Microsoft's Internet Explorer is the most popular web browser in the world - nearly 90% of people use it. But Internet Explorer has also become a victim of its own success. Because so many people use Internet Explorer, criminal hackers have attacked it, trying to exploit security weaknesses for their own gain.
Many less-popular browsers are more secure than Internet Explorer. Even better, two of the best, Opera and Firefox, are free!
Opera is a free web browser. It's different to Internet Explorer because you can open multiple 'tabs' in the one browser window. This means you can view multiple web pages without slowing down your computer.
Opera has a handy pop-up stopper, which lets you view or block pop-ups from individual Web sites. You can download 'skins', which will change the look of the interface to suit you.
Opera even lets you check your mail wherever you are by providing a mail client, which has built-in anti-spam filters. You can also block mail from specific addresses or websites.
Opera has a built-in RSS reader. This means it can tell you when the content on sites you subscribe to has been updated, so you'll always know when your favourite website has fresh content for you.
There's lots of little touches too. Opera's ‘magic wand’ feature can help automatically fill out forms or remember passwords, and there are additional security features to keep your information safe.
On the downside, there's limited technical support options. If anything goes wrong, you'll have to use email to try and get it fixed - there's no telephone number. Not every website will work in Opera. There will be times when you'll just have to use Internet Explorer.
Firefox is a free web browser. Like Opera, you can open multiple 'tabs' in the one browser window. This means you can view multiple web pages without slowing down your computer. Firefox also lets you view or block pop-ups from individual Web sites.
Firefox also has a built-in RSS reader. This means Firefox can deliver updates of news or other content from sites that you subscribe to, so you'll always know when your favourite website has fresh content for you.
Firefox also has many additional security features that can help you discover whether you are on a safe or legitimate website.
You can easily get free online Help for Firefox, but unfortunately, telephone support costs $39.95 per incident. Also, because some web sites do not conform to the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) standards, Firefox, like Opera, may not display them properly (for example, some pages might have features that only display correctly in Internet Explorer). There will be times when you'll just have to use Internet Explorer.
© mallni 2010