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Community => General Discussion => Topic started by: Oliwerko on Wed 26/03/2008 19:39:56

Title: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Oliwerko on Wed 26/03/2008 19:39:56
So, I don't want to steal the topic below, so I'll make another one here, only about web-browsers. I haven't found any so far, so don't kill me if there already is one.

Onto the topic:
Why do you use the web browser you use? Why do you prefer it? What are pros and cons of it? Share your thoughts, opinions and recommendations!

I personally use Opera, cause it is much more sophisticated than Firefox, it handles everything easily, and it is...how to say...neater and more to my taste. I find it better than Firefox. (I did not like the poor RSS support in firefox along with the IE-ness of it) It is also more "all-in-one" software. You have everything nicely in one program. Torrents, RSS, mail, etc etc. I guess you have most of this stuff also in FF, but it seems to me that in Opera it is taken more seriously and into greater detail. It is simply very well-arranged and I am totally Operish. I consider FF a half-step between IE and Opera.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: zabnat on Wed 26/03/2008 20:09:26
I use K-Meleon. It's fast and fits like a glove for me (after customizing it). Besides, it's cool to use something that most people don't use :)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: BOYD1981 on Wed 26/03/2008 20:17:04
i too use Opera because it doesn't need a load of addons to do things that Opera can do by default. it does occasionally annoy me though because some sites just seem to act stupid in it, and i don't like the way it handles url history, but overall i like it.
i only ever use Fireflops if something won't behave properly in Opera to the extent it is either unusable or unbearably difficult to do so.
when i first started using the internet i was a big fan of Netscape 2, it had the neat feature of each instance of it being able to use a different folder for downloading files, which they removed in subsequent versions.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: hedgefield on Wed 26/03/2008 20:28:47
I use Firefox. I have a bunch of plugins, including the IE render engine, an excellent sidebar rss reader, the web developer toolbar (very useful), Foxmarks which keeps a backup of all my bookmarks online, and morning coffee which opens all the sites I check on a daily basis at once in seperate tabs. So I'm happy with it. It works well and it's pretty fast. I never want to go back to IE. Or any other browser probably.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Tuomas on Wed 26/03/2008 20:32:43
I too use Opera. It all started when my father was using Opera instead of IE because of safety issues, I grew fond of it by time. Alongside I use Maxthon2.

I don't use Firefox for some reasons. First off, the tab function seems to be a lot better in Opera, with handy clickable icons and all that. And secondly, I changed my secondary browser to Maxthon because Firefox wouldn't work on my computer anymore, it kept failing due to some misfunction of the quicktime plugin, which I tried to fix several times, nothing worked.

What I don't like about Opera is its tendency of downloading torrents by default, so in order to get them on my utorrent I have to save target as and then later open them. Also Opera seems to reset most of my settings when updated.

Maxthon... well, don't you just hate it when you have people around, and you decide to watch some youtube videos. And then they type www.y and the browser suggests youporn.com? And because of my 7 tabs open all the time from startup system, I can't go deleting my internet history. So all the porn keeps popping up :)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Maz on Wed 26/03/2008 20:36:07
I use mostly firefox, but there is times when lynx is handy :)

I have also tried konqueror and opera, but somehow I never really liked them. Perhaps I just tried them for too short period to get used to them.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Radiant on Wed 26/03/2008 20:37:12
Firefox all the way. It's the smoothest-running browser I've ever encountered.

Also, Lynx, because I sometimes run in pure text mode.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Rui 'Trovatore' Pires on Wed 26/03/2008 21:46:03
I used to use IE until the day before yesterday, because I got fed up of everyone talking about this Firefox, so I gave it a whirl. I still have IE installed, and occasionally use one or the other indiscriminately.

I DID notice that whenever Firefox crashes (which it did twice in as many days) it takes everything along with it - I can't close any processes anymore and have to shutdown.

Despite that, which hasn't happened today as of yet, I'm not displeased with it.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: LimpingFish on Wed 26/03/2008 22:06:20
I get that Firefox problem too, Rui. Only seems to happen since version 2.0, though.

Never liked Opera, and I haven't used IE in years.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: TwinMoon on Wed 26/03/2008 22:29:55
Quote from: Rui 'Trovatore' Pires on Wed 26/03/2008 21:46:03I DID notice that whenever Firefox crashes (which it did twice in as many days) it takes everything along with it - I can't close any processes anymore and have to shutdown.

Hm, I use Firefox and it never did that.

However, in the 12-15 months I've been using Firefox I did lose my bookmarks three times. It crashed and when I restarted they were all gone.
Since then I export my bookmarks occasionally (and of course it hasn't happened since).

Apart from that it's all I'd ever want for a browser.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Domino on Wed 26/03/2008 22:40:32
I have been using Firefox for many years now.  I don't think i could live without the tabbed browsing, even though i think the newest version of IE does have it.

I did use IE a long time ago, but for some reason it would always freeze up on me, so i had to find an alternate browser, and i couldn't stand Netscape, so i eventually came across Firefox and would never use any other browser now.

Yep, Firefox. It's wonderful.

Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Evil on Wed 26/03/2008 22:52:32
IE, bitches. Who needs firefox anyway?

"But you'll get viruses, and spam, and firefox doesn't do that!"

