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Back when I was a Windows user I made the switch from IE6 to Firefox around 2005. I switched back to IE7, which I still to this date prefer to Firefox. Firefox had awful memory leaks, it loads up slower, and the new IE interface is far better in my opinion. At that point, I wasn't doing any web dev, so IE did not make me want to scream.

I then bought a Mac in early 2008 on which I use Safari, my current favourite browser, on Windows I now use Chrome. I like the interface and I like the speed.

I think what pissed me off most about Firefox was the fanboys, of which I still consider to be worse than Mac fanboys. I mean check out this guy.
 
When I first started using the internet (in 1996, I think) everybody used Netscape Navigator. I literally did not know anybody who used anything else. When I went to university 1998-2000 every computer (Unix & Windows) ran Netscape. They must have had a market share of at least 95% at their peak! And yet somehow they could not stop losing everything in only a few years.

btw. I use Firefox but will give Chrome a whirl some point soon. Don't like Safari at all.

Yea everyone used Netscape because it was like the "only one" and there was really no market competition for it. I remember reading that when the stock went public they wanted to sell it at 17$ USD starting off then they were like no i think we can do it at 28$ and one of the members wanted to do it at 31$ but they wanted it to be known as a 20$ stock not a 30$ stock. Then when it opened the next day they said it started at something like 71$ and ended at 56$. That's pretty dominant in any market. haha
 
I prefer Chrome over either of them. Firefox IMHO got too bloated and I've just never really taken to Safari.

BigMoo: it's interesting to read Pankaj Ghemawat's counterarguments to Friedman's piece. Both make good points.

I haven't tried chrome, but that is more or less because i resist change a lot haha. And thanks, i will definitely check him out.
 
I use google Amazon eBay flickr and YouTube everyday

Its cool cause you'll pop on a site and it'll offer to add a search drop down

There is an extension for Safari called "Glims." It's a fantastic extension that enables tons of features on Safari, including incredible extensions to the search bar. It provides a list of at least 20 different search engines/websites from which you can choose to search. All of the ones you mentioned were on there (plus many more like wikipedia, macupdate, etc.), except youtube..but it allows you to add any search engine/website which doesn't already come standard with Glims.

I don't know how I forgot to mention that before..you should definitely check it out.
 
Why, Opera

Opera is my browser of choice.

It has a lovely interface, with different selectable skins. More importantly, it seems more responsive on this MacBook than either Firefox or Safari. Safari in particular seems sluggish in comparison. Chrome may be okay, but Google can get back to me when they decide to use a graphic artist for the interface.

Firefox is a secondary choice in instances when media plays better, or even at all, compared to Opera. It seems Firefox will do anything, which sometimes Opera will not, but subjectively this seems to be improving. But I still prefer Opera. Firefox is innovative, however, with one new nice feature that of 'Personas,' which allow one to easily choose from a wide array of artistic styles for both header and footer of the browser window. If a small thing, still quite nice.

Something more important could be security. If they all boast of this, subjectively I lean towards Firefox, if doing online shopping, for instance. But another may be as good or better, they have all probably had their issues, and possibly leapfrog each other to one degree or another. Any more it seems one can receive a vast array of Cookies from sites visited, or third parties, with some of them necessary, and many more better gone. Managing such things varies from Firefox to Opera, etc., so surely some personal preferences involved.

Power users may have different criteria, and I hardly utilize all the many features available. I tend to be happiest with a modern browser that is updated periodically, is nice to look at, and is responsive. Opera provides all that.
 
i have chrome installed but rarely use it. the only thing i dont like about it is that i cant multi-touch page up/down.

i use firefox because i can use 2 fingers to page up/down and the plus button maximize the app. the extensions also help me stick with firefox.
 
I have tried most of the browsers pretty extensively.

Firefox..I just don't like. Never have, never will.

Camino is better than Firefox, but still..no..

Chrome is pretty good..until I decide to watch a video, at which point it basically cripples my computer.

Safari is fast, doesn't eat up all my CPU, and looks the cleanest in my opinion.

Conclusion: Safari all the way.

I monitored Safari and sometimes it uses up 700 mb of Ram. It's not clean at all.

Chrome > Safari on Mac.

On Linux Firefox is pretty good for some reason ( atleast last year it was ). On Mac and Windows I prefer Chrome thus far.
 
Having tried all of them, Safari is overall, head and shoulders above the rest IMHO.
 
i'm gonna be the cantankerous guy and say "why did you post this in the mbp section and not in software??"

also, this seems like one of those personal preference polls that serves no real purpose but to give people an excuse to bicker about stuff. like glossy vs matte. or red vs blue.

finally, i've never found a decisively "best" browser, but rather it tends to fluctuate between which one is least frustrating at a given time. :p

now i'm off to yell at those d*mn kids always playing on my yard!
 
