I have IE at work and both IE & Mozilla Firefox at home and I prefer Firefox but I am wondering what others think and why. I am especially curious about Opera after seeing the link in <bleedingheart> 's sig.

I've used every major browser and a few others I find opera to be the best IMHO. Its not perfect but every aspect of it is customisable (tons of skins, custom mouse gestures, toolbar setups etc), so I have set up exactly as I want it, it has inbuilt IRC, email, newsfeeds, notes, intelligent pop-up blocker plus more.

For the sites I visit most often it works better the firefox, renders pages faster. Is a screenreader, has voice capability and loads of other stuff. Obviously as with FF its more secure and standard compliant than IE and IE Clones. Depending on what sites you visit and what tools you want its prob. a choice between Opera and FF.

Opera features (its obviously edged towards Opera but it goes through a lot of the other features.)

O..this exactly the kind of information I was after. Thanks BH!

i chose IE, most people just jump on the bandwagon when a new browser comes out as it is "cool" to not use IE now a days it seems, i cant even remember the first alternate browser to come out was, but it has since died, now firefox is in its place and ina few months it will be dead too

I've already had it for a few months

I still prefer Internet Explorer, although I use Mozilla Thunderbird as my e-mail client instead of Outlook Express.

I've tried using Firefox, but it still has some problems that need to be ironed out before it can truly replace IE in my opinion.

IE is an oldie but still a goody and a firm fave. I have also had problems with firefox. Opera is okay and I use safari too but I always go back to IE.

Well Opera has been around since 94, IE since 95 and Mozilla (in various stages) since at lest 98. Ive been an Operauser for about 2 years and its far from dead. FF is gaining ground and certaintly wont be dead in a few months, too many people willing to keep developing. The ones that fall are the browsers built on IE they take it put a different skin on it and maybe added a basic tabbed browing option but dont improve any on the foundation. As for it being a bandwagon, why is it so bad for poeple to have options if they prefer the alternatives they will stick with them, if it makes MS improve IE it will be good for all concerned. IE was afterall a MS attempt to loosen Netscapes stranglehold on the market (upto 80% market share) it succeeded for two main reasons IE is free and Netscape started to get lazy.

The biggest failing of the alternative browsers was the big sites making it difficult to access them, this is slowly changing with the like of Google and Yahoo giving people that option.

IE will never be as problem free as the others, MS is too big a target the anti-spyware program is an example of this. If any of the larger alternatives come out with a program to match Outlook MS will see serious competition. Although to be fair MS dont really care, regardless of the browser a person chooses it will still have the bulk of the OS market.

What I would like to know is why people prefer IE? I have used FF for quite a few months and I find I have less problems with spy/ad ware than with IE. With IE on the other hand I still find things that sneak past.

i have had no problems at all with IE, no spyware, popups are taken care of with the googlebar, IE is programmed by microsoft, the biggest software company in the world, those are my reasons


and by what i meant about in a few months FF will be dead, is that it wont be the talk of the town anymore, sure there will be people who use it and develop for it, but its 10 minutes of fame will be up

I'm telling you. IE chooses who its nice to and who its not
no seriously, I mean it.
But I would like to see how the new IE turns out.

Well the best as in it doesn't cost anything and is reliable (no pop ups! and controle of cookies) Firefox, but if you want one with the same reliability and with more options go with Safari.

It comes free with Os X (10.3) panther...which rocks!

Os wha???


oh that must be some crazy macintosh system



jk

Thats what the netscape faithful said about IE.

I prefer IE because it's simple, straight forward and does the job. I don't tend to have any problems with spyware, spyware can be avoided by making sure you don't run or install dodgy software or e-mail attachments, and be wary of strange active-X or script components on some web sites.

I've tried Firefox, and i've found that it has trouble displaying some elements on some web sites. Whether that is signficant or not though I suppose depends on whether I am overly picky, as I tend to be looking at it from the perspective of someone who makes web sites as oppose to someone who is only viewing them.

Overall i find IE more useful than Firefox, but then that's just me. Different users will find either browser more or less useful depending on personal preference.

Thanks to everybody who responded.

I've always had problems with IE...every time I wanted to click on a link my computer would freeze...used to bug the life out of me...so I changed for that reason.