Seriously, who cares? They're no different, and you know it. Shut up.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: TwinMoon on Wed 26/03/2008 23:00:06
Quote from: Evil on Wed 26/03/2008 22:52:32Seriously, who cares? They're no different, and you know it. Shut up.

Firefox has a beautiful warm icon. IE hasn't.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: InCreator on Wed 26/03/2008 23:00:21
Firefox. About 2-3 years already--? I'm radical anti-IE from the days it messed up webpage I had to make for a cafe and delayed me and made my work look bad because in cafe, they had only IE. Which showed everything I made as a big, misaligned, buggy mess. So I spent weeks to straighten out bugs that were there not not because the webpage, but simply a product of idiocy of Microsoft corporation and it's retarded employees.
F-king stupid IE. Hate it. Forever.

But Firefox is quite good.
I added nice load of add-ons to make it prettier and FireFTP is quite handy too.

All this talk about how nice Opera is have strongly shaken my faith and I'm a bit pissed about it.
Until today, I though I'm using best browser out there. Now... I have this urge to try out Opera. And I feel guilty.

EDIT: RSS feeds? They do THIS? Those cool things? I, living in an Internet world since it was created didn't know this?
Morale:Even most pointless thread at AGS Forums could teach you something new.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Khris on Wed 26/03/2008 23:16:29
I'm currently running Firefox 3 beta 4 and I love it. The only downside I've encountered so far: when using Imagezoom to take a closer look at pixel art, the pic is scaled up using a filter instead of bigger pixels.
I've occasionally used an older version of Opera some time ago but I always considered it a bit irrelevant. Haven't tried the new version though. Yet.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Snarky on Wed 26/03/2008 23:43:25
I use Firefox at work, Opera at home. In my experience and opinion, Opera is much better designed, more usable and more stable than Firefox. It is also highly configurable (without lots of hard-to-maintain plugins), allowing you to define and redefine any kind of keyboard shortcut or mouse gesture you might desire.

There are tons of things Opera does right by default, which Firefox doesn't. You might be able to modify the FF behavior, but I've found that to be a non-intuitive process. For instance, the up/down arrows scrolls the page in Opera, which is perfect for reading forum threads or news articles online. In Firefox it does something strange (move the cursor?) instead. In opera, if you open a group of bookmarks they all open in new tabs. In Firefox, they open in whatever tabs you already have open (so I lose the pages that were up in those tabs). When I close Opera, it remembers all the tabs I have open. Firefox doesn't. When you download a file in Firefox, it doesn't let you choose where to save it to. (Opera does, and actually starts downloading the file in the background while you're navigating to the right folder, so that no time is wasted in the process.)

However, Opera does have problems with some sites (and my company's proxy, which is why I've resorted to Firefox in the office), which makes it necessary to keep a backup browser. The only other minor gripes I have with it is that it insists on opening torrent files in its own built-in client (as already mentioned), and that when images are stretched from their native resolution, it resizes them with a bicubic filter as opposed to the nearest-neighbor used by IE and Firefox: while this looks much better in most cases, pixel art gets all blurry.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Privateer Puddin' on Wed 26/03/2008 23:55:21
Quote from: Snarky on Wed 26/03/2008 23:43:25when images are stretched from their native resolution, it resizes them with a bicubic filter as opposed to the nearest-neighbor used by IE and Firefox: while this looks much better in most cases, pixel art gets all blurry.

go to opera:config, then Multimedia and turn off Interpolate Images, you can do this without having to restart Opera, so you can quickly change it if you want to look at some pixel art.

You should be able to stop Opera opening torrent files aswell, I have it so it asks me what I want to do, like other downloads.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Domino on Wed 26/03/2008 23:55:51
QuoteWhen you download a file in Firefox, it doesn't let you choose where to save it to

Under tools, options, then downloads. It gives you the option for FF to ask you where you want to save files.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Stupot on Thu 27/03/2008 00:43:00
I use Firefox... Although it might as well be any other.  I use it for browsing and nothing else.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Nikolas on Thu 27/03/2008 01:02:02
firefox here as well. Smooth as... whatever really...
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Radiant on Thu 27/03/2008 01:04:09
Quote from: Nikolas on Thu 27/03/2008 01:02:02
firefox here as well. Smooth as... whatever really...

Smooth as a fox. Er, no, wait, um, smooth as a fire. Hah. Ouch.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Nine Toes on Thu 27/03/2008 02:11:02
Look at this:  a bunch of nerds fighting over who's browser is better. :P

I use Firefox.  Only because it feels faster than IE, which I also have, but only use for FTP.  I can't seem to get an FTP to work in Mozilla.

Also, to me, it kind of seems like most websites only show up properly in Mozilla.  For example, I've noticed that IE doesn't handle tables very well.  So you're screwed if you're trying to build a website using tables for object positioning.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: MillsJROSS on Thu 27/03/2008 03:23:01
QuoteSo you're screwed if you're trying to build a website using tables for object positioning.

Actually, if you're using tables for anything other than tabular data, you're not using them correctly (use div tags instead).

I use Firefox at home, and IE at work. I don't hold a preference to either one. With IE8 on the horizon, and apparently an effort to create a more standard compliant browser, I might switch back to IE (Probably not, I don't like change).

IE does have a few things that make it difficult to design web pages, but I've found firefox to be just as difficult to work with.