I would go with Opera or Firefox (I prefer Opera). Opera and Firefox both have great syncing capabilities, I prefer Opera's because it syncs with the mobile iPhone application that Firefox doesn't have. Opera turbo is a great feature for when you're in a place with a slow internet connection it makes everything as snappy as if you're on at least DSL.

Opera has great integration with torrents, email, multicomputer processing, note taking, widgets, contact integration, chat, and much more. Firefox can have all these things too, but they require add-ons.

Which brings me to my next point, Firefox has add-ons and lots of them. Anything you want can be installed. I simply prefer Opera because a lot of the features one would want out of a Firefox add-on comes with Opera by default. Opera now has its own add-on department as well, but it's incredibly limited as of now, but will expand.

I personally steer clear of Chrome and Safari, here's why:
Chrome is fancy and all, but it is just one more way that Google would like you to integrate you into their Google life style. It doesn't really have much substance anyway other than speed, which these days you can't really tell over other browsers; they're all damn fast.
Safari has some nice eye candy like Top Sites and cover flow history, but nothing really to keep me coming back. It seems to beach ball out a lot more than any other browser I use.
 
Definitely FireFox.

On Windows (7), Safari is pretty much unusable trash. On OS X, I still prefer Firefox for its flexibility and option of saving not only tabs but history within those tabs. If you do a lot of reading like me, then this is an indispensable feature.
 
I use an old PC laptop occasionally. It is about 4-5 years old. IMO browsers should work as fast as possible while requiring the least amount of processing power. It's easy for me to find out which browsers "work" and which ones don't. The browsers that significantly slow my laptop are "broken," they just need too many resources.

Google Chrome has been the best. It uses the least amount of resources while maintaining a very fast speed. I believe it spreads the crucial processes out so I have five or more smaller chrome.exe tasks as compared to one large *.exe task.

Opera has also done a great job. I stopped using it, though... because, really, who needs to use more than one browser?


Firefox was okay, but noticeably slower than Chrome and Opera. My opinion is it just has too many add-ons... I feel like a 10-year-old. Want to play iTunes through your browser? It's just too much. If I want to play music, I open iTunes. It doesn't bother me that I have to click ONE more time to switch from browser to iTunes.

Internet Explorer. No comment. I'm already slow enough as it is.
 
.....I personally steer clear of Chrome and Safari, here's why:
Chrome is fancy and all, but it is just one more way that Google would like you to integrate you into their Google life style......

You mean like FREE (cloud) email, calendar, document, and contact sync that Apple would like to sell you MobileMe then charge an annual fee for :apple::rolleyes: .......
 
I use an old PC laptop occasionally. It is about 4-5 years old. IMO browsers should work as fast as possible while requiring the least amount of processing power.

Except for those of us with different standards because we have powerful machines. In my case, I love the add-ons and extras of Firefox. I wouldn't want it on my phone, but on my computer, it's fine.
 
Except for those of us with different standards because we have powerful machines. In my case, I love the add-ons and extras of Firefox. I wouldn't want it on my phone, but on my computer, it's fine.

Very true.

However, if I were developing a browser would I want to create the Mercedes or Honda? Tough decision actually. The Mercedes gets all the press but Honda has more end-users.

Or maybe it's time for me to get a new computer.
 
You mean like FREE (cloud) email, calendar, document, and contact sync that Apple would like to sell you MobileMe then charge an annual fee for :apple::rolleyes: .......

You'll note that I knocked both Google AND Apple's product so I don't see why you seem to suggest I'm a MobileMe fanboy. :confused:

Do you ever stop to wonder why Google gives away such expensive technologies for free? It's to get a better handle on who you are, by indexing just about every keystroke you ever make in order to sell who you are to ad agencies. I prefer to not survive at the teat of the grid, which is why I prefer more open efforts like Opera and Firefox.
 
Very true.

However, if I were developing a browser would I want to create the Mercedes or Honda? Tough decision actually. The Mercedes gets all the press but Honda has more end-users.

Or maybe it's time for me to get a new computer.

How about both? Honda made the NSX and the S2000. Merc is owned by Daimler-Chrysler.
 
firefox uses 150mb ram on my mac, while chrome less than that (i open 5 tabs on each browser)

i will definitly goes chrome if this browser have many add-on like firefox..
 
You'll note that I knocked both Google AND Apple's product so I don't see why you seem to suggest I'm a MobileMe fanboy. :confused:.....

Sorry, that wasn't my intent. I did note you knocked both; but fanboy or not, you suggested you didn't like Safari for Safari's shortcomings and knocked Chrome for Google's :eek:.
 
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