Internet Explorer or Firefox

[Kamex]

Which browser, out of these two, do you think is better, and why?

[nanosani]

I use myIE2 ... its like IE with a lot more options. I have tried firefox it runs very heavy on my pc .. and I've tried IE ... it has al lot of problems with its downloading and browsing capabilities.

[PoA]

I use both.

If you think FireFox running heavy, you can tweak it.

[felgall]

Depends on whether you want a modern standards compliant browser or one that is more compatible with non-standard web pages.

There are US Government departments and many PC magazines recommending that people abandon IE because of the 500+ outstanding security issues plus the fact that it hasn't had a significant update in several years (read lifetimes in computer terms) and doesn't support the latest web standards.

Of course there are still lots of web pages that will only run on IE.

I think both browsers still have their uses but activeX needs to be disabled in IE unless you want to use it as a way for hackers to bypass your firewall and hijack your system.

[big_k105]

i recommend firefox as in my mind it is faster and full of great features that IE cant compete with. but i guess the new upgrades for IE that came with the SP2 for XP make it alot better but i still stick with firefox as i dont use windows :)

[primesuspect]

Firefox all the way. the only things I use IE for are the things I am FORCED to use it for (unhappily) - windowsupdate and officeupdate, as well as my bank's 1996-style antiquated garbage website.

[shytilwet]

Neither. CrazyBrowser beats every other browser I've tried. It's fast, it's never crashed on me and the thing I like most about it is that one of the options is to have it re-open next time with all the sites you had open when you closed it.

http://www.crazybrowser.com

[dlh6213]

I put both IE and Firefox on my son's computer and he usually uses Firefox, but he says there are some sites he can't access with it so he still needs to use IE.

[RWD]

I use firefox. I had some problems with IE and was recomended firefox, never looked back since.

[Narue]

From a purely "ignorant user" standpoint, Firefox has some annoying browsing aspects that I've encountered. One of the most irritating is when going back or forward, the browser sends you to the top of the page rather than the place you were last like IE does. IE is comfortable, but Firefox has some handy features. Because I'm unable to make a decision, I arbitrarily use Firefox on my notebook and IE on my desktop.

Beyond the "ignorant user" perspective, Firefox begins to look progressively better than IE in feature sets, customizability, security, and performance (in my experience). But because I do a lot of netdiving, the browsing experience is important and IE has a tendency to beat Firefox in that category. But this is purely personal preference.

[rixius]

Firefox, its web standards compliant, and doesn't have as many vulnerabilities.

[Junior89]

I use FireFox i have heard its the best.

[deighvid]

So I am assuming you can have IE and FF on the same unit? Can you run them simultaneously? A kind of "test drive". (On a windows 2k or XP machine that is).

[server_crash]

Why not try them both yourself? It doesn't hurt to have two different browser brands on your computer and one as the default.

[moderate_rock48]

yes you can use them simultaneously, its like playing solitaire and hearts at the same time...just you have to choose one as your default browser.

[SuSu62]

Thanks to both of you for your insight. Will give it a test run for sure.

David

[deighvid]

Deighvid thanks you too!!

[Catweazle]

Hi people.

First point is that questions should NOT be 'tacked on' to old topics. Your questions deserve a new topic of their own, and will be better addressed if that occurs.

Second point is that this is an old topic which was initially misplaced and has now been 'resurrected' from the dead. Questions are best dealt with in the appropriate forum sections, and the appropraite section for this topic is 'Web Browsers' in TechTalk. In that section, you'll find a pinned topic which links to a detailed guide to installing Firefox and configuring it as your default browser. You'll find plenty of assistance in that topic!

Now that this has happened, I'll move this topic to the appropriate forum section, but in future could people please be careful to locate their questions appropriately?

Cheers :D

[Sparkplug188]

I use firefox as much as possable becuase it is faster at loading pages than IE and it has to deal with fewer security threats than IE however, it does have a down side: firefox can be hard on a slower computers processer. The only time I don't use firefox is when IE must be used (like for Windows Update, Microsoft Mulitplayer Zone, and other things of the sort). I give IE an ok 5 out of 10 and firefox a well deserving 9 out of 10.