I'm currently using a release candidate for FF 3, and both the memory and CPU usage have been improved substantially.

Like others who have posted, I use both IE7 and Firefox. Although IE7 is my default browser. I spend most of my time with Firefox. In my case, IE7 is required for some of the financial applications I use. I wish there was an easier way to transfer bookmarks back and forth between the two browsers. I'm looking forward to Firefox 3.

I had never tried Opera or Safari. So I really can't comment on them. I would call this a very timely topic as Firefox 3 will be officially released next Tuesday.

Microsoft is racing to release IE 8. However, I have learned the hard way with Microsoft products that it is better to wait until the version x.02 release or later, because it takes them that long to fix the things that should have been fixed before they released the product.

Just my opinion,

Storm Raven

MS will need a big deal of real and useful features if hope to revert the picture showed in this poll.
Not anything as announce tabs as advanced technology and pretending then not existing for years in other's browsers.
And this commentary about product releases being below the minimal criteria is just fact repeated in it's whole history.
When moving from DOS to Windows, the version 3.0 (the first that even flied) was just something more than a toy and was not until 3.1 for workgroups that it could be claimed something "almost" professional and at this time MS was all about turning on its MSN (Micro Soft Network, don't mistake this for their nowadays instant messenger) blatantly closing the eyes to the newborn Internet. At this time and for long its network was based in the Netbios and didn't supported TCP/IP. That was the time of Netscape becoming the browser to go. Well... that plan failed, MSN couldn't prevent Internet becoming "The Internet". Not even the almighty MS couldn't stop it and so it had to recover all the time lost and so it launched the ill intentioned Internet Explorer. Attached it in the OS so to "force" it's use and fronted all sues it received with fierce determination. Relaxed a bit, placing IE in the OS but 'allowing' its removal, but in a way no one but an IT expert could do, and even so the OS was aways, taunting the reinstall of "the thing". The result is known. IE eventually got ahead Netscape, never for being better, aways for being boring to get rid. Firefox, via Mozilla is the heir of Netscape that returned to revindicate it's place.
That wasn't the only time MS used its influence to bias things. It built its power over unaware seduced users for fancy, vanity and lightness of thoughts. Place it in a beautiful wrap and you sell out all kind of craps is it's moto, and they proved this being real.
Sorry for the long post. But I feel if I'm to say I prefer something better I say "why I like it", above just "because I like it"

Safari for Windows, its bookmarking system is probably the only reason I use it. In any other aspect, it's nothing special, takes up 60Mb compared to Firefox's 30mb

Firefox cant beat it

I had a couple of BSoDs with IE, which changed when I switched to Firefox. I haven't stopped using Firefox since. I have Opera as my backup browser.

firefox sucks

internet explorer, cmon, anyone with half a brain can operate this browser.

IE 7

no comments

As long as it's no Internet Explorer, because most viruses are made for that. Elsewise I could see no difference at all between IE and Firefoz except the colors etc.

You cant download some things on firefox, i personally like Intenet Explorer

IE sucks
Takes up almost double the bandwidth it does to operate firefox

Firefox here

opera is fast , firefox is safe , internet explorer is easy to use .

In 3 day the "download day" will start.
Download Firefox 3 the 17th june and you will participe to set a guiness world record .

firefox is the only browser you'll ever need.
------------------------------------------------------------
PROS:
-faster then IE
-MUCH safer for the avarage user
-simple
-safety can be near 100% if you use the right plugins (noscript, ad block, etc), although only advanced users will know how to use these.
-can change its look!
-can be downloaded at work since the install doesn't need admin rights (just put in in your documents folder)
-A LOT of customization ability
-auto updates engine and plugins
-"IE Tab" plugin and your set!
-------------------------------------
CONS:
-can take up to 20 sec to load it initially on older PCs
-like .0000001% of the worlds websites dont work well if at all (freeze) although IE tab solves this, but not many people know about it
-built in download manager sucks and lies (not accurate). It often start a download at 200+ kb/s then it trickles down to the 40-50's, when that is not even possible because ive only got a 768 kbits/s connection (downloads cap out at around 70-80 kb/s). and its not fast either i can download the same thing with IE and get atleast 10-20 kb difference which is alot for someone with a pooty connection like me. however i have Internet Download Manager (IDM) so I dont care about FF's download manager but i just wanted to let the people know
-----------------------------------------------------------
Overall firefox is the best browser IMO, lots of customization for advanced users but still usable by normal users at no drawback, on the contrary you get added safety!

edit: download FF3 and give it a try! will stick to 2 for now until i see how 3 plays out!