-Justin
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: lo_res_man on Thu 27/03/2008 04:06:23
Until recently I used IE, because I am lazy and for some reason Firefox wouldn't run on my older Win2k Pro computer. I use Firefox on my new(er) WinXP Pro computer, and I like it, except how it handles downloads. I switched because for some reason Newgrounds was acting wonky on IE, even on my new(er) computer, plus I got spywared to the hilt on IE.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Nine Toes on Thu 27/03/2008 04:46:56
Quote from: MillsJROSS on Thu 27/03/2008 03:23:01
Actually, if you're using tables for anything other than tabular data, you're not using them correctly (use div tags instead).

I know, even though I only found out about that recently.  I'm just saying though, I still come across websites from time to time that are built using tables.

Quote from: MillsJROSS on Thu 27/03/2008 03:23:01
With IE8 on the horizon, and apparently an effort to create a more standard compliant browser.

That would be nice.  Also if it didn't seem so pokey.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: SSH on Thu 27/03/2008 10:02:38
Firefox and Opera are both good. I love the inline spell checker of FF2. FF3 should fix all the memory leaks in FF2. Safari is nice for checking Mac-compatibility and is the most standards-compliant.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Oliwerko on Thu 27/03/2008 10:16:20
Oh, I do not know if FF has it, but I love to have the mail check setting in opera on 5 minutes. This way 5 minutes is the worst delay of noticing me of new email (with a custom annoying alarm-sound  :)). I hate Outlook and this way I can use it. And I think in FF some things are opening new windows. In opera the only new windows are settings. Everything else including transfers is neatly inside one window.

Nine toes - we are not arguing, we are trying to learn something new about advantages and disadvantages of web browsers we use, you know  8) And for FTP, I use CoreFTP, perfectly fast and easy to use free software.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Oneway on Thu 27/03/2008 19:25:02
Up until i began my career as a webdeveloper, i never really cared about browsers as long they would display a website for me, it was fine.
Now that i am required to work by known standards and still have things work and display the way they should cross-browser i really detest IE for it's multitude of annoying bugs, proprietaty features that break standards and generally being a pain is the ass to use as anything more then a bare bones browser.

For me (speaking as a web-developer) Firefox is the only way to go, since it has a multitude of plugins that allow for a more efficient workflow. Plugins such as web-developer, firebug and html-tidy, along with the great javascript error messages (also found in opera) greatly increase the pace at which i can develop websites and we-applications. That is, right untill i hit a bug that only happens in IE, and then i'm still screwed.

I don't have anything against Opera at all, i use it at home on occasion too. It just can't offer me the great plugins that help me in my line of work.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Khris on Thu 27/03/2008 21:00:19
Btw, in Firefox, type "about:config" into the address bar and hit enter ;)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: voh on Thu 27/03/2008 21:07:23
Opera, been using it since v6, using Kestrel at the moment (9.5 beta 1).

I have Firefox installed for the odd site which isn't compatible with Opera (once every few weeks there's one, amazingly enough almost none of these are standards-compliant, so no blame for Opera) and to test my website designs in.

I use IE if all else fails, and to test my designs.

But my main browser is, has been for years and seemingly will remain Opera :)

(but I like firefox, just not as much)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Domino on Fri 28/03/2008 01:14:44
I don't like the PSP web browser. As of now, you can't watch video's, plus it is super slow.

But i do use it when i wake up and use the PSP to read the forums.

:D
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Snarky on Fri 28/03/2008 03:55:28
Quote from: Privateer Puddin' on Wed 26/03/2008 23:55:21
go to opera:config, then Multimedia and turn off Interpolate Images, you can do this without having to restart Opera, so you can quickly change it if you want to look at some pixel art.

Ah, cool! That solves one of my few Opera issues. But wtf on having to type in some magic path in the browser to change certain settings. Why isn't this available through the menus and option dialogs?

(Looks like Firefox has a similar way of changing internal settings.)

Quote from: Domino on Wed 26/03/2008 23:55:51
QuoteWhen you download a file in Firefox, it doesn't let you choose where to save it to

Under tools, options, then downloads. It gives you the option for FF to ask you where you want to save files.

:-[ Well, that was easy. Thanks! Not sure why I hadn't figured that one out. I don't suppose the other problems have equally simple solutions?
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: SSH on Fri 28/03/2008 09:55:03
One Opera thing that bugs me is that if you want to download various links off a page, each time you click on one to download, it transfers you to the Transfers tab and you have to click back on the other tab again to download the next link. Very irritating.

If you know a way to change that behaviour, let me know!
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Gilbert on Fri 28/03/2008 10:07:33
I think just uncheck "Activate On New Transfer" in Transfer Windows section of "opera:config".

I had this behaviour disabled ages ago and I swear that I disabled this through the normal preference menu, but now I can't find it, leaving just that "advanced" method.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Privateer Puddin' on Fri 28/03/2008 10:18:09
Quote from: Snarky on Fri 28/03/2008 03:55:28
Quote from: Privateer Puddin' on Wed 26/03/2008 23:55:21
go to opera:config, then Multimedia and turn off Interpolate Images, you can do this without having to restart Opera, so you can quickly change it if you want to look at some pixel art.

