WebJunction - Using the Internet

Although Microsoft's Internet Explorer currently dominates the Web browser market, there are several promising alternatives. Long-time rivals like Netscape are making a strong comeback and unknown gems are just waiting to be discovered. There are many reasons to give alternatives a try including security, speed, stability, and the general look and feel.

Why an alternative browser?

Security: Explorer is a relatively secure browser, but its large user base makes it a prime target for hackers. Using alternative software can actually make you less vulnerable to attack.
Speed: Explorer is not only the largest target for hacking, it also is the largest in file size. As with most software, speed and stability are usually related to a program's size. Weighing in at 45 MB, Explorer is destined to start up and run slower than smaller browsers like Opera (3 MB).
Stability: The large size also means there is a greater chance for bugs to creep into Explorer's code, making it less stable. Unfortunately, when Internet Explorer crashes it has a tendency to take your operating system down with it. Since Microsoft integrated Explorer into its file management system, a simple browser crash can force you to reboot. This is reason enough to give the alternatives a chance, especially if you've had any unsaved work taken out with a crash.
Look and feel: The final reason to give different browsers a try is for the general look and feel. Explorer hasn't changed its basic look in years. An alternative browser can give you a refreshingly new view of the Internet.

Alternative browsers for the Windows operating system

Mozilla

If you're using some variant of the Microsoft Windows operating system (NT, 98, 2000, XP) the major alternatives to Explorer are Mozilla, Opera, K-Meleon, and Lynx. What about Netscape, you ask? Well, Mozilla is Netscape. Mozilla is the open source browser upon which Netscape is based. Netscape recently released version 7 of its browser. A CNET "wrap-up," found Netscape 7.01 to be: "speedy; integrated IM client works with both AOL Instant Messenger and ICQ; includes attractive UI improvements over Netscape 6.0." I find Netscape's interface to be more intuitive, and I am a big fan of the included e-mail client, HTML editor, and contact manager. Using Mozilla's advanced e-mail client can shield you from many of the Outlook based viruses that are sent through e-mail.

Although O'Reilly Network's "Mozilla Is Not Netscape" points out the differences between Mozilla and Netscape, they are basically the same program. Since Netscape is a branded version of Mozilla, it comes with extraneous AOL software, including AOL's Instant Messenger. Perhaps more useful, it also comes with preloaded plug-ins like Java, but these plug-ins are relatively easy to install on your own. I personally decided to go with Mozilla because it is updated with bug fixes and security patches more frequently than Netscape. The choice between Netscape and Mozilla basically comes down to whether or not you want all of Netscape's preloaded plug-ins or the absolute latest version of Mozilla.

K-Meleon

K-Meleon is a relatively new browser that strives to be the "unbloated Mozilla." K-Meleon is actually built with some of the open source code that was used to make Mozilla, specifically its rendering engine, called "Gecko." The developers of K-Meleon decided that the Mozilla browser was too packed with extraneous features, so they took Mozilla's core engine and set out to make a simpler browser. Although it is smaller, K-Meleon does offer some neat features that Mozilla lacks. You can disable pop-up windows, turn off images, and customize the loader. A loader is an option in both Mozilla and K-Meleon, which allows the browser engine to be loaded into your systems memory when you start your computer. This substantially decreases the browser's start-up time. K-Meleon's loader also allows you to preload your start page, so getting to your most visited Web site is only a matter of milliseconds.

K-Meleon does have some major problems unfortunately. Although K-Meleon has a very intuitive way of importing both Explorer and Netscape bookmarks, I am somewhat disappointed with its ability to manage these bookmarks. You have to restart the whole program for changes to occur. It also lacks a history feature, so it doesn't keep track of the Web sites you've visited. This is an essential part of any browser. K-Meleon is still in the early stages of development, so there are still bugs to work out. The speedy loader and small size, however, make it a great secondary browser for quickly opening your most viewed Web site.

Opera

In terms of pure speed and stability, Opera 6.0 is probably the best alternative browser available. Unfortunately, it isn't free. Opera combines the best of K-Meleon and Mozilla by having both an unbloated design philosophy and incorporating lots of interesting features. Like K-Meleon, you can turn off pop-up windows; like Mozilla, there is an integrated e-mail client. One of Opera's distinctive features is the ability to work in the "Windows inside Opera" mode. This mode allows the user to keep new browser windows within a main Opera window. This can be very useful to those users who open a lot of browser windows and don't want them confused with other programs.

Technically, Opera does have a free version available, but the so-called "free" version has a rather large banner ad incorporated into the browser's toolbar. This could be a major annoyance to those who desire as much desktop workspace as possible. The cost to buy an ad-free version of Opera is $39, with discounts beginning at bulk purchases of 10 copies or more. Even with the discounts this is a steep price to pay for a browser, considering all the alternatives are free.

Lynx

If you've ever surfed the Internet from a text-based computer, you've probably used Lynx. Lynx is a text-only browser. It won't load any images; it only displays the text areas of a Web page. This makes loading pages much faster, since images usually account for the most bytes of a page. The Lynx program itself is a small download (1.5 MB), which requires no installation process. Another important feature of Lynx is that it only accepts keyboard input. All browsing is done through commands entered in through your keyboard. While this may sound like a bad thing, it is a great advantage to those who suffer from RSI in their mouse arm or are simply tired of using their mouse.

Alternative browsers for alternative operating systems

While Opera and Mozilla are available for the Macintosh and Linux operating systems, there are browsers that are built exclusively for these systems. iCab is a small, bare-bones browser available for Macs. It is easy to use, fast, and most importantly, its small size makes it run well on older Macs. For Linux, there are a plethora of alternative browsers available. The two most popular are Konqueror and Galeon. Konqueror is considered to be the "Internet Explorer of Linux" since it acts as both an all purpose file manager and Web browser. In its extensive look at the Linux Browser Wars, CanadaComputes chose Galeon as the best Linux browser. Like K-Meleon, Galeon is an unbloated version of Mozilla, but it is further along in development. Out of all the browsers I've tried, Galeon had the most intuitive interface with easy-to-customize preferences and bookmarks. Its smaller size also makes it quite fast. Galeon has the best overall balance of features and performance.

Conclusion

If you're feeling too timid to move beyond Explorer, but are tired of its drab look and feel, you can download NeoPlanet. NeoPlanet is program that allows you to add "skins" to Explorer. These skins change the overall look of Explorer, but they also add NeoPlanet ads. If you want a real alternative to Explorer, I suggest trying out a whole new browser. Mozilla is a good all-purpose Internet suite that will work on any operating system. K-Meleon makes a great secondary browser for quickly loading your favorite sites. Linux geeks will love Galeon, and Mac heads should give iCab a try. For those who have old computers and/or a slow Internet connection, Lynx is the way to go.

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