Microsoft is back in the headlines this week – for all the wrong reasons. A major flaw in its Internet Explorer browser has seen a flurry of warnings about using the software from both security companies and even government agencies.
Until the flaw has been patched – and exactly when that will be is not yet clear – the advice is to switch to a different browser.
There are plenty of alternative browsers available, from the usual suspects we’ve all come to know well to the up-and-coming browsers that are fighting for their place on your desktop.
Chrome
According to figures from Statcounter, Google's alternative browser is more popular than Microsoft's software, and it has been for some time. In Ireland, Chrome had more than double IE's 22 per cent share of users last month, beating Microsoft back into second place. It's fast, it's sleek and for the most part, it does what it's supposed to do. Reliability goes a long way among users. If you are a Google services user – Docs, Drive, Gmail – you can sign in to the browser and access everything without having to keep logging in to your account repeatedly. And if you use Chrome on your mobile device or other computer, you can take all your bookmarks with you simply by logging in to your account on each PC. Just don't forget to log out.
The Chrome App store means you can add a whole host of extras to the browser, from photo editors and language programmes to productivity tools and games.
Firefox
Microsoft's misfortunes could be Firefox's opportunity. The company has just rolled out a major design overhaul that sees a leaner, sleeker Firefox on your desktop. Look hard enough and you might see the odd nod here and there to Google's Chrome browser.
It’s currently the third most popular desktop browser in Ireland, only overtaken by Apple’s Safari browser when tablets are brought into the mix.
Firefox has always had a bit of a following due to its more open nature. Its mission statement is front and centre on its website: committed to the user, privacy and an open web. What this means for users is that you can customise it to suit your needs, and it has some good security features for blocking pop-ups and other unwanted intrusions. Plus it does tabbed browsing pretty well.
Opera
Opera has been kicking about for a while now but it still lags far behind the alternatives in terms of market share. In fact, according to Statcounter, it comes in last in the main list of browsers, with less than 2 per cent of the market last month.
However, if you are on the hunt for something that’s not owned by Google or Microsoft, and Firefox just doesn’t do it for you, Opera is a perfectly serviceable alternative. It does everything the others will do, and it also promises to give you a bit of a leg-up if your connection is prone to slow down. It compresses the pages you want to browse, speeding things up. If you see something you might like to read later, there’s no need to bookmark it; Opera’s ‘Stash’ feature captures the page and will throw it into a list, ready for you to come back to.
Safari
Bad news for Windows users: Safari support for the Microsoft platform ended with Safari 5. The current version, Safari 6, is only available on Mac and, according to Apple, that's how it will stay. You can't really blame Apple; there hasn't been a new version of Internet Explorer for Mac in more than a decade. Still if you have a look on Apple's site, you can still download the previous version.
SRWare Iron
It's likely that you've never heard of Iron, but you will, if its creators have their way. It claims to be the browser of the future, based on the free source code Chromium, but without any of the privacy fears that accompany Google's products. It says it doesn't track usage, for example, or install an automatic updater for the software. It also comes with a built-in adblocker, which is usually an optional extra for users of other browsers.
Comodo IceDragon
Based on Firefox, IceDragon offers many of the benefits of Iron – better privacy protection for users, for example – and is a bit easier on your PC's increasingly overworked resources. It will also scan the web pages you visit for malware through the browser, and promises an easy-to-use experience for those who switch over. That last one is crucial, especially if the company wants to hold on to those former IE users who are looking for a new browser. It's also compatible with Firefox plug-ins, so if you've got used to those little extras, you don't need to get rid of them just yet. And if it's not what you're looking for, Comodo also makes Dragon, a web browser that is based on Chromium.