Ah, cool! That solves one of my few Opera issues. But wtf on having to type in some magic path in the browser to change certain settings. Why isn't this available through the menus and option dialogs?

Yeah, not sure why but it used to be under Multimedia in preferences but that vanished, so then used to edit the .cfg file directly and now opera:config
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Gilbert on Fri 28/03/2008 10:55:17
I think many options in the Preference menu of Opera have vanished over time, probably done to simplify the settings to "novice" users. "Advanced" users can still go that "opera:config" path.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Oliwerko on Fri 28/03/2008 12:57:31
Actually, this transfers thing is the most annoying one on Opera. I too have seen it in previous versions with "old" settings system. The other way around than opera:config is to go to already open transfers tab and click on "View". Here you have choices, I currently use the one to show the transfers tab in background. It shows up, but silently in background.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Darth Mandarb on Fri 28/03/2008 17:07:45
I have been working, professionally, as a web-developer for well over a decade now.  The one conclusion that I've come to is that it's just a matter of preference.

Me personally, I use (and love) Firefox.  It's standards compliant, fast, and efficient.

I have IE, Safari, Opera and Firefox installed so I can test everything I develop cross-browser/platform of course.

The problem is that the vast majority of computer users are windows users.  Windows comes with IE and most of these people never think to use anything else.  Thus, as a developer, everything MUST work in IE.

Having said that ... IE blows.  I cannot grasp why, after years and years of people/developer's constant complaints about IE not doing this, or not doing that, that Microsoft has released version after version of IE without fixing these issues.  It's ridiculous.

I cannot tell you how many times I have put something together that looks fantastic in every browser... then I load it in IE and it's a jumbled mess.

I could go on and on about it's short-comings, but I'd just get agitated and I don't want to.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Minimi on Fri 28/03/2008 17:19:13
I browse the internet through PaintBrush(Win3.11) as there was a secret internet browser placed in that application at the time. It is very powerful!
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Emerald on Sat 29/03/2008 00:11:38
Well, I was using a really old version of IE which didn't support the latest flash player, so rather than upgrade I decided to try this firefox thing everyone was ragging on about.

I really can't tell the difference, though one cool thing I noticed is that if your post doesn't go through (or the browser stops responding) you can hit 'back' (or 'restore previous session') and it remembers every last letter you'd written. Even if the computer is shutdown. I've had that happen to me enough times to choose Firefox solely for that feature.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: deadsuperhero on Sun 30/03/2008 16:34:41
I use Epiphany on the computer at my mom's, it's a sloowwww computer.
I use Firefox 3 Beta 4 at home. I also have tried Flock, which is excellent for it's social-network orientation.
Lynx, though, is a godly way to surf the web. All from a command line! Ha-HA! ASCII Porn, anyone?
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Nostradamus on Sun 30/03/2008 22:12:19
Firefox > all.

Shortlist of reasons:
- Stability
- Brings you back to closed page in case of rare crash
- Security
- Add-ons  (recommended: AdBlockerPlus)

Case closed.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Snarky on Sun 30/03/2008 22:18:28
While those are good points, Opera matches that list feature by feature. (Except you don't need a plugin to block ads, it's built into the browser.)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: voh on Mon 31/03/2008 03:20:41
Quote from: Nostradamus on Sun 30/03/2008 22:12:19
Firefox > all.

I never understood why there's a need to declare any program 'the winner'. I specifically don't understand the animosity between Opera and Firefox users, since both programs are good and feature a very similar feature list. I use both for specific purposes, and even though I've been primarily an Opera user since 1999, I'll never say it's better than Firefox.

Better suited for some things for me personally, sure. But objectively better? I don't pretend to be able to judge that as some are :P

(and this also goes for Kameleon (KHTML/WebKit, on which Safari is based as well), and other browser engines, all have their strong suits, none is 'the best')
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Oliwerko on Mon 31/03/2008 14:31:40
Quote from: Nostradamus on Sun 30/03/2008 22:12:19
Firefox > all.

Shortlist of reasons:
- Stability
- Brings you back to closed page in case of rare crash
- Security
- Add-ons  (recommended: AdBlockerPlus)

Case closed.

Sorry, I have to classify this as a big nonsense. Or untolerance/misunderstanding. Call it what you like, but there is no winner, as voh said. You simply CANT state that Firefox is better than anything else. You havent even tried all of the browsers out there. Opera has all of these and no addons are needed, as Snarky said.

There is no way someone can objectivly tell "This one is better". Because anyone else can say the same about another browser. I see you prefer Firefox. I see you prefer it because the list you wrote. But - as we said - Opera have them all + the ad blocking, so the feature list you wrote is totally irrelevant. I do not say Opera is better. I do not say that anything is better then some other browser. Nor can you.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Nostradamus on Mon 31/03/2008 17:17:38
Relax people you seem to have taken it too seriosly. It's just my favorite, that's all. My post was not intented to be offensive or attacking in nature and I didn't expect to be attacked in reply.
As said, Firefox and Opera have similar attributes so there's no definite better one probably but I think most people will agree that anyway both Firefox and Opera are better than Explorer. And that's what most important.
And remember Opera has only been available on MACs, Linux and other non-Windows OS'suntil recently when they imported it to Windows and Firefox has gained a big popularity and since Firefox works perfectly for me there's no reason for me to try Opera now that they decided to import to Windows and the millions of Firefox users who are satisfied probably fill the same. And that's why while Opera is the #1 browser for non-Windows OSs it is only the 4th most popular browser under Windows. And most people still use Windows.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: SSH on Mon 31/03/2008 17:21:35
Quote from: Nostradamus on Mon 31/03/2008 17:17:38
And remember Opera has only been available on MACs, Linux and other non-Windows OS'suntil recently when they imported it to Windows