FireFox. Because it's the best

Nuff said...

I have a problem with such "Battle of the Browsers", and that is Firefox fanboys... no matter how much you show the actual real weaknesses within firefox or the vunabilities... there are those who no matter what, must against the face of all known logic, dismis factual evidence that in the past many times over has shown the browser to actually have major security issues (largely due to firefox plug-ins, has more security issues then IE's activeX!)

Is actually slower then the original mozilla... not even worth comparing to the actual main stream browsers... it doesn't come off that good. Not a very stand compatible browser (haven't checked in the past couple of months but has it actually had an RC pass ACID 2 yet? Opera did it years ago... IE and Safari did it last year...) I know people have faked it passing in the past thus why I say at least an RC since that's something I can just download and test...

But meh... I could back this all up, I have done it before... but there are those that just don't wanna listen in the face of evidence...

But anyways as for security... people that go on about browser security... yeah... most website that bypass IE, also bypass FF, and quite a few even bypass Opera (whici is what I use)... no browser is safe. Get out get a good firewall and anti-virus if you want to be safe... or a Mac.

Remember, port 80 is very open, and doesn't have to go to the browser... a browser is not a firewall, using a certain browser does NOT make you safe, I have seen machines using <insert browser here> get heavily infected with virus's and spyware...

actually you are safer with FF then IE especially if you get add-ons like adblock or noscript. we are not just talking about viruses and trojans here.

safety while browsing also has the following things and more:
-no java poo running in a website without you knowing what its doing
-no tracking cookies being saved
-no ads popping up in your face or on the website

sure IE stops this stuff but it also disables the whole freakin page while its at it, you need to click the thing on the top of the window then allow the website to work, but after you do that everything will work on said website (java, activex, stc). In other worlds its all or nothing with M$ (like vista). on the other hand Firefox has the same capabilities but if you throw in No-script you can control exactly what goes on in your browser (almost).

for example if you visit MySpace on IE or FF atleast all of the following websites will be accessing your comp and leaving cookies behind:
www.myspace.com
www.myspacecdc.com
www.googlesyndication.com

But if you get noscript you can select to permanently (or temporarily) allow/block a certain url - which in turn blocks all activity from that site. as you can see from the example above, we have "googlesyndication" loading. wtf? im on freaking myspace wth is google doing there? and thats were you get FF to permanently block it allowing faster load times (one less url to load) and no cookies from "googlesyndication"; however IE will greet it with open arms into your cookies folder once you choose to "allow" myspace.*

go here for more reasons not to use IE:
http://www.lockergnome.com/news/2004/06/15...ernet-explorer/

*edit: nevermind just tested myspace with IE and it simply loads the whole thing (BS and all), and it was slower then FF as well.

Isn't just this thread, indeed is common place no one defending IE (among almost anything coming from MS) with arguments. Except, maybe, if we accept "why is the best", "is more fancy" or something alike as arguments.
To the ones that says some site will open only IE I question... Why you think is this way? and me myself give you the answer: it is because it is non compliant with the standards. It is because it is designed with proprietary and Internet alien features. And is because then must be shunned or we will be.
In former post in this thread I touched MS dreams of making it's own worldwide net. They indeed tried this. Their net was not even compliant with the Internet protocols. It not even used TCP/IP in favor of the most ill projected protocol I ever had to work. I'm talking about "netbios" and I'm repeating myself why even though in Windows XP it is optional, it is yet the default.

I bet most of you XP users that troubles to look the Network properties will find this netbios lurking under yours TCP/IP. This infamous protocol was and yet is the most open security hole that plagued all Windows versions.

And MS yet don't give up trying control the world communication. Rising from death their dreamed OwnNet is clearly in their Instant Messenger, cleverly named MSN (and after renamed Live after new failure).

But the worse is they will not stop if can't impose their net, they are trying undermine the 'commodities' of the actual Internet. Pervert and use close/proprietary protocols, you can read several names here... Web vXYZ... NET framework....

Even if you will not give a damn for all this babbling try answer to yourself why you can't tell one only reason, real reason other then is satisfied being lead to the slaughter. Seduced by bright wraps and lack of understanding what means things as: TC (Trusted Computing) or as MS call it Trustworthy Computing as if this new name changes anything.

Maybe you even want google "Halloween Memoranda". The first one gives the creeps to anyone able to think for himself.

I like Opera the best. To be fair, I haven't used Firefox much at all.

