# What Browser Are You Using?



## Cole (Aug 27, 2004)

We had an old poll about this, but I am curious what everyone is using currently!

You can vote for numerous browsers, if that is what you are currently using.


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## Celtic (May 23, 2007)

You need to expand the list...Mozilla and SeaMonkey are not on it....is there an "Other" option?


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## dougchips (Apr 23, 2006)

Celtic said:


> You need to expand the list...Mozilla and SeaMonkey are not on it....is there an "Other" option?


Mozilla and Firefox is the same thing.

I use IE 7 and Firefox.


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## Kevin75 (Oct 7, 2007)

*Firefox*

I love Firefox and it's features, but every now and then something doesn't work. I keep IE as a backup.


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## Cole (Aug 27, 2004)

I will add an *other* option.

I have been using Safari, a lot more.

I like the style, its very fast!


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## RippySkippy (Feb 9, 2007)

Kevin75 said:


> ... I keep IE as a backup.


If you are using fire fox, I really like IE View <addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/35> plug-in that I highly recommend is the send to IE shortcut. If a page doesn't view correctly, right-click on the page and there's an option to open the page in IE. Works like a champ!


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## daArch (Jun 8, 2007)

Cole said:


> I will add an *other* option.
> 
> I have been using Safari, a lot more.
> 
> I like the style, its very fast!


Cole, please tell some feature about Safari (besides it's NOT Micro$haft Exploder nor Nutscrape)

Does it have tab browsing?
Customizable?
"member only" password memory?
Is it open source?

Who "makes" it ????

(I love Opera, but am always on the look out for the next best browser)


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## Cole (Aug 27, 2004)

http://www.apple.com/safari/


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## tinner666 (Nov 3, 2004)

Downloding Safari to try now. I have Firefox and IE7


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## Cole (Aug 27, 2004)

I have used every single browser and I seem to like Safari the best.

Firefox does have some great features, but it is a memory hog and I hate that about it.

Give it a try!


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## tinner666 (Nov 3, 2004)

Side by side, IE is loading this site faster. I can't find the white/black list in Safari, but I'm looking!


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## tinner666 (Nov 3, 2004)

Safari doesn't seem very safe. You can't set lists for restricted sites or cookies. IE has that beat, so I'll report to apple.


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## tinner666 (Nov 3, 2004)

Can't load SpySites or SpyWareBlaster data into it.
Finally crashed, but I'll keep trying it.:whistling


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## RobertCDF (Aug 18, 2005)

Opera... Try it you might just like it a lot better then the other crap out there.


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## daArch (Jun 8, 2007)

RobertCDF said:


> Opera... Try it you might just like it a lot better then the other crap out there.


Robert, don't get me wrong, I LOVE Opera, with the magic wand, Aspell, Widgets, tab browsing and all the other stuff you know well about.

Have you tried Safari? 

I'd like some direct comparisons to Safari, and since you are the only other one so far to be using Opera, I was wondering if you had tried both. 

I liked and was using Firefox, but on the advice of my Linux enhanced brother, I tried Opera and after a week REALLY liked it.


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## Cole (Aug 27, 2004)

tinner666 said:


> Can't load SpySites or SpyWareBlaster data into it.
> Finally crashed, but I'll keep trying it.:whistling


I'm not pushing _Safari_ on anyone, I just was throwing it out there for some guys to try. 

What may work for me, may not work for you.


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## RobertCDF (Aug 18, 2005)

I have not tried safari on MY computer. I have used it before on other computers. Never really stood out to me but my use was very small.


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## Herk (Aug 1, 2007)

I do business on an XP box, but I do most of my browsing and email on an ancient Linux box. I use Firefox on both. (The box is ancient in computer years - the os is only about one year old . . .)


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## shed-n-deck (Sep 25, 2007)

I only use IE when activex is necessary. I've never tried IE7, I won't install it on my computer. I am a dedicated Firefox user. Netscape is basically the same thing as FF. I like the look of Opera, but it never really took off for me. I wasn't aware that you could install Safari on PC's.


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## Putty Truck (Oct 6, 2007)

I use IE7. I click the links and the page opens up...what more is there? It's as fast as I need, which means most pages take a sceond or two to load.


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## silvertree (Jul 22, 2007)

I use Firefox and IE. Mostly Firefox.


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## gideond (May 17, 2007)

I like Firefox for security reasons. AdBlock Plus and NoScript are free and eliminate a lot of the junk you get with other browsers. I've never had issues with memory usage either. I think a great deal of that is in the extensions you use. I keep mine to a minimum.


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## tinner666 (Nov 3, 2004)

I haven't used Opera in 10+ years. I'm downloading it now to try again. Only 6 megs. It used to blow windows away!:thumbup:


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## tinner666 (Nov 3, 2004)

:thumbup: Firefox is good.

SpySites and SpywareBlaster data loads into it for added security too. And CCleaner works with it. 
For some reason, I just keep switching back to IE. You need a big screen with 7. Bummer.


