Which Browser is Best:
Determining the Benefits to Each Browser

Which Browser is Best:
Determining the Benefits to Each Browser The purpose of this research paper is to take the reviews from users to help highlight both the positives as well as the negatives of the top four widely used Internet browsers, which will ultimately help determine which browser is the best available for consumers to use. The purpose of this study is to determine which browser is the best out of the four, and to highlight the best features from each browser, and determine their significance on how each feature is. The significance of the study is to analyze the information given on each browser and translate it into information that Internet users can take away to help them determine which browser is the best one for them between Internet Explorer, Safari, Firefox, and Chrome. The Internet has become more readily available across the globe which has caused many software developers to create their own Internet browser. In the past couple of years there has been a flood of Internet browsers available for use (Bidgoli, 2009). When the Internet was only available in select countries there was only a select number of browsers that a user could use to access the Internet. The Internet is only going to become available to more people which will most likely bring more Internet browsers to the market. There are currently millions of users that are accessing the Internet daily and each browser developer is fighting for their share of users in an effort to prevent one single browser from dominating the entire market. There was a point in time when Internet Explorer was the most widely used Internet browser because it came pre-installed on any computer that ran on a Windows Operating System platform. During this time Internet Explorer could have been seen as a monopoly because they ran the market on Internet browsers because there wasn’t competition from other browsers. In time, Internet Explorer was met with strong competition from companies like Mozilla, who developed and released Firefox, and then Apple, who brought their Safari browser to the table. In the past couple of year’s mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, there has been a need for a developer to release a browser that can be used on the go by the consumers who own these devices. The research paper will evaluate the characteristics of the browsers unmistakably displaying the positives and negatives of each browser to narrow down which browser is the best out of the four. The first browser that will be evaluated is Apple’s Safari which runs on Mac computers using the Mac OSX operating system. This Internet browser can also be run on PC’s that have Windows XP Service Pack 2 and above. Apple’s Safari browser is popular amongst its users because it is designed to take up less storage, and it brings Apple’s sleekness that is known from all their products. In terms of the amount of users who download this browser, Safari chases their competition mainly because it used to be a browser that was strictly available for only Mac computers. In 2007, Apple released Safari to the largest market share of computer users, being able to be run the browser on PC’s. Safari was one of the last of the four browsers to be released to both Mac and PC’s, which has caused the numbers of downloads to be lacking. Many of the users of this browser discuss that they not only like this browser because it can be used on both systems, but it is fast because of how lightweight it is and it is very simplistic to use. Having a user interface is an excellent feature to have as many users continuously seek to find browsers that are more user friendly than others. On the other hand Safari is said to be lackluster in the customization department. Compared to its competition Safari lacks the number of plugins a user can choose from, whereas the competition has a large selection of plugins and other customization tools that sets them apart from Safari. For example, Firefox has a list of add-ons that can be enabled to give users a more customized feel and a personalized browsing capability. Safari does have some features that allow users to some type of personalized style and allow users to customize how they browse the Internet. One feature that Safari has built into it that allows users to get the personalized feeling is the list of Top Sites. Top Sites shows a list of websites that the user frequents the most and puts them in a window to be displayed when the browser opens so the user can click on the window rather than having to type the entire URL in to gain access to the website. Each Internet browser is similar to Safari in the fact that they all contain proprietary usability features, and Apple’s Safari is no different (Gralla, 1998). Other than some features like Top Sites, Safari contains the basic features that their competition has like a password manager, spell check, tabs, and the ability to switch back and forth between the tabs. When looking at Safari, they fall behind their competition in the aspect that they recently just made their browser available to both PCs and Mac. Another reason they are behind competitors is the restricting customization features that their competition offers. Experts argue that the browser struggles when it comes to the customization ability, not being able to sync toolbars, does not allow parental controls, and the zooming capability. Apple’s products are known for their ability to protect their users from any security threats, and Safari is no different. This browser is built on the ability to protect its users from malware that can fraud people to allow access into computers without the individual knowing. Safari also gives users the ability to delete their history. If an outside threat was able to gain access to the individuals computer all history would be gone so things like credit card information and recent purchases would be protected. These types of features prevents user’s sensitive information from being leaked and gives the user the ability to protect themselves while they are online and browse safely. As stated before Safari is one of the last four browsers to be available to both Mac and PC users. However, even being available for less time Safari can hold its own against its competitors. Safari’s speed is up to standard with the top browsers. The browser opens up in less than five seconds and also is compatible with most websites. The next Internet browser being discussed is Internet Explorer. Internet Explorer is the most well-known browser in the world. IE at one point was the