Defining the Web: Browsers
All web browsers have their pros and cons, but the best way to decide which browser is for you is by just trying them out. No matter which browser you choose, it is always important to keep your software up to date to ensure that your browser supports the latest features and compliance with current web standards. Below are the main contenders.
Internet Explorer has been on the web browser scene since way back in 1995. IE comes pre-installed with all Windows operating systems and is still the most widely used web browser today. It was also worth noting that IE is typically slow to adopt support for new developments on the web (such as CSS 3 properties).
Mozilla FireFox is an open source web browser that was released in 2004. FireFox will run on almost every operating platform, and is used heavily by PC and Mac users alike. FireFox also has the ability to install some neat third-party plug-ins, which are handy for web users as well as web designers/developers.
Google Chrome was released in 2008 and therefore is still a relatively new browser. Chrome has taken components from Apple’s WebKit as well as Mozilla’s FireFox and Chrome itself is also open source.
Safari is Apple’s web browser built with the WebKit engine and has been their default browser since Mac OS X v10.3 “Panther”. Safari has also been a forerunner in adopting HTML 5 and CSS 3 and supporting the latest web standards.
Opera is a web browser/internet suite that includes built-in BitTorrent and email clients, among other features. Opera was first released back in 1996, and is available for most operating systems, but has never reached more than 2% of web browser usage shares.
Here at Mouth Media we all use Safari and FireFox as our browsers of choice, and only use the others when testing for browser compatibility when building out a new website, but again, it’s all a matter of personal preference.