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## tinner666 (Nov 3, 2004)

Just logged back in with Opera. Still blows IE away. Didn't know there were any animated graphics at this site until now though!


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## RobertCDF (Aug 18, 2005)

Just to fill you all in on a little secret... You dont need tons of bloatware spyware and virus crap if you use your machine wisely.

I have not had any on my 3 computers for YEARS! Never had a problem. Just be smart about where you are going, what you are opening, and what you are downloading.


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## Cole (Aug 27, 2004)

I am really shocked to see Firefox with such a big lead.


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## Bone Saw (Feb 13, 2006)

msn


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## Nathan (Jul 21, 2003)

I used to use Firefox before all of the memory issues. Now I use IE7. The main reason I used Firefox was for the tabs and now IE has them so I'm happy.


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## powerjack (Dec 7, 2007)

Cole said:


> I am really shocked to see Firefox with such a big lead.


Me too! These are some tech-savy contractors. Is this going to turn into PC verses Mac? That should be another thread. I remember there was a whole chatroom devoted to that in AOL in the 90s. 
BTW, I use Firefox/Mozilla too and love it.


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## shed-n-deck (Sep 25, 2007)

RobertCDF said:


> Just to fill you all in on a little secret... You dont need tons of bloatware spyware and virus crap if you use your machine wisely.
> 
> I have not had any on my 3 computers for YEARS! Never had a problem. Just be smart about where you are going, what you are opening, and what you are downloading.


The last time I had an issue was the last time my wifes brother used my computer....He downloads a bunch of crap from I don't know where, and I have to wind up wiping out my entire computer. That was months ago, as soon as that happened, I set up a password to access my computer.

I used to run all kinds of spyware and antivirus and pcpitstop optimizer, haven't had to run those in months. I haven't turned my computer off in over 3 months. I think that the biggest reasons are because I go to a select handful of websites, I don't download a bunch of music and crap, I don't search for porn, and I use firefox...


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## gideond (May 17, 2007)

Put yourself behind a hardware router or firewall and limit your usage to trusted sites. Use Firefox with NoScript and AdBlock Plus extensions and you should be in pretty good shape. I haven't had any real virus or spyware issues in years now. NoScript really works wonders at blocking the major routes of infection. There is always a chance for something to slip though though. I prefer to run a low resource AV at all times. Currently I'm using the free AVG. At work we run NOD32. As for spyware, I don't really see the need for active shields. I run SuperAntiSpyware at least once a month to be safe but usually don't find anything but a random tracking cookie.


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## jkanclerz (Nov 27, 2007)

I think its kind of interesting to compare which browsers people say they use in this threads poll to the analytics data from my company's site.

This Poll Company Site
IE 40% 79%
Firefox 66% 17%

And barely anyone using safari, mozilla, etc on my company's site.

This might be a no brainer observation, but I'm thinking its because the audience that usually participates in forums (_including this one_) are generally more technologically savvy than the typical net surfing crowd.

Any comments on this?


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## shed-n-deck (Sep 25, 2007)

jkanclerz said:


> This might be a no brainer observation, but I'm thinking its because the audience that usually participates in forums (_including this one_) are generally more technologically savvy than the typical net surfing crowd.


I operate 2 webmaster forums, and have in the past owned several directories, those sites all have a high percentage of their users that use Firefox, somewhere in the 90 - 95% range. I own 2 other discussion forums that are based towards a more general crowd, the use of IE is near 75%. 

I think that Firefox is more widespread now than it was 2 years ago, but I still think that MicroSoft has the majority share of the market. Give it a few more years and I think that things will become more balanced as more and more people switch to FF.


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## Susan Betz (Feb 21, 2007)

I use Firefox pretty exclusively. On my new Vista laptop, GoToMyPC.com freezes up Firefox for some reason. So does ScotTrade, so I use IE for those two sites only.

I use Opera with Java and JavaScript disabled if I need to visit any questionable site.

For those who think they don't need computer protection, one word: worm.


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## Herk (Aug 1, 2007)

Susan Betz said:


> For those who think they don't need computer protection, one word: worm.


I'll add a few words:

Driveby Download

Downloader Trojan

Rootkit


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## L. B. Condulet (Aug 23, 2007)

Cole said:


> I'm not pushing _Safari_ on anyone, I just was throwing it out there for some guys to try.
> 
> What may work for me, may not work for you.


I've tried safari for Windoze. It's ugly and lacks the features of Firefox.

Just to see how configurable Firefox is, type this into the address bar:

about:config

The items in bold print can be double clicked on and their values changed.

Firefox is great.


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## L. B. Condulet (Aug 23, 2007)

Susan Betz said:


> For those who think they don't need computer protection, one word: worm.


Everybody should have security in place. Everybody should have a PAID subscription to a major anti-virus vendor like McAfee.