sole browser being used to gain access to the Internet using personal computers. One of the features that Internet Explorer has that appeals to its users is that like Safari it also uses a tab system and can also suggest website URLs when typing letters using the users viewing history. This feature is one that makes Internet Explorer stand out even though other browsers have similar features. IE has a solitary box that is used to search for websites addresses plus has full compatibility with Windows 7. An Internet Explorer user has the ability to create what the browser considers a jump list, or a list that is created from a recent website that is frequently visited. These websites are pinned on the task bar for the user to be able to access easily. Internet Explorer also allows the user to be able to customize the websites being pinned to the task bar and even let the user add what websites they want to be pinned. Internet Explorer also has settings to allow the user to control the level of security being implemented as the user browses. The lower on the scale the security setting is the less restricting the browsing experience is but there is a higher chance an attack happens. On the other hand the higher the security setting the less there is that an attack will occur while browsing, but the browsing experience is more restricting to the user. There is a security setting that allows the user to access and browse through different websites while not recording website information or saving passwords or credit card information. Unlike Safari, Internet Explorer allows users several choices for plugins and add-ons that create a unique browsing experience. The user has the ability to put their add-ons into four different categories for easy access. The four categories are timesavers, entertainment, browser, and security add-ons. Some of the negatives that come from Internet Explorer is the lack of spell check capability or a download manager. When the user goes to download a file a pop up will appear separate from the program and once it is gone the capability to manage the download disappears. Another downfall Internet Explorer has compared to its competitors is that it is not an open source. Open source software is a program that is developed and continuously monitored and updated by a network of individuals. The coding for these open source browsers are shared in a public location to encourage individuals who are familiar with programming to improve the browser. Keeping this in mind, security and updates are available on a regular basis. Unlike these other browsers, Internet Explorer is not an open source software and relies on the individuals who work for Microsoft to be the people to bring different ideas and implement them into the software. This can be seen as a negative because the different ideas that could make Internet Explorer better could come from individuals who don’t work for Microsoft and will often times never see their ideas put into Internet Explorer which could force them to go to an open source browser. On a positive note Internet Explorer does bring an extensive set of parental controls to the browser. These controls allow parents to set what their child is able to view and access on that computer. Along with the parental controls the browser also has security features that protects the user from the viruses, phishing attempts, and spyware. The browser also guards against fraudulent websites that attempt to gain personal information by using a cross site filter. However, even though Internet Explorer contains all of these security features it has been plagued with a number of security exposures. Internet Explorer is one of the most used browsers it has been susceptible to more malicious attacks and behavior that is considered unethical than the other top browsers. On the other hand this browser is considered to be competitive with the other browsers because of its minimal time to launch and the quickness of being able to surf through different websites. Internet Explorer also isn’t susceptible to the compatibility issues that users who use Safari experience. The reason for this is IE supports both existing and new web standards. Internet Explorer has a notification bar that decreases the need for popup windows and other discussion boxes. When a new notification arises it will show up in the notification bar which allows the user to access it when they want to rather than having to do it instantly. The third browser being examined is Mozilla’s Firefox. There are several users that see this browser as the top internet browser available to Internet users. It isn’t unexpected for Internet users to want an uninterruptable that offers the top technical competence. Firefox has experienced many improvements, some of which have come from developers outside of Mozilla thanks to being an open source program. Some examples of technical improvements that have come from users is tabbed browsing, built in search engines with the ability to be customized, and a RSS reader that is included. Firefox’s entry into a market has shaken up the market that has been dominated by Internet Explorer for several years. Due to Internet Explorer being one of the original browsers it has been hard for browsers to make their way into the market and compete with Internet Explorer. Although the market has been almost monopolistic, Mozilla has shifted the market to their favor and taken away many users from Internet Explorer. Firefox has been designed using its own ideas but also identified the flaws that Internet Explorer has and created a stronger platform that eliminated those flaws. Stronger security features, integrated parental controls, and a user friendly interface are some of the highlights that are important to users when searching for an Internet browser. One disadvantage that has been identified about Firefox is it doesn’t support ActiveX. ActiveX is a software program that is designed to improve compatibility with many websites. Even though Firefox lacks the support of ActiveX it still remains as one of the fastest browser. Firefox is not only one of the fastest browsers it is also very stable while offering new and innovative browsing techniques. Similar to the other browsers, Firefox has integrated a powerful synchronization tool. A user is able to sync their browser to gain access to view browsing history, bookmarks, passwords and many others available to both mobile and desktop browsers (Gralla, 1998). The other browsers also have tab features to allow for quicker browsing as well as being able to more easily access web pages in one window. In