However, I use IE on my gaming PC (it's a gaming PC because I'm currently not doing anything else with it...), and I only have IE installed. I haven't bothered to install Opera on it yet.

Another Firefox user here..

I use firefox because of its plugins. There are thousands of plugins which you can choose to suite your needs...IE also has but not as many as firefox..

I use firefox . why? it's safer and I guess ever since i started using it, i've been able to configure it easier.

Firefox 3 is coming out this 17 i'm getting it right away

Firefox all the way...unless you just enjoy having microsoft spyware on your pc. >.>

dude...

Firefox is my choise. because of it's add-ons.

Firefox or course...

I use FireFox (and others) initially because it wasn't Microsoft Internet Explorer. IE allowed software to auto-install and caused(es) all kinds of security problems. I could even write a small WSH script that created an invisible IE instance, access and send data via the Internet and close it down without the user ever knowing it happened...even if a hardware or software firewall was in use.

I simply got tired of junkware being installed silently just by "cruzin" the Internet (and no, I'm not talking about porn sites which almost guarantee you will catch some kind of disease).

Firefox along with the NoScript plugin is a base installation at home and at work (yep, I control all 300 PCs where I work). Additional plugins are also quite handy to me such as Web Developer, Aging Tabs, Better GMail 2, Download Statusbar, UnPlug and WebMail Notifier.

LHammonds

Firefox for sure. Can't live without my plugins, and yeah NoScript is definitely the first plugin to install, followed directly by Adblock Plus, lol.

Oh the release for FF3 is tomorrow? Nice! I tried ff3rc2 (or was it 3? *shrug*) and there was some strange bug that wouldn't let me backspace, or use arrow keys or even numbers I think, while in gmail. Very strange. Hopefully they have that fixed with the release, lol.

Seems to me the ones who don't like IE never took the time to dig into the Advanced Tab or the Security Settings. Also, the #1 freeware program SpyBot Search & Destroy uses IE's ability to immunize against bad websites. Major anti-spyware & anti-malware companies have made Toolbars for IE also.

SpyBot does not use IE ability to immunize, rather it immunizes IE to prevent some problems that would otherwise be possible. Big difference.
For me, it basically boils down to -- why use a browser that is a) less secure both due its design and ATM more widespread use, making it more attractive for malware creators/hackers b) implements extremely useful features years after most other browsers (I'm willing to bet anything that this will not change in our lifetime, it's not just tabs, themes etc.) c) is not nearly as customizable and d) has no feature of its own that would annul the advantages of others. Does anyone really believe IE would be so widespread if it was not installed as soon as you install Windows?
Time to check FireFox 3.

Firefox

I use Firefox @ home!

I use IE and will never move to FireFox. I duno why everyone alsways seems to have problems with it, but I never do. I see no reason to move to firefox. It has tabs, addons and themes? Whoopie, so does IE. And FF may be more secure, but thats only for now. IE is much older then FF, that is why it has all the problems it supposely does. Give it time and FF will be hit hard.

But hay, thats just me.

Ironic Echo, that's what I was going to say! lol

If you don't have troubles using IE either you are unaware of malwares in your machine or just don't cares. So you don't need change, really

IE7 does have ... at least 2 years after the others having.

What does you think this will change? the problem is structural, it have to do with activeX and scripts, changing this is changing IE at an extent it is no IE anymore. And IE is bound to the OS, much more serious issue.

Firefox is based on Mozilla, Mozilla is based on Netscape ... Netscape is years older than IE ... and aways was better than IE. Being "uninstallable" for being placed in the kernel itself was the only reason IE come to be the most used (and one of the first malwares ever created)
The things are clear, most users are completely unaware of how they are puppets and pawns in the corporative game. Even XP got in the "Trustworthy Computing" schema with the WGA, being this one a pale shadow of what the Palladium project means and is far more implemented in Vista. This is no little issue, accepting this thing is like selling your will at full extent for nothing in change.

Sadly isn't

PS edit: Being "more old" is the reason for the troubles? this I don't understood at all, they had enough time to fix, if this wasn't done is because this can't be done. Where MS products are 'unique' is aways where they aren't compliant with the standards. The most curious about this being MS-Office the most incompatible office suite with MS-Office of different version. Think about this.

Remember isn't against a company we must 'fight'. Is far worse, is against a corporative model that want and need monopolize all they touch. Ranging from the world information to the user himself.

Firefox. Nothing will compare to the security and the flexibility of Firefox, definitely not IE. The only reason IE is so widespread is because it comes bundled with windows. But, hey, if people are going to use IE that's fine with me. I just prefer Firefox.

