Guide to alternative web browsers

Browsers

Have you been using Internet Explorer for your web browsing? Are you tired of all that spyware that is loading onto your computer? Interested in new and different features to assist you while you surf the web?  Then check out these alternative web browsers.

The *Standard*: Internet Explorer

Size: 12 MB

Price: Free

Features:

Most windows users are familiar with Internet Explorer and are comfortable with it.

Yet it must be known that Internet Explorer is more vulnerable to spyware than many alternative browsers.

Almost any website you go to will work correctly with Internet Explorer while alternative browsers cannot open every website correctly.

Popup window controls and security while browsing

Built in Radio Toolbar

Parental Control Options

Password, Download, and Cookie managers

Allows you to select the default email, calendar, newsgroup, and HTML editors of your choice

Compatible with many add-ons such as the google toolbar

The Windows Update service requires Internet Explorer

Alternative 1: Mozilla Firefox

Size: 22.5 MB

Price: Free

Features:

Tabbed Browsing allows you display more than one site in a window using multiple tabs.

Can zoom to view webpage at any text size.

Built in Popup blocker has the ability to control popups on a site per site basis.

Image Manager lets you block images to block offensive images or to speed up the rendering of web sites.

Find as you type feature gives you another way to navigate a page. Just start typing to jump from link to link or to find a word or phrase within a page.

Advanced security settings including protection from most spy-ware.

Password, Download, and Cookie managers.

Customize your toolbars to add additional buttons, install new Extensions that add new features, add new Themes to browse with style, and use the adaptive search system to allow you to search an infinite number of engines.

Multi-language and multi-platform support.

The latest in Web Standards.

Transition system imports all of your settings - Favorites, passwords and other data from Internet Explorer.

Alternative 2: Netscape

Size: 20.8 MB

Price: Free

Features:

Popup window controls and security while browsing.

Tabbed Browsing allows you display more than one site in a window using multiple tabs.

Images fit to screen.

Find as you type feature gives you another way to navigate a page. Just start typing to jump from link to link or to find a word or phrase within a page.

Website Icons.

Full Screen Mode lets you see more of a web page when you need to and maximize screen space. This is great for viewing web content on laptops or smaller desktop screens.

Download multiple files at once.

Alternative 3: Opera

Size: 11.3 MB

Price: Free

Features:

Supposedly the fastest browser on the market that supports graphics.

Lets you save a collection of open pages as a session, allowing for retrieval on later start-ups, or in the middle of another session.

Tabbed Browsing allows you display more than one site in a window using multiple tabs.

Popup window controls and security while browsing.

Multi-language and multi-platform support.

Single-key shortcuts.

Different skin options to change and customize to your liking.

Ad-free browsing.

Zooming in on a Web page is easy using the dropdown on the address bar or the + and - keys. You can also set a default zoom for all pages. Images as well as text on the page will be zoomed.

Audio and video experiences are limited.

Useful for computers that lack or initially never had a lot of memory.

Alternative 4: Google Chrome

Size: 488mb

Price: Free

Features:

Web search. Web history. Address bar. Suggestions as you type. One unified box serves all your browsing needs

Tabbed Browsing allows you display more than one site in a window using multiple tabs, with a list of your most used favourite pages for each new tab.

Use web apps without opening your browser.  Application shortcuts can directly load your favorite online apps.

You can drag tabs out of the browser to create new windows, gather multiple tabs into one window or arrange your tabs however you wish - quickly and easily.

Every tab you’re using is run independently in the browser, so if one app crashes it won’t take anything else down.

Don’t want pages you visit to show up in your web history? Choose incognito mode for private browsing.

Warns you if you’re about to visit a suspected phishing, malware or otherwise unsafe website.

Instant bookmarking.

Internal download manager, see your download’s status at the bottom of your current window.

If you want to compare browsers visually, you can go to Agent Z and see font, table, graphic, and other differences between browsers by opening the site with each browser.

Break the Microsoft Bubble and try a new browser! Not only will you get lots of cool features, but you will also have fewer spyware problems!

Originally written by: Merlin

Tags: alternative browser, browser, chrome, firefox, free web browser, google chrome, ie, internet explorer, netscape, opera