Web browsers are a natural part of online life. And for most of us, judging from web statistics, our online adventures usually start by opening Internet Explorer. “Are there other web browsers?” you may ask. The answer is yes and your choice of browser may be more important that you expect.
Which browser you use not only affects your web surfing experience but plays a small part in the ongoing browser war. In the early days of the Internet, you had the choice between Internet Explorer and Netscape. But now the number of available web browsers is growing, as are the reasons to get beyond your default web browser and explore what the rest of the web has to offer.
HTML Web Standards
When it comes to the website programming languages, standards matter. It might surprise you to know that there is an official standards committee when it comes to HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) and the functionality every browser should support. World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) decides the future of HTML and what new features will be added. As the number of web browsers as grown, some proprietary web browsers have implemented non-standard dialects of HTML, leading to problems with websites looking and acting differently between browsers. These differences cost us, as business owners, every time we make changes to our websites. The extra testing and bug fixing by our web developers for each non-standard browser takes money out of our pockets. Unfortunately Internet Explorer tends to be one of the worst offenders.
Memory and Speed
Performance is another key item to consider when it comes to web browsers. Time adds up fast when you are waiting for web pages to render on your screen. Recently the Chrome browser from Google and Firefox 3.5 from Mozilla have made huge improvements in both faster speed and lower memory consumption. These enhancements translate into much higher performance, the ability to open more active browser windows, with fewer crashes than most other browsers. These performance gains allow your existing desktop computer hardware to last longer without upgrading.
Automatic Upgrades
Time seems to pass quickly on the Internet. Gone are the days when we expected new versions of our favorite software packages on a yearly basis. Software updates are now available multiple times a month. This is good news from a security and reliability perspective. Unfortunately too many businesses get caught in the “Don’t Change Anything” trap. It’s too easy to think that if it works, we shouldn’t fix it. The when it comes to browsers, if you are not staying current on the latest version, you truly are missing out on the best productivity improvements, security updates, and newest features. Consider upgrading to the most recent version of your favorite browser and leaving the automatic upgrades option on so you will continuously be up to date.
Currently I run several different browsers on my desktop. The Google Chrome browser is my default browser for my every day web surfing. And it’s fast, clean interface, and integration with Google lets me focus on finding the information I need quickly. I also use Firefox 3.5 for all of my web development needs. Firefox is a full featured browser with plenty of optional features available through its use of add-ons and plug-ins. Internet Explorer 8 is installed but only for testing purposes. It’s much better than older versions, but pales by comparison to Chrome and Firefox. Your choice of browser can encourage innovation and forward momentum with web standards. Ensure your continued productivity and security by staying current on the latest browser versions. Every little bit helps.
Tyler Whitaker's Infotech 
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