What Browser do you use?

[Lynnrose]

I have decided to start a new poll on this subject.
You can use 2 votes as some people may use more than one browser, so get voting!
Remember to click button to vote above.
Comments also welcome.

[elvis]

H! LynnRose,

I use fire fox all the time with opra sometimes

[elvis]

Or Opera

[vikingken]

I was only using IE8 on my laptop and had to use Chrome for a couple of websites. I have now upgraded the laptop to IE9 and probably wont ever have to use it again. I upgraded this machine a long time ago and so haven't had any need of it. I ticked it off as I was using it and I dont have anything against it. As Windows comes with IE, why use anything else if it will do what you need it to. As long as a browser is workly smoothly, speed is all in peoples heads. I would like to meet a person whos work can be held up by a browser that works a nanosecond slower than another. If IE crashes or freezes, the fault is in a persons computer and not the browser. People dont keep their operating systems clean and tidy, then blame everything except themselves.

[johnnybee]

Odd you should bring up this topic now, Ken; as you know I have had some problems installing IE9 on any of my PC's recently; I've tried all ways round yet it simply won't play with me. I tried because of that constant error message - 'can't open (url)- operation aborted' so rather than put up with it, I downloaded Google Chrome the other night and I have to say it's a vast improvement on the earlier builds.
So, unless I can find a workround for the IE9 problem it looks like I'll be using Chrome for the foreseeable future.

[vikingken]

Dunno what to suggest John, never had any bother installing it. I did have a bit of bother with it and I think it was one of the last batch of updates that upset it. I restored to before I installed the updates and it was working OK. You cant uninstall it, so I turned it off and installed the updates again. I had a cleanup, run a check disk and turned it back on. Its been firing on all cylinders ever since. I installed a platform update today, which must have been released while I was away and its going like a goodun. I have had the browser open all night using the translator. I can read what my daughter writes to me and I get stuck writing back, my Spanish always was terrible.

[vikingken]

Try installing IE10 John, haven't found anything wrong with it so far. Its supposed to have full support for the new website protocol, that Firefox, Chrome and IE9 cant handle yet. Apart from the bits you cant see, its just the same as IE9. It asked if I wanted to set the defaults and I left it with all the security turned off the same as IE9 and didn't have to do anything.

[johnnybee]

Roger that, Ken - I'll give it a shot tomorrow when the Scotch has worn off!
Just done a bit of a grueller at a garage I used to work at in Sheldon; Ajay rang me to ask if I'd done much with Rover L series diesels - the 2-litre TDI motor - so I went down this morning to have a look at what turned out to be a ratty old Freeloader, R reg with 170K on the clock.
Now it seems this Kampfenwagen has quite a history; apparently its trouble started when it failed to start on cold mornings last October, so the owner took it to someone in Aston who gave his opinion that the injection pump was probably foobarred. So, on went recon pump #1 at a cost of £340, which didn't cure the problem altogether but as it ran a lot better, the owner was happy - briefly.
Subsequently it had another "new" pump, a set of injectors, followed by a secondhand engine complete and a set of glow plugs.
So, "with a heavy heart" (a Robin Cook-ism) I began the ritual of setting the motor up from scratch, starting at the crank and working forwards; I found eleven basic faults with the setup, compounded by a couple of Heath-Robinson codges that would make even a schoolboy blush.
All that done and rectified, I then turned my attention to a couple of dash warning lights that shouldn't have been lit; one was the earth referral from the throttle control to the ECU, and the other was the plug on no.1 injector that had fallen to bits internally.
After rechecking all the bolts/fixings on the motor I (somewhat gingerly) turned the key, to be greeted by the characteristic rattle of a running L series - sweetly and with no puffs or hiccups, and just barely discernible smoke from the pipe.
I have to admit that I was pleased, but still listening for any signs of trouble with my head over the engine, when suddenly clapping and cheering broke out all round the workshop; Ajay came over and shouted something like "when in danger, when in doubt, ring up and get the old b***ds out"!
Anyhow, the owner came along to collect his steed and commented that "it's never sounded that good since I bought the bloody thing" - so with a bit of a haze coming from all the stale fuel in the exhaust system, he roared off up the drive and disappeared towards Birmingham Airport.
Another good job done and a cuppy hastomer; however my legs, hips and back have had a right old pasting today, hence I'm having a couple of tots of Grouse to dull the pain a bit before I get me head down.
Goodnight, folks!