Opera was first released publicly with version 2.0 in 1996, which only ran on Microsoft Windows.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: on Mon 31/03/2008 17:37:14
I use Firefox on occasion, but never as my default, cos it always takes 15 seconds to load. 15 seconds I can't be arsed to wait for. So, I use MyIE2, which was suggested to me several years ago by an AGSer. It opens web-pages, has tabs & blocks pop-ups. That's everything I need from a browser :)

Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Oliwerko on Mon 31/03/2008 18:24:00
Hey, sorry for that Nostradamus, looking back it sounds more offensive than I intended, I kinda got carried away. Your post was just...so strict!  ;D I did not mean to attack anyone, just to express something in a...ahem...clear.... way  :)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Nostradamus on Mon 31/03/2008 22:36:11
Quote from: SSH on Mon 31/03/2008 17:21:35
Quote from: Nostradamus on Mon 31/03/2008 17:17:38
And remember Opera has only been available on MACs, Linux and other non-Windows OS'suntil recently when they imported it to Windows

Opera was first released publicly with version 2.0 in 1996, which only ran on Microsoft Windows.

Well true but it didn't catch. Most of its popularity was gained in non-Windows OSs because at the 90s the market was controlled mainly by IE and Netscape. Opera built its name outside of Windows and then returned to the Windows market. Yes, it's always been there but only recently it gained some popularity in Windows.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: SSH on Mon 31/03/2008 23:18:44
If you want to call its current 0.7% popularity. Opera made money by being paid to port their browser to various non-standard devices: mobiles and TVs, etc.

Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: farvardin on Sun 20/04/2008 19:24:23
Kameleon is not a browser. There is kmeleon, and konqueror. The one which was used as a base for safari is konqueror. I'm using most of the time konqueror and also opera for viewing sites with flash and java (I've desactivated flash on my main browser so it's lighter to surf with).
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Paper Carnival on Sun 20/04/2008 19:30:13
I use Firefox, because everyone else uses it and I don't have an opinion on my own.

Also, I use Opera and Opera Mini for my mobile phone, because there's really no substitute.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: riseryn on Sun 20/04/2008 20:23:18
Im using Lynx so im not disturbed with ugly pictures and damned popup banners.



(lol just kidding  ;D)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: on Tue 19/05/2009 16:39:17
Sorry to drag up an old thread, but I wanted to post this question somewhere relevant.

I'm having uber browser trouble,  relating to a virus I've attracted I'm sure.

The virus was constantly trying to load IE so I deleted it all. That problem is vaguely solved. However, on re-installing FireFox or Opera, both crash instantly and won't load, so I'm stuck with shitty MyIE 2 for now.

So, what might be causing the other browsers crash?

And does anyone know what rundll32.exe is and does? I'm certain it's a needed system file but I'm also pretty sure the virus is manipulating it to do some bastardy stuff.

If anyone has any experience with the virus that for some reason;
- Tries to load IE every 2 minutes
- Disables you from accessing "Folder options"
- Disables you from selecting "Show hidden files and system files" and keeps resetting it

Please let me know.

Otherwise, any other decent browsers I could try, other than Firefox or Opera?

Many thanks :)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Arboris on Tue 19/05/2009 16:53:57
A description of rundll:

QuoteSince there's no way to directly launch a DLL file, the rundll32.exe application is simply used to launch functionality stored in shared .dll files. This executable is a valid part of Windows, and normally shouldn't be a threat.

Note: the valid process is normally located at \Windows\System32\rundll32.exe, but sometimes spyware uses the same filename and runs from a different directory in order to disguise itself. If you think you have a problem, you should always run a scan to be sure.

and for the other question, seems like you need a fresh windows install or run a good virus scan and see if that helps getting it out
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: on Tue 19/05/2009 17:02:37
Cheers. I always exhaust all options before a fresh install, because it means a tiresome whole day of getting my computer back to fully functioning status.

I'm not a big believer in anti-virus software either, but yeah I guess it's AVG time again!
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Anian on Tue 19/05/2009 17:21:43
Quote from: Mods on Tue 19/05/2009 17:02:37I'm not a big believer in anti-virus software either, but yeah I guess it's AVG time again!
Ad-Aware + Spyware Termintaor + Spybot S&D + Malwarebytes AntiMallware (all fully free, no shareware crap), and yeah AVG if you want (I didn't use it that much).

Use them all and then find (or buy, I have an original cause a friend is a seller) a McAffee package (or something simillar) and always have the "access protection" and "on-access scanner" on. One time something got through McAffee but then I cleaned it out with those 4 first mentioned.
Yes it is a bit panicky but it seems to work rather well thus far.

p.s. yeah, Firefox grew into a beast, but still when I upgraded to the latest IE8 the damn thing asks for some user report at the beging, not only that but it keeps loading pages wrong so it reloades them (don't know what it's about but it's annoying). Oh, yeah, and IE kills puppies!
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: LUniqueDan on Tue 19/05/2009 17:27:29
I'm IE-free since 3 years now. Using Firefox.