All I want is a browser that works for me and does what I want it to...its down to what you as an individual feels comfortable using

[story that is told like if it has a moral, but doesnt]You know... I had a poll like this in a Norwegian forum. When i said i liked IE best. This are some of the responses i got (translated to English):




Now, i have nothing against FF, but when I meet hardcore FF fans that can't respect others opinions, then I get alittle pissed off.[/story that is told like if it has a moral, but doesnt]

I got my pop-up blocker, antivirus, antispyware and firewall so I'm well protected.
I prefer IE!

Got IE...

i love Mozilla Firefox its really is great and i love all the add-ons like foxy tunes and bug me not i found that it something cant display things on some websites but add-ons take care of it for me firefox is the best .

I prefer Firefox, I use also Safari for Mac OS.
Firefox has really cool extensions - you can install weather watch, mail check, Chatzilla...

FireFox seems to be the browser of choice with IE a close second.

I hate Opera (free version anyways) So many distracting banners and advertisemenst! AHHHHHHHHH!

IE is OK but my ones broken (The adress bar has dissapeared )

FF is 'The' browser for me.

I recently got a beta leak of Windows Longhorn, and with it it has a new 'Internet Explorer' Looks alot like the tacky MSN browser, and it still doesn't have tabbed webpages

Uhh... banners in free Opera? If you mean the 32px high Google text ad at the top, I don't even see it anymore. The pros of Opera definately outweigh those 32px. IE's stupid prev, next, stop and whatever buttons take up more space. And in Opera, all those buttons are unnecessary. I have deleted them all.
But the main reason for not using IE for me is that all that IE does with web standards is wipe its arse. Why can it not simply render html and css like it is recommended? Why does it not automatically load the alpha channel in PNG images?

this is what im talking about, people...just because you expierience a simple problem you think IE is garbage? try going to view >> toolbars >> address bar and make sure address bar is checked...problem solved, all you did was accidently hide it

---

one other thing i find funny, is statements like these




its the best because you need to download add-ons for it work like a normal browser

A normal website shouldn't let its visitors need plugins anyway. Simply coding in proper (X)HTML with proper CSS can make better sites than those filled with Flash and other embedded media.
To be honest, if I come across a site that I can't visit at that moment, I close the tab and make the vow never to return to the site again. It's not like it's the only source for the requested information, I'll find another site that does work properly.

I'd use IE if it had a tab system and didnt crash one me every once in a while. Right now I'm using Opera 6.5, an old one. Going to try Opera 8. Hopefully it doesnt have all that crap ver. 7 had.

I have worked with all the above and I have personally found "firefox" to be the fastest, easiest to use and most secure.

*********************EDITED**********************************************

The only time I now use IE is for updates to win xp operating system. It seems Microsoft does not support firefox to use this-big surprise!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just installed Opera 8 pro. This thing is nice. No nonsense, no clutter. Has some neat features. You can save and manage sessions. You can set pages to different zoom levels. It has a nice built in seach window for several engines. You can quickly enable/disable viewing images on the page. And it supports skins, yey! Anyway, looks like a pretty solid browser so far.

Oh ya, another awesome feature I just discovered! It has a built-in speech engine. Select any text in the browser and press "v" and it will read it to you outloud But you will have to download a patch first. To do so, select any text, right-click on it, and select "Speak." It will download the patch and you're ready to go. No more reading long posts with no paragraphs

same here

MrScienceGuy,
one of the truly lovely features are the address shortcuts. When you bookmark a page, you can give it a nickname, for instance "um" for this site. Then when you want to visit this site later, you simply type "um" in the address bar and it teleports you here
Another kb shortcut like that is "g". Type "g anything" in your address bar and it'll automatically let Google search for "anything". Can also be done with highlighted text. Right-click > Search with... > Google.

Great, thanks!
Another one is spell checking. Right-click in inside the text box and press Check spelling. Have to install the patch at first, but it's really easy. Good for the Fast Reply feature on the UM.

i wont deny that firefox has some pretty nice add-ons, but flash with out function is well....just flash

Dont know about firefox, but opera 8 > ie

Hello. Here is the browser I have been using for 2 years now, and im on it now...Avant browser. It is a tabbed browser, built off of the IE shell. It is faster than any browser out there, I have tried all the browsers you have mentioned on this topic, firefox, opera...slow...slow....slow..... imo that is. Give it a try and see what you guys think. One thing, since it isnt a big popular browser like IE, Avant isnt targeted with spyware like IE.