[Deleted]

We have just explained in previous articles what real browsers do and why it's important to use them in testing the performance of your Web application. You may now be asking, Which browser should I use to monitor my site's performance? Should I test for all the most popular browsers?

[buzzy]

I use Maxthon 3 browser almost exclusively andoccasionally IE9.

[mikkh]

8 years later it's interesting to see how things have changed.
IE virtually doesn't exist anymore in terms of market share and Microsoft are abandoning support/updates for IE 11 in August this year.

Over the last 20 years there have been 3 distinct shifts. IE was the most popular browser for many years, mostly because it came with Windows, rather than because it was a superior browser, then Firefox became king of the hill as antitrust laws forced Microsoft to give users a choice of browsers and many jumped ship ending IE's domination forever. Now Google Chrome is the market leader and I can't see that changing anytime soon.

Practically all modern browsers bar Firefox are based on the open source Chromium, including Google Chrome, Opera, Maxthon and even the latest version of Edge in Windows 10.

I'm not sure this almost all eggs in one basket scenario is a good thing. If some exploit is found in Chromium (doubtful but possible) then it could lead to disaster.

Download a copy of Firefox now, just in case ;o)

[johnytrout]

Is Microsoft Edge any good?

[Lynnrose]

I don't use it, so hopefully someone else will let you know x

[elvis]

Firefox for me

[jazzazz]

My favorite has always been Chrome.

And on my Chromebook, not much choice :-)

But between all the internet devices I have ever used, beginning (Don't Laugh) with WebTV back in 1999 (July-ish), I worked all day using computers at work (Telco), and did not want to see anything that looked like a computer at home.

Then in 2006 got my WindowXP, very little RAM & Memory back then, and when Microsoft stopped supporting XP, I converted it to Linux, after trying a few Distros, settling on Mint17.

Now I have a MacMini for my Desktop, always want to have a desktop, but of all of that, I have to say, that my Chromebooks, on my second one, have been my favorite.

[mikkh]

Sept 14, 2021 10:05:07 GMT johnytrout said:

Is Microsoft Edge any good?

Yeah it's not terrible now it's based on the open source Chromium browser (like practically everything is nowadays, bar Firefox)

They've added their own twists obviously, but it's basically Chromium at heart, just as is Google Chrome, Opera and several more.

They've also made it hard to remove and embedded it in the system like the bad old IE days, but you can use Chrome extensions at least

[elvis]

H! Everybody,

I have been using Firefox forever but it's getting slower so I have been thinking of using another one.

any ideas?

[mikkh]

Jan 2, 2022 16:52:50 GMT elvis said:

H! Everybody,

I have been using Firefox forever but it's getting slower so I have been thinking of using another one.

any ideas?

I don't think it's Firefox that's getting slower, it's probably your computer as a whole.

There aren't many alternatives to Firefox, most others are based on the open source Chromium. (google chrome, Opera, Microsoft Edge, vivaldi etc)

There is one Firefox based alternative called Waterfox, which claims to be faster than it's parent and might be worth checking out.

Of the Chromium based browsers, Opera is worth a look at and includes a built in free VPN. And an annoying sidebar, but you can turn that off.

[elvis]

H! Mikkh,

Waterfox I have never tried it I shall have to give it a try. As for Opera i did give it a try but don't remember what it was like, looooooong time ago.

Thanks, Mikkh.

[jazzazz]

Elvis, what do you think about Chrome??