But, there's Issues since 3.0 and it can't stop crashing randomly and don't allowed me to acces my Bank Account. :(
It also became more ressources-hungry than what it used to be.

I must give Opera / Chrome a try.

Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Vince Twelve on Tue 19/05/2009 17:28:55
Quote from: Mods on Tue 19/05/2009 16:39:17
- Tries to load IE every 2 minutes
- Disables you from accessing "Folder options"
- Disables you from selecting "Show hidden files and system files" and keeps resetting it

Yes, I've had this.  Unfortunately, it might also be the same virus I had that blocks you from going to any virus checking websites, which happened to me.  If so, you may have to do some of what I'm going to suggest on another computer and copy files and programs over via usb.  I even had to rename some files, because the virus would detect any file named combofix.exe, for example, and delete it before I could run it.  Really nasty bugger.

I had to use combofix to clean it all the way off.  But combofix should not be used unless as instructed by experts.

Your first step should be getting Malwarebytes (http://malwarebytes.org/) and run a full scan while booted into safe mode.  Run it until it's clean.  Then run a full scan while booted in normal mode to make sure.

If you still have problems, it's time to use the help of experts.  I used the Kaspersky forums (http://forum.kaspersky.com/index.php?s=8f51949e49798753fba517f3c6efdffa&showforum=19) and they were really helpful.  Just read the stickies at the top of the page and run the diagnostic tools they suggest.  Then, you'll post a diagnostic report and one of the experts will tell you the proper proceedure for cleaning your infection.  You might have to be patient for the solution, though.

Quote from: Mods on Tue 19/05/2009 17:02:37
I'm not a big believer in anti-virus software either, but yeah I guess it's AVG time again!

Might want to rethink that.  Especially if you have important files on your computer and access the internet at all.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: GarageGothic on Tue 19/05/2009 17:55:19
My girlfriend had something similar on her computer. As Vince said it also blocked any virus checking websites (actually made the browser close whenever I typed hijackthis in the search field). Ended up fixing it by running a boot-time scan with Avast!, because once Windows has started up most well-written viruses/trojans will be undetectable. Also, you may want to turn off the System Restore feature before cleaning because some viruses uses it to revive themselves.

If the rundll32.exe is damaged you can try a Windows Repair instead of a full reinstall, should save you some time.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: InCreator on Tue 19/05/2009 18:00:24
Quote from: anian on Tue 19/05/2009 17:21:43Ad-Aware + Spyware Termintaor + Spybot S&D + Malwarebytes AntiMallware (all fully free, no shareware crap), and yeah AVG if you want (I didn't use it that much).

Use them all and...

You are crazy. I takes total dumbuser for need of this much protection. Might aswell turn off the computer, just to be "safe".
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Anian on Tue 19/05/2009 18:03:24
Quote from: InCreator on Tue 19/05/2009 18:00:24You are crazy.
I am crazy, crazy like a fox!  :P ;D

Hey it'll find anything, and SpyBot will find the bugger in the registries as well (though be carefull when editing those, some might be from other installed programs). I didn't say that it should be used all the time and every program, but if one doesn't work try the next one.
I shall not feel dumb for having a system that works.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Dataflashsabot on Tue 19/05/2009 18:07:33
Firefox. No question there.*

I use Opera Mini for my mobile phone (although I tried BOLT recently, neat, sleek and feature-filled but not quite as stable as Opera Mini.)
Great but it doesn't always display all images. I assumed this was a memory problem, but BOLT displays them all no problem, even on higher quality levels, so I'm not quite sure what to think about that now.

* FOR ME, that is. I also do not try to objectively define one browser as superior.


(since this thread has been bumped back up anyway I might as well post my favorite browser)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: InCreator on Tue 19/05/2009 19:29:43
Quote from: anian on Tue 19/05/2009 18:03:24
I shall not feel dumb for having a system that works.

Sounds like helluva price for a working system.
I have a system too... that works. The magic formula is...
Windows 7 + Firefox 3 + NoScript addon + sane browsing. Last two provide 99% of security.
AVG for crisis situations, though I haven't encountered one yet.

Had same setup for XP.
Average 2 names of not-dangerous pests (such as tracking cookies) per 3 months or so. I wouldn't call this infested or "not working" any way. I couldn't imagine resources and speed I would have sacrificed with insane setup you suggested...

Then again, for learning grandma, porn-hungry teenager or average dumb housewife looking for a free diet, your suggestion isn't even half of the need.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Evil on Tue 19/05/2009 19:39:03
Quote from: GarageGothic on Tue 19/05/2009 17:55:19
My girlfriend had something similar on her computer. As Vince said it also blocked any virus checking websites (actually made the browser close whenever I typed hijackthis in the search field). Ended up fixing it by running a boot-time scan with Avast!, because once Windows has started up most well-written viruses/trojans will be undetectable. Also, you may want to turn off the System Restore feature before cleaning because some viruses uses it to revive themselves.