I've been using Firefox for a few months now. The thing I like about it the most is the New Tab feature. But lately, I've been having tons of problems with it, so I think I might go back to using Internet Explorer.

Firefox

I switched when my version of IE acquired it's umpteenth virus - and at the time I was running a hardware firewall , a software firewall, two a/v's and anti-spyware.

I'm glad I did. I'm not sure how I survived for so long without tabs and a Google search bar.

I've not tried Opera though - was put off in the early days due to reports of bad compatability, etc. May well spend a day or two having a look at it and seeing what all of the fuss is about...

I use IE because it is the best if you use your common sense and do not install various things. (Like always wise Saruman earlier said).
I did not like FF because it didn't measure up to IE and Freezed up and was slow.
Maybe demanding and more advanced users prefer IE and the ordinary surfer does not care if things are missing or don't work, like FF.
Maybe it depends on what you do and want to use your browser for.

I format and reinstall everything in my computer maybe twice a year..it becomes so easygoing after every time (also update the hardware, extend memory etc if necessary)

Firefox is the way to go. The installation defaults are kinda aimed at the IE crowd (it will, in fact, import your IE favorites on installation if you want it to), but it is VERY easily customized for your hardware, connection type and experience level. Plus, the add-ons are GREAT. NO pop-ups. Java-script blockers (or not). Much, much more secure and stable.. Tabbed browsing. Live bookmarks. How about clicking on a sellers name in ebay and instantly seeing all his negative feedback! You want surfing?? Try Stumble Upon! (It's how I found THIS site) This is what what a browser should be.

(Not to denigrate Opera or Netscape, or the rest, I just happened to try Firefox first, and was amazed!)

From what I hear, MS is finally realizing that IE sux, and is working on a new IE that will work and feel a lot like Firefox. But I'm pretty sure it will still be riddled with the Microsoft heritage, and it will still suck. We'll see.

I think IE is better as compared to mozilla firefox, and about opera i didn't try
it. though firefox loads the page a bit faster i had some problems browsing certain sites. even ftp's find themselves better at IE than firefox.

I have used Fire Fox for a couple of months now and find it infinitley superior to IE. With the odd graphical problem on the web as, to be fair, most sites are designed for IE viewing.

The results of this poll are interesting - only 39% have voted for IE, even though the actual percentage of users using it is closer to 90%.

It suggests that people who use IE aren't as likely to vote in this poll, whereas users of other browsers, such as Firefox, are more likely to vote because they are using an alternative browser and want to make that fact known.

Either that, or most of the people who have voted for Firefox here are still actually using IE.

^to go along with that, most people just dont care enough to vote lol


but IE is being redone, and it will be awesome, should be out by the time the new windows is released, longhorn or whatever they are calling it these days

Mmm... lemme see:
I used to use (that's redundant, I know) IE until I got sick of the keyloggers, spyware and stuff. Now I use FF and I like it. I know it has some problems like access to FTPs (I've had to do it, and used IE, mind you), but I find the tabbed system to be way easier than IE.

So, for advanced stuff like FTPs and stuff, IE. For everyday browsing, FF.

Now, we'll see how the new IE is like

Everyone is gonna say this browser is good over this one and that. You get that everywhere. And I think that my sister wants me to change to FireFox. I like using Internet Explorer because it's easy to use.

Firefox works faster for me for some reason(I have dial up haha laugh at me )
So I'd have to say firefox.

I use slimbrowser similar features to opera when i downloaded firefox i couldnt copy and paste correctly...

It looks like Firefox is still the favourite @ 53.06%

The ONLY thing that's better about IE over FF is the fact that some pages require IE. Other than that, it's FF all the way. I havn't tried those other browsers though.

IE is always getting hijacked, or it freezes up and not to mention loads slower. Doesn't have tabbed browsing, no kool skins(Does it even have skins), etc.

yep...you guys should try slimbrowser just try it out for an hour and tell me how it come out man....