Personally, I prefer using IE. Yes, I realise there are far more exploits for IE than Firefox, but thats because more people use IE than Firefox. What hacker is going to waste his or her time developing an exploit for a system few people use.

The reason I prefer IE is because the UI is nicer, more intergrated into my desktop, and uses so much less memory than Firefox (a necessity on Vista ).

I use Firefox when I'm using Linux, but I dont enjoy it.

Exploits are developed over vulnerabilities, just it. No system is completely secure, for sure. But when the system is a sieve, closing a hole is just inviting exploiting the next.


Now we have an argument... even when most of times it is nice exactly for being adorned by myriad of multicolored ads and gadgets


Indeed, The final word will be aways the personal preference.
It's me that can't avoid the image of one digging his own grave, the strangeness is just by such being a willing deed.
Anyway I just realized I'm being off topic, for what I apologize. It's not the browser the issue there. I wish it was.

@nosisab

You might think im just some dumb kid who really doesnt know much about computers. Granted, I don't know everything, who does, but when it comes to keeping my computer safe, I make sure I know what im doing. I don't have a budget for buying high tech security programs, but that doesnt mean I dont do my best to protecting myself.

I don't have problems with IE because I dont have any, period. I use AVG, Spybot search and destroy, and Ad-Aware to make sure of that. And I know they dont catch everything, but it gets most all of things that manage to get on my computer.

The reason FF is safe for now is because its new. People havent had the time to produce viruses and such for it like they have for IE. Given time, FF will have the same problems.

IE and Netscape virtually problem free in terms of malwear and such when they first came out. Netscape died, leaving IE. IE is the longest running internet browser. Being based off a previous browser doesnt make it the same thing. IE is older and generally unchanged in its design. Because of that, it works. And for me, it works perfectly fine.

Heaven forbid a company attach one of THEIR products tosomething THEY made. Why dont you bash Apple for distributing Macs with Sefari?

I am no puppet of Microsoft. Im sorry if me thinking that Microsoft is generally good is offencive to you. Deal with it.

I prefer IE over FF. I prefer Microsoft over Mac.

I already apologize for bringing here the old discussion about one compromising to accept future decisions other does for then. Accepting conditions they can know only opening a box that being opened implies accepting those conditions. Of course Windows is necessary, indeed it is the better PC based video game over there. Yet we just need find a way to say those corporations we don't like the way they treat us as puppet, like you being one or not, believing you being or not. The way to say this is show then that alternatives exists, sometimes they are even better the crap they forces over us.
I don't say this aiming this or that user. Please don't think something I said is directed to you or any other individual user. I'm targeting a corporative pratice I think malicious, misguiding and enthralling at high freedom cost.
This is my last reply to this thread as I think I went off topic, anyway.

I use firefoxes alternate version Lolifox.Its my fav.It gives you a toolbar with anime websites. Agnivolok1

HAHA!! Firefox 3 is downloadable! There is a malware and phishing protection...

Read this to know more about the new version:
http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/press/mozilla-2008-06-17.html

Exploits aren't created by users, they are created by bad programmers.



Uh huh... About that... Let's see... Here's with Firefox2:

Source: http://jamespaulp.wordpress.com/2007/07/19...age-comparison/

And this one would be with Firefox3:

Source: http://blog.pavlov.net/2008/03/11/firefox-3-memory-usage/

Good job.

Opera the best

I have to disagree here.

I just booted SpyBot 1.5.2.20, and on the Immunize Page it says "Immunization allows you to take preventive measures against spyware by using methods inside your browser." Bigger difference, the capability within is what's being used.

It's adding blocked websites into IE 7.0's Restricted Sites List, Oranges. That's the immunization. Those websites are also added into the Registry.

It's a way for people who may not know about the IE Restricted Sites List to add websites into it.

I'm sad to see that more people are happy to use IE than Opera.

If you don't like Firefox (or other Mozilla variants) then this is an excellent browser, with none of the usual IE security flaws.

Microsoft themselves suggest that IE should only really be used on Corporate Intranet and Application servers, and to download a real browser for use on the internet.

IE is very powerful in its integration with the OS, and allows for great help and database application integration... this "feature" also makes it far to trusting to allow out on the web for real. Any attempt to make it safe to use on the internet, would either lock the internet down to the extent that most pages don't work at all (Strong Proxy Filter), or break the integration of any local application that uses IEs web rendering to present and manipulate local information... which is the whole point of IE.