Ugh, I just got one of these over the weekend. The virus rerouted my google searches to ads for porn and whatnot, and blocked all of my attempts to visit any anti-virus website. I never had any problems before, so I didn't have Ad-Aware or Spybot or whatever. But every program that I tried to download would error during the install. I had to go back 3 versions of AVG in order to get it to install. Extreme hassle. I recommend everyone downloading at least Spybot just in case, or like me, you'll spend you're whole weekend trying to fix it.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Anian on Tue 19/05/2009 19:39:26
Quote from: InCreator on Tue 19/05/2009 19:29:43
Then again, for learning grandma, porn-hungry teenager or average dumb housewife looking for a free diet, your suggestion isn't even half of the need.
Well probably are neither most users on this forum. Everybody should get what they feel they need, suggestions are just that, suggestions.
Btw the last thing that my pc "caught" was from a web page with guitar tabs...there is no such thing as "sane" browsing, yeah, avoid most of the porn sites and stay the hell away from keygen sites and such but s*** still happens, or to paraphrase you - might as well not browse the internet, just to be safe.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: on Tue 19/05/2009 20:13:46
Thanks, AVG has solved the majority of the problems, and now firefox and opera are working, yay! I stick to my thing about not liking AV software though...you'd be surprised how easy it can be to eradicate a virus manually, something I unfortunately have about 8 years experience in! :P But I guess that really depends how willing you are to muck around with your system files, regedits and such. Often it's just a case of a sharp eye and knowing when you last used your PC that can help you eradicate a virus by yourself. You can also work out how to avoid it in the future -- I always get "this" virus when I try and load a crack for something, and that's exactly what I did recently which caused it to infect my PC. Still, all's well again now - thanks for all the tips! :)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: mkennedy on Tue 19/05/2009 20:25:32
For most of my browsing I use Netscape 4, sometimes I use Opera though. On this site I use Netscape 9 because it doesn't work well with version 4
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Ishmael on Tue 19/05/2009 20:57:08
Chrome. Because I like it.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Trent R on Wed 20/05/2009 04:56:37
Can't stand IE or Netscape. Right now, I'm switching between Chrome (currently in use) and Firefox 3 every couple of months. Safari is nice if I'm on a Mac, and I've never used Opera.

And Mods, good to hear that your comp is working again.


~Trent
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Shane 'ProgZmax' Stevens on Wed 20/05/2009 06:24:57
I'd go back to firefox if the idiots would just put in a switch to disable bilinear filtering.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: monkey0506 on Wed 20/05/2009 08:26:44
I use FF for several reasons:

1) it's quick like a fox.
2) it's made entirely out of flames.

Actually that about sums it up. :P

I do agree that FF does need to have an option to change the scaling styles...IIRC someone released an unofficial patch/plug that allowed this but I wasn't at home when I saw it and then I forgotted. :D

Anyway, IE is the devil for obvious reasons (imaginary sub-standard functionality promoting web page designs that break in any other browser just to name one). Never used Opera but I hear it's...not made out of fire.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Ubel on Wed 20/05/2009 11:44:57
Quote from: monkey_05_06 on Wed 20/05/2009 08:26:44
1) it's quick like a fox.

I used Opera for a long time before I switched to Firefox and I hated how much slower FF is. I also prefer Opera's user interface but the thing about Opera is that some modern websites are simply not designed to work in it and sometimes the cache system messes things up. They're coming up with updates and fixes every now and then though and with Opera 10 on its way I'm thinking of switching back.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Peder 🚀 on Wed 20/05/2009 13:31:42
As a web designer I usually use them all, but I mostly use Firefox at the moment.
I used to use Opera before but as soon as I found out it was Norwegian I stopped using it (kidding offcourse..)

I just wish everyone who makes these browsers would make them bloody react the same to HTML codes and such. It is so annoying having to try your websites in every bloody browser just to see if it shows it right or not....
IE has at least finally with version 8 made it react more similar to Firefox etc...
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Wonkyth on Wed 20/05/2009 14:22:23
I use Firefox.
I've only tried a few (chrome, opera, IE) of the browsers out there, but I'm most comfortable with good old FF.
IE seems always one step behind and doesn't have the nice layout, and Chrome feels too.....empty.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Trent R on Wed 20/05/2009 17:55:59
My bro just told me about the new Profiles feature of Firefox. Seems pretty cool.

@monkey, have you seen the IETab plugin? That's what a lot of people use to circumvent that problem.

~Trent
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: monkey0506 on Wed 20/05/2009 18:09:31
I've had IETab longer than you've had sentient thought my friend. :P

I'm comfortable with FF and I hear a lot of people tell me "if you used Opera you'd like it better" but frankly I just simply don't care. FF works well for me and I like the way that I have it customized. I know for a fact certain FF plugins don't have an Opera equivalent.

P.S., I am quoting this (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?action=profile;u=7268) as a record of the date you became sentient...("Date Registered:     05 Jun 2007, 15:51"). 8)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Oliwerko on Wed 20/05/2009 18:34:57
Quote from: Pablo on Wed 20/05/2009 11:44:57
ng time before I switched to Firefox and I hated how much slower FF is. I also prefer Opera's user interface but the thing about Opera is that some modern websites are simply not designed to work in it and sometimes the cache system messes things up. They're coming up with updates and fixes every now and then though and with Opera 10 on its way I'm thinking of switching back.