I also recommend people read up on spyware and tracking:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spyware


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## gideond (May 17, 2007)

I still can't bring myself to recommend something like McAfee or Norton. If you are going to pay for protection get it from a good company like Eset's NOD32 or Kaspersky. I had a customer just last night that brought me his PC running a brand new installation of the latest Norton security suite and still plagued with virus and spyware infections. I scanned with Norton and found nothing. Uninstalled Norton and the computer doubled in operating speed. Installed a couple free programs, Avast AV and Superantispyware. A couple hours and a couple scans later his computer was mostly clean after removing several dozen threats that Norton had missed. 

He also has Firefox with adblock and noscript to keep him out of trouble now. I was somewhat amazed though that a major company like Symantec could make a product that misses so much that a free product does not miss. Of course thinking back on it, that's why I quit using Norton several years ago to begin with.


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## L. B. Condulet (Aug 23, 2007)

gideond said:


> Uninstalled Norton and the computer doubled in operating speed.


Sometimes when McAfee is doing a scan it really brings my computer to it's knees, I have to go into Task Manager and kill the process. Yeah, anti-virus protection can really kill performance.


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## gideond (May 17, 2007)

From what I've heard lately Safari has a huge amount of security holes that haven't been patched. Evidently they've always been there but since no one bothers to hack Macs for the most part they never bothered to fix them. Now that it's on Windows though with those same security hole, we have a problem. Also Gmail and Yahoo mail don't seem to like safari very much.


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

gideond said:


> From what I've heard lately Safari has a huge amount of security holes that haven't been patched. Evidently they've always been there but since no one bothers to hack Macs for the most part they never bothered to fix them. Now that it's on Windows though with those same security hole, we have a problem. Also Gmail and Yahoo mail don't seem to like safari very much.



I have been saying the same thing for years now to my Pro-Mac anti PC friends. They would say "Mac is safe. Impenetrable!" I always said "No! It is because no hacker CARES about Mac users."

Looks like I was correct.


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## angus242 (Oct 20, 2007)

gideond said:


> From what I've heard lately Safari has a huge amount of security holes that haven't been patched. Evidently they've always been there but since no one bothers to hack Macs for the most part they never bothered to fix them. Now that it's on Windows though with those same security hole, we have a problem.


That is a ridiculous statement. Safari is like any other browser with ongoing development. If you use ANY browser, it's up to YOU to make sure it's the latest version. I wouldn't say that the current version of Safari has "huge amounts of security holes". If I'm wrong, care to back that statement up? Safari for Windows has vulnerabilities just like IE or Firefox and those are constantly addressed like IE or Firefox. As for "they never bothered to fix them", that's silly too. There have been 7 new releases of Safari this year alone....IE (depending on what OS you have) has had 8. Firefox has had 2.



MALCO.New.York said:


> They would say "Mac is safe. Impenetrable!" I always said "No! It is because no hacker CARES about Mac users."
> 
> Looks like I was correct.


And another not so on-the-mark statement. Any Mac user that says it's impenetrable is totally wrong. Even the mighty UNIX has had viruses. That's not to say they aren't better than Windows security. They are...and by leaps and bounds. Mac OS is based off a Linux Kernel so that's why it has a much superior security structure. To say that a hacker doesn't care about Macs is silly. Wouldn't a hacker become extremely popular if he were the first to bring down the Mac OS????? They do make antivirus software for Macs so obviously the possibility exists.

That said, I'm on a Windows machine (with all the ridiculous amounts of programs running to keep it "safe") and using Firefox as my browser.


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

angus242 said:


> That is a ridiculous statement. Safari is like any other browser with ongoing development. If you use ANY browser, it's up to YOU to make sure it's the latest version. I wouldn't say that the current version of Safari has "huge amounts of security holes". If I'm wrong, care to back that statement up? Safari for Windows has vulnerabilities just like IE or Firefox and those are constantly addressed like IE or Firefox. As for "they never bothered to fix them", that's silly too. There have been 7 new releases of Safari this year alone....IE (depending on what OS you have) has had 8. Firefox has had 2.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



My Mac-Bias senses are tingling here!!!


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## angus242 (Oct 20, 2007)

MALCO.New.York said:


> My Mac-Bias senses are tingling here!!!


Hey, I drive a Ford even though I know a BMW is better....know what I'm sayin :thumbsup:


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

angus242 said:


> Hey, I drive a Ford even though I know a BMW is better....know what I'm sayin :thumbsup:



I DO understand!


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## gideond (May 17, 2007)

What I'm saying is that they never bothered to fix them while Safari was Mac only because they had no real reason to. No one was exploiting those holes until the software was ported to Windows. Yes they are now fixing them with bug releases, but they should have been fixed when they were first discovered, not when they suddenly become more of a threat. The latest version for Windows has improved. There is one major security hole according to Secunia that has gone unpatched for a couple weeks now. 
http://secunia.com/product/17978/?task=statistics_2008

I still just don't think Apple makes good software for any systems but their own, and looking at all the issues iPod and iPhone have had, I'm not even sure I'd say they make good software period. That is just my opinion though.


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## dreamz (Apr 5, 2008)

firefox here


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