w3schools.com, IE use has decreased by 5.3% since January 2004, while Firefox has increased by 5.5% of marketshare - a whopping 67% increase in users!
[ • the KING IS DEAD. long live THE KING! • ]
The Firefox browser is leaps and bounds better than Microsoft Internet Explorer - the functionality is better, the interface is better, the security is better and the presentation of the web is better. Better yet, with it being constantly improved by programmers and designers from user feedback, we aren't at the whim of a secret agenda of a company only looking for a buck.
Firefox is a truly great step forward in web browsers - a customizable browser that lets you decide how you want to surf the web. Increased security is coupled with tabbed browsing and easy downloading, as well as cookie, password and privacy management tools. Add the fact that it renders the web beautifully, and you find that this is a great product.
Firefox does everything that IE does - but does it better, faster and easier. With so much to do, doesn't that just make sense?
Update September 2004
They've released the Preview Release of Firefox (version 1.0PR), and it is AWESOME. There are a ton of new features, and the browser seems to have even picked up some usability and speed. The stylesheet chooser has been included (I had heard that they were going to scrap it - but they didn’t), and it’s a nice touch - easily flip between any stylesheets a site has to offer you. And the new Live Bookmarks gives you the ability to accept RSS and Atom feeds directly into your bookmarks (these 'feeds' act as newsfeeds - directing any new content on sites you enjoy, such as CNN or a blog, to a place you can quickly see what's new). Drop down like you would any other bookmark and voila - there are the latest feeds from your favorite sites. There is even an icon in the task bar that lets you know if the site you are on has any available feeds.
There are some caveats to the upgrade - some of my old extensions and themes don’t seem to work in 1.0PR, which is a bit of a bummer. But many of them do - and they have a handy list that you can sort through of extensions and themes that are supposedly 1.0PR valid. I say supposedly, because I have seen some that state that they are, but then turn out to be invalid - but Firefox even lets you know that before trying to install them and fragging your installation.
One more thing, if you are going to install the newest version - BE SURE TO UNINSTALL YOUR PREVIOUS VERSION. Go to the forums to get more info, but basically back-up your profile, uninstall previous Firefox installations, then install 1.0PR. Then copy your profile files back over the new installs (except for bookmarks - import them from wherever you backed them up so that you don’t overwrite the Live Bookmarks info). It takes about 15 minutes all told.
I can’t stop going oohhh and ahhhh over this program. Internet Explorer - do you see that little flashing in the corner of your eye? That’s your career light and it’s about to go out.
[ • more INFORMATION • ]
download FIREFOX» www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/
teach me MORE» texturizer.net/firefox/faq.html
why it's BETTER» www.switch2firefox.com/whyswitch/
better, SAFER» slate.msn.com/id/2103152/
everyone's DOING IT» www.wired.com/news/infostructure/0,1377,64065,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_3
what if MOZILLA WON?» blogs.sun.com/roller/comments/DaneseCooper?anchor=what_if_mozilla_were_to1
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
martytdx
|
 - Top 200 |
|
Member: Marty
Location: New Jersey
Reviews written: 481
Trusted by: 179 members
About Me:
Doing what I can to try new places, restaurants, books and beers.
|
|
|
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.