I remember a considerable amount of non-opera-compatibile pages from the older versions, that's true. Now, I have the...let's see....9.64.
I'm not getting web page display issues like that anymore, they improved a lot since the older versions. That is to say, I'm still sticking in Opera  ;)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: on Wed 20/05/2009 19:22:01
Cheers Trent!

Well, Opera worked for a good whole 5 minutes before it decided it can't reach any web-page whatsoever with a "400 bad request", ergo it's time to delete that piece of shit!
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Trent R on Thu 21/05/2009 02:14:33
Quote from: monkey_05_06 on Wed 20/05/2009 18:09:31
P.S., I am quoting this (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?action=profile;u=7268) as a record of the date you became sentient...("Date Registered:     05 Jun 2007, 15:51"). 8)
True, my life was just mindless living (except playing classic Lucas/Sierra adventure games of course) before I found AGS.


~Trent
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: on Thu 21/05/2009 13:42:23
I have a quick Q about Firefox.

For some reason it keeps deleting my bookmarks? I just booked marked, for eg, this site, miez's and facebook. Then I closed FF and re-opened it and they'd all gone.

Any ideas if this might be virus related or option related within FF? I haven't got "Clear private data" set but then that's not really it is it anyway, so if anyone can suggest why, what the hell, why they look so goddamn like the same goddamn person, I'd be interested to know :)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Shane 'ProgZmax' Stevens on Thu 21/05/2009 14:33:50
Perhaps aliens are abducting your pc while you're asleep and messing with it just to piss you off, Mods...or it could be all that weed you smoke.  Who knows!?  :=

Try checking your add/remove programs list to see if there are two versions of firefox installed.  You could be closing one and opening another version without realizing it.

Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: on Fri 22/05/2009 18:16:17
Why would they interupt my Firefox when I have a perfectly decent sperm bank they could mess around with? :P No, it's only one instance of Firefox, but ah well...internet goes on.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: monkey0506 on Fri 22/05/2009 18:59:28
I seem to recall having the same problem myself years ago...but I don't remember how I resolved it. Try updating FF. Make sure you always close it properly (red X, not Task Manager, powering off your computer, etc.)...and install FEBE! :-*
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: on Sat 23/05/2009 03:29:00
What is FEBE?

It better not be Feeble.

That'd ******* suck  :-\
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: monkey0506 on Sat 23/05/2009 03:36:15
FEBE is the Firefox Extension Backup Extension. Or I think now it's the Firefox Environment Backup Extension or something to that effect. What it does is it creates a backup of all your themes, plugins, bookmarks, etc. and so forth. You can pick and choose what you want it to back up, schedule automatic backups, etc. It's good stuff unless you're switching between versions of FF and then nothing works anymore... :-\

I was however able to still recover some of my bookmarks from FF v2.0 coz FEBE had saved them as plain HTML links. :D Some of these pages I would otherwise never have found again!

LINKS (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/2109)! (except only one!)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Invalid on Sat 23/05/2009 22:24:16
internet explorer, im too lazy to download any others
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Domino on Sat 23/05/2009 22:30:39
http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/

I just made it easier for you.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: on Sun 24/05/2009 01:56:46
LOL. He XxxxxxXxxxDoesn'tCareXxxxxxXXxxxxx
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: rharpe on Sun 24/05/2009 16:32:08
As my main browser I like to use Firefox 3.0.10, (even though it hogs as much memory as it can.) I only use IE 6, 7, & 8 when getting windows updates and checking sites for compatibility, (or when a site requires it!) Opera 9 has some CSS and javascript issues so it is only used for torrent downloads... nothing more, nothing less. Maxthon2 is pretty cool too, but it pretty much just "piggy-backs" off the IE you have installed. I've tried Google's Chrome , but it doesn't always display websites properly... but it's fast though! (I'm sure once it matures, it will probably be the browser of choice... only time can tell.) Safari is ok... not very impressed with it though. (Poor MAC people.)

Anyway, that's my two cents worth!
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: voh on Sun 24/05/2009 22:30:48
Quote from: rharpe on Sun 24/05/2009 16:32:08(Poor MAC people.)

No reason to say that, really. Safari is the default browser, just like how IE is windows users' default browser. Opera, Firefox (and soon Chrome) are available for macs just as they are available to windows and *n*x users. Besides, Chrome runs on the same engine as Safari does, Webkit. Safari and Chrome should render pages similarly, though I do agree that Safari's interface is slightly on the lacking side.

I wish they'd use Firefox or Opera at work, or at the very least IE7 or 8, but they seem to like their IE6... Oh well. It's not my fault that their systems keep getting wonkier and wonkier.
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: Domino on Sun 24/05/2009 22:35:45
Quote from: Mods on Sun 24/05/2009 01:56:46
LOL. He XxxxxxXxxxDoesn'tCareXxxxxxXXxxxxx

I was just giving an easy option just in case he wanted to get FF.

I took the Laziness out of that.  :)
Title: Re: What web browser do you use and why?
Post by: on Sun 24/05/2009 22:46:59
(http://icanhascheezburger.files.wordpress.com/2008/06/funny-pictures-firefox-crash-snow.jpg)

You can of course substitute ANY browser name/brand with the one shown here. But none of them has cute animals as part of their name. "Explorer Crash" could have a Spelunky screenshot, though.