Browsing opportunities: 11 Web browsers tested

By Michael Palamountain,
Technology & Business magazine
14 March 2005 02:45 PM

Feeling entrenched in your choice of browser? Break free! We compare 11 different browsers so you can find the right one for you and your company.

		Contents Avant Browser Camino Faststone Firefox Internet Explorer iRider Netscape Opera Safari Secondary Browser UltraBrowser Specifications Editor's choice About RMIT

If you're not entirely satisfied with the Web browser you use now, chances are someone else has had the same thought -- some may have even done something about it. You certainly are not restricted to Internet Explorer, Netscape, and for Apple users -- Safari. There are literally dozens of browsers out there ready to be downloaded from the Net -- free or for purchase. None are particularly expensive (about AU$50 at worst, and this includes technical support). You can visit Evolt.org for a listing and download of more than 100 browsers. In this review we sample 11 options -- including the three named above.

So, what is it that you are dissatisfied with? From the point of view of Web development, the Web page Rendering Engine is the feature of greatest significance. While there exists international standards for Web page functionality, different browsers follow the standards with more or less accuracy. While most modern Web sites should be designed with a variety of browsers in mind, you may still encounter problems on occasion.

Security
While getting information easily is the whole point of the Internet, sometimes you can be supplied with data all too easily -- and not at all what you would want.

What's more, information might be clandestinely taken from you. Java- or ECMA-Script and Java are pretty secure, but turn them off if you're concerned about what they can do, after all, such code can be used to produce powerful applications within a Web-page -- and a malicious coder may want them to escape from the confines of your browser. Fortunately, they shouldn't be able to access your file system without your explicit permission.

Web-bugs and cookies can collect data, such as: "Who accessed this page and when?" More serious privacy/security concerns arise from drive-by downloads and viruses contained within legitimate downloads. Drive-by downloads are small files that are downloaded without your knowledge when you access certain sites. These files may then use the Web whenever you're online and download other files without your knowledge. Serious spyware applications can operate in this manner. When fully assembled, your computer could be an open book to hackers.

Internet Explorer has some basic content-filtering built in, and the browsers reviewed here all have controls to restrict cookies, scripts and Java applets. They all support Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocol for protection of information on secure sites. (So you bank account details are safe when you make online transactions, etc.)

Other tools are available to some browsers. For example, Secondary Browser has a cookie viewer -- find out what data is being collected about you.