The best approach is (like in Windows Server builds) to set the internet zone to maximum restriction, which means no cookies, no form submission, no ActiveX plugins, Java / Flash etc no download files, no executables and no client side scripting.

Get a browser that doesn't run native code directly on your machine to do any of these things in the internet zone, and use IE only in local and trusted zones.

I don't like to slag people off, and I don't really care what browser people prefer, but as IE isn't even meant as a general day to day internet browser... I think people who openly admit they use it as such are doing themselves a dis-service.

People... research what a Web Browser is, what it does, and decide to get one that does what you want... if you never go outside pages on your own privately hosted LAN then IE is probably your browser of choice. For ANYTHING else, get another one... which one is up to you, but DON'T use IE on the internet. And I'm stressing that here as this poll is hosted ON THE INTERNET, not your home LAN, so I KNOW you go there. lol

It's MOHO (my own humble opinion), but it's also the recommendation of the very people who brought you Internet Explorer in the first place.

ZOMG... This I have to take in hand:-
Good, Firefox and Opera are both FREE!!! They cost nothing, and if there is anything you don't like about Firefox, the source is also freely available for you to change whatever you want. Mostly you can write a plugin without recompiling the program however.
Then you don't use it, that's the only way not to have a problem with ANY browser... they all have problems, that's a fact of life.
That's fine for Viruses and Malware, what do you do for rootkits? Spybot is pretty much a waste of time, IMHO, it just improves the effectiveness of System Restore, and Ad-Aware is getting out of date, but each to his own. Just coz I can do everything they do for you manually in half the time, doesn't mean everyone can. And those things are necessary regardless of what browser you use. Especially if you install software from the internet... you have to Virus scan it with something.
Firefox is NOT new... it's a newer version of Mozilla, Mozilla was one of the first fully standards complaint html renderers... the other (never fully complaint, even as IE)was Mosaic, which IE is a NEW version of. There are as many "viruses" (not the right word, exploits is better) for Firefox, but it's not as easy to install them unknowingly. It's actually easier to make such an exploit for Firefox as a plugin, but it's very hard to make that exploit install silently and then take over the entire system as you can with IE... rather, you compromise only the browser it's self, because Firefox plugins are multi-platform (work on Windows, Linux and MacOS) which operate only in a Virtual Machine with no access to the host system.
IE is BASED off of Mosaic, which is one of the oldest browsers. Netscape is BASED off of Mozilla, and has not died at all, in fact new versions of Netscape are mostly compatible with all Mozilla / Firefox plugins and addons. In the early days the Mozilla and Mosaic teams worked together on their engines. So the lineage is actually equal for both, and they have a shared heritage.

And I almost missed that you suggested the IE and Netscape had no malware when they came out... hmm... well when they came out most malware and viruses were distributed via floppy disks and bulletin boards... but if BBS stuff was hosted on one of them new fangled Web servers or even on a Gopher or ftp server you could get them just as easy on either of those browsers... IE had ActiveX integrated around version 3.(something) and that was when it became completely unsafe to use on the net... it's also when it became usable as something, because it's rendering has always been so non-standard (not bad, just not standards compliant) as to mean most people used netscape or mozilla proper for the internet and chose IE or raw Mosaic for their corporate LAN. ActiveX is what killed Mosaic in non IE form off... coz it's custom form controls are killer for LAN based browsing.

FYI Opera is also based on the Mosaic engine... but they went the Netscape way of making optional and configurable parts Java based, not pure machine native executable code.
Safari is really new. That isn't based on any previous engine... it's pretty nice for saying how young it is... but Safari isn't integrated into the OS to the extent that if you remove it nothing works any more... thats the big thing that upsets the real IE haters. As I say, as far as I'm concerned, that's a positive thing, so long as you don't take IE near the internet.

I prefer Macs over Windows, but I prefer not to use Apple hardware, so I'm in limbo... Preferences are fine too... but for my money, IE and Firefox are not competition. You can't integrate your corporate Application server into Firefox in any sensible way, unless you take the source code and re-write it. You can't use IE safely on the internet and preserve it's good points either.

It's like comparing Notepad (or rather vi or Scintilla) to Word. It's very difficult to bash up a plain text document with good ascii formatting, or script some pearl or Java et el in Word, and it's impossible to produce press ready formatted documents in notepad... unless you really know your PostScript source or LaTeX off the top of your head. Both fantastic tools, great at their own thing, but not really in the same game.

your percentages don't add up to 100. 23 + 65 + 8 + 1 = 97%

Firefox FTW!

Firefox of course.