Internet Browsers
HOW DO YOUR SURF THE WEB?
DOES IT MATTER WHICH BROWSER YOU USE?
WHAT IS A BROWSER?
The browser is the program which allows you to connect to websites.
WANT TO KNOW THE TECHNICAL DETAILS?
Similar to your physical address, website have IP addresses. If you are looking for Avenue M Computers, you go to 1222 Avenue M, when you want to go to www.avenueMcomputers.com you are in truth going to 72.167.232.75. However, if you enter in the 72.167.232.75 in a browser, you will not get to our website since the IP address is shared among many domain names. Even in instances where a website has an exclusive IP address, entering in the IP address for a website will not be a very productive way of surfing the web since it will be too much to remember and difficult to search for websites in this form. Therefore, programmers created a software program, which is known as a browser, which allows users to type in a name, to the tune of “www.avenueMcomputers.com” and the browser brings you to the IP address 72.167.232.75, which most people know aswww.avenueMcomputers.com.
WHAT ARE THE COMMON BROWSERS?
Microsoft makes Internet Explorer, and therefore all computers which come with Windows has the Internet Explorer browser. Similarly, Apple makes Safari, and therefore all MAC’s come with the Safari browser built in. Many people prefer to download another browser or two. The two big names are Firefox, which was developed by Mozilla and Chrome which was developed by Google. There are others, such as Opera, yet we generally deal with the previous mentioned browsers.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE BROWSERS?
Internet Explorer:– If you are still using Windows XP, you can only upgrade up to IE8 (they are up to IE10).
– Windows 8 has two versions IE 10 (one on the desktop, one in the metro UI).
– Some websites are not compatible with the latest version, and therefore they need to be run in compatibility mode.
– For some programs, the level of security may need to be adjusted
Safari:– Does not support ActiveX (since ActiveX is a Microsoft product), it only uses Java and Flash.
Mozilla Firefox:– Was the first browser to have tabbed browsing and add-ons and has over 2.3 million available add-ons.
– Firefox is the winner in allowing users to customize their browsing experience.
Google Chrome:– Automatically updates the software on its own
– There is no toolbar which many are accustomed to, which are used to access print, save, settings, add to favorites….
– Google Chrome has only one bar, which acts as the address and search bar. Other browsers have it separated into two separate bars.
MARKET SHARE FACTS:According to http://marketshare.hitslink.com, in February 2013:
20.15% of users used Internet Explorer 8
18.67% of users used Internet Explorer 9
9.52% of users used Firefox 18
9.37% of users used Chrome 24
6.85% of users used Safari 6
35.44% used various other browsers and version
WHAT DO WE USE?We have installed on most of our office computers Internet Explorer, Safari and Chrome.
Why?
The reason we have different browsers installed is because for different websites, different browsers work better. Another perk to multiple browsers is if you are using a website and want to be logged in as several different users, by using multiple browsers, you will be able to log into different account simultaneously to one website.
As always, if you have any questions or concerns,
feel free to call us at 718-676-6910