Firefox the user is also able to reorganize the order of the tabs, customization of the tabs in a panorama feature, and recover the tabs in the event that the browser crashes or the computer shuts off. There are many more features that are available to the user to provide a lustrous browsing experience. Firefox also has an add-n feature that allows users to give it voice commands while browsing. Another feature that is appealing is the amount of time it takes to download and install to the user’s computer. The Firefox file often takes less than two minutes to download and less than 10 minutes to do a complete install. Many will argue that the download speed depends on the speed of the individual’s Internet. The download and installation of Firefox has been designed to easy as compared to other browsers. The ease of installation can be compared to Safari, in the fact that Safari is seen as not an easy installation. Like other Apple products, Safari has its own shortcomings that Apple has struggled to fix when developing its products. To download and install Safari it requires the user to give more time to completely install the software. Mozilla created an instinctive design for its user interface. An example of this is, when creating this interface the developers aimed to have a similar look to that of Internet Explorer to appeal to users who are used to using Internet Explorer. When the user digs deeper and becomes more experienced with the browser they will see that the interface is an enhanced version of Internet Explorer. With this method Firefox hopes to create a liking from users and favor Firefox over Internet Explorer. The perception can be narrowed down to the use of verbiage in the software. Often times the language that is put into browsers are done by more technical people than the average user it often confuses the user, whereas the user may want to search for extra guidance and interpretation if they get stuck. The language included in Firefox are more basic and easier for the user to understand and can help them solve problems the user may run into. Changing words to more basic words give the user more confidence and set themselves apart from Internet Explorer which most users are familiar with. The search bar incorporated into Firefox is more flexible and appealing than the add-ons that have to be added to Internet Explorer. A feature that is unique to Firefox is the use of virtual sticky notes. Virtual sticky notes allows users to add additional information or thoughts to a website and have access to them from the toolbar. Firefox also has a Smart Location feature that can adapt itself to the users searching and their preferences. Firefox contains boosted security features that allows the user to turn on and turn off privacy mode. Privacy mode is a feature that can be turned on and Firefox won’t record or track any of the websites that the user looks at. Like Internet Explorer, Firefox also has security features to prevent the user from getting any spyware pop-ups and prevents against any type of phishing attempts. The developers at Mozilla will create updates that can be automatically downloaded to make sure the browser is always up to date against any threats. The fourth and last browser being evaluated is Google’s Chrome. Chrome had an even later start than the other browsers as it hadn’t made its way to the market until 2008. When the developers of Chrome had released it to the market it brought with it faster browsing speed, a modernized set up, and rapidly iterating software, which forced the competition to redesign their software to keep up with Chrome (Muchmore, 2014). Chrome’s design had grabbed the attention of Internet users and put themselves on top of the market for several years. Like Firefox, Chrome has been developed with a simplistic design so users could navigate and browse without having to learn a new software. Google Chrome has been designed to take little toll on the computer system while remaining as fast as possible. The fact that it is a minimalistic design it takes little time to open up the browser and opening up new webpages is done quickly. Like their competition Chrome offers user’s security features to prevent any information that the user is not willing to share from being leaked and ending up in the hands of cybercriminals. Some of the features that Chrome offers for security is the ability to enter incognito mode which can be compared to Firefox’s privacy window. The user also has the ability to customize the privacy settings of their browser. Chrome offers malware and phishing protection as well as suggestions for errors that come from navigating. Another browsing feature that comes with Chrome is the different customization features. For example, users that share their computers with other user can add secondary accounts to Chrome which allows the users to keep their bookmarks and other settings separate from the other users. Chrome is on top of support of HTML5 as well as JavaScript performance which indicates how interactive the software is. However, on the downside Chrome drops behind competitors with their graphics hardware acceleration (Muchmore, 2014). Although Chrome offers these security features as well as a Do Not Track tool, Chrome’s security features aren’t as strong as Firefox’s. After reviewing the leading Internet browsers, it is easy to see that Mozilla Firefox is the best available browser on the market today. Although the features that come out of Safari and Chrome are strong, Firefox can match or exceed most of the features that come from the competition. The customization features are non-existent in Safari and Chrome and Firefox can be seen as comparable in this standpoint. However, when Firefox revamped their browser they had already captured the millions of users over the span of existence and attracted new users by adding more features and made it also easier for the user to customize the browser to their needs. When considering the speed of the browsers Chrome’s minimalist design is appealing, however Firefox has made huge advances in reducing the amount of memory it takes to run the program as well as cutting down on the launch time. Over the past year Firefox has created a faster and better browser for users to surf the Internet with. According to PC Magazine’s Editor’s Choice, Firefox has positioned itself back at the top of the list after Chrome had dominated the market for several years. From the research performed it appears that Mozilla’s Firefox is the best Internet browser on the market.

Resources
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