Dumping Microsoft Internet Explorer for a different browser

As reported by the BBC yesterday (Saturday 16th January 2010), the German government has warned web users to find an alternative browser to Internet Explorer (IE) to protect security.  It closely followed Microsofts admission that IE had been the ‘weak link’ in recent attacks on Googles systems.  Microsoft have obviously tried to defend their browser, but I think the German government have come out and said what almost everyone else was thinking - Internet Explorer should not be our browser of choice.

Internet Explorer is installed as a part of Microsoft Windows installations, and as such a large percentage of people use it without looking for alternatives.  Below we have listed a few excellent alternatives, and all are free to download and use:

Firefox

Firefox is an excellent browser, lightning quick and packed full of useful features (tabbed browsing, built-in spell checker, private browsing, etc).  It has numerous handy addons available and is our browser of choice at Comspec.  Nowadays we use IE simply for testing websites, rather than as a serious option for browsing.

Chrome

Chrome is Google’s entry into the browser sector.  It is very quick, refreshingly minimalistic and seems to have no compatibility issues.  A host of top-notch features (task manager, download manager, flexible tabs, etc) make this an excellent browser choice for anyone.

Opera

Opera is a peculiar little browser.  It is very quick, but has been known to have some compatibility issues.  It is a ‘fun’ browser, yet very practical.  Some of its features are useful (thumbnail previews, voice interaction, etc) and as this browser develops, it will become another excellent choice for users.  Our verdict on this one is to certainly try it out, but you’ll probably find you revert back as the problems appear, even though you will like the look/feel of it.

Safari

Safari is the Apple (Mac) browser, only now its available for the Windows PC too.  A very lightweight browser, making it very fast, but we’d tend to only recommend it to the semi-IT literate user, simply because it lacks a number of basic features (anti-phishing, parental controls, etc).  A great browser in looks and useability, but just lagging at present in features.