Friday, July 9, 2010

Internet Explorer vs. Firefox vs. Google Chrome vs. Safari

The very first internet browser I learned to use was Internet Explorer (IE). Back in 1998, when The X put together my very first computer (in a shoebox), I spent somewhere along the lines of several thousands of hours, sitting in front of my computer screen, staring into what I had hoped, would be an easy thing to understand. This was not my first encounter with a computer, however, this was the first time I would be making it my own. Yay for customization, but Boo for computer security.

I found the ease of using IE to be fairly simple. No complaints. It had all the typical errors I expected to get (we’re talking about when Windows 95 was the hottest thing out), but after every fresh install, things would be fine for months.

When I started my current job three years ago, I was forced to use Firefox. Ugh. I had heard nothing but horror stories about it, and was not keen on the idea of using it. Well, here I am, three years later, still using Firefox at work. Complaints? Nope. Not one. No problems. At. All. Period.

About a year ago, I switch my laptop over to Google Chrome (GC). I was apprehensive about straying from IE (a bit like I was cheating on it, I presume), but my transition was easy. I had no complaints what-so-ever. Then, I started getting these constant error messages. Grr @ this. I was secretly using IE in the background as a second browser, so is the jealousy felt by GC what forced me to try yet another internet browser?

Being the owner of an iTouch, I frequently use the Safari browser. Well, I did it. Two days ago, I said What the hell and downloaded it. I played around with the settings so it was just as I wanted, and gave it a whirl. Whoa! Error messages already! It took IE several months to give me error messages, GC took about 6 months, and Safari TWO DAYS. Wow. With my 20+ years of computer experience, I can not figure out how to fix the problems. I will be forced to ask for help, from those who are a bit more experienced in the Mac world.

If this has taught me anything, it’s that I should have stayed with IE or been a little less harsh on Firefox. I think IE is still my favorite, although there are things about it that I do not like.

What browsers have you played with? Which are your favorite? Have you found one to be better than another? I’m searching for the next best thing, but I’m starting to think it’s just not out there.

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