Comparative Web Browsers Richard Kershenbaum Endacott Society Computer Study Group 01-09-2013 History of Web Browsers Life before Web Browsers – FTP, NNTP (Usenet News), gopher http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bkd3Vy QMBK0 WorldWideWeb (renamed Nexus) – Tim Berners-Lee – CERN – 1991 – first web browser NCSA Mosaic – Marc Andreessen - 1993 – first widely-used web browser More Web Browser History • Development of NCSA Mosaic was funded by the High Performance Computing and Communication Act of 1991 • Andreesen and Jim Clark (a founder of Silicon Graphics) formed Mosaic Communications Corp., which became Netscape Corp. • Lynx – 1992 – Lou Montulli, Michael Grobe, Charles Rezac – text-based browser More Browser History • Lou joined Netscape in 1994, invented browser cookies • Netscape Navigator was the dominant browser druing the 1990s • Spyglass Mosaic – 1994 (Spyglass was a for-profit spinoff of NCSA) • Microsoft licenses Spyglass Mosaic in 1994, releases Internet Explorer 1 Yet More Browser History • Microsoft bundles IE with Windows 95 – doesn’t have to pay royalties to Spyglass, but IE becomes dominant browser • IE3 – 1996 – became extremely popular • IE9 – 2011 -- • IE10 – 10/2013 – currently only for Windows 8 - More history…. • Mozilla Firefox – 2004 • Opera, Safari 1.0 -- 2003 • Google Chrome – 2008 – now the most usage, but fewer users than IE or Firefox • Maxthon Cloud browser -- 2008 Browser pros & cons (PC World, 2/12): • What’s important to you? − Speed? − Security? − Add-ons? − Share bookmarks & settings across computers and devices? Google Chrome: − “Overall best” − Speed − Stability – can close a misbehaving tab without affectin others (separate processes) − Integrated Google Translate − Plain design Google Chrome: − “should meet most people’s needs” − “Sandboxing” – can’t access information on your computer – prevents exploits − Lots of extensions • IE Tab • Ad-block Plus − Sync Feature − Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, Android (4.0 or later) Mozilla Firefox • “Most Versatile” • Lots of add-ons • Slow page loads (even slower with add- ons) • Sync feature • Automatically scans for malware • Windows, Mac, Linux, Android Internet Explorer 9: • “Best Security” • Lets you block sites that are tracking your browsing history • Warns if a downloaded file may be dangerous (your anti-virus software probably does this also) • Slow page loads • Can’t sync bookmarks and settings • Windows only Opera • Tied with Chrome for fastest page loads • Works well on mobile devices • Few security features • Can sync bookmarks and some settings • Windows, Mac, Linux, phones, tablets Apple Safari • Good security • Slow page loads • Sync with iPhone • Mac, Windows (being dropped after version 5), iPhone Maxthon Cloud Browser • Widely used outside the US • Minimalist look • Good security features • Built in sync • Fast page loads • No effective ad blocker? • Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android (no Linux) Mobile browsers • iPhone – Safari built in • Native Android browser • Chrome for Android (requires Ice Cream Sandwich) • Opera Mobile / Opera Mini • Dolphin • Skyfire .