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Internet Explorer

Happy 15th Birthday, Internet Explorer!

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You probably haven’t used Internet Explorer in ages – I hardly know anyone who does anymore – but it is still worth noting that this week marks the 15th anniversary of this web browser. If you’ve been going on the Internet for a decade or so, you probably have had your own experiences with Internet Explorer. After all, in the old days, we didn’t have much of a choice. All that changed with the entry of other, more efficient browsers. Still, it’s nice to take a look back and see what the browser has gone through.

A quick rundown on the origins of Internet Explorer…

The first version was released in 1995, August 16. Soon after, in April of 1996, the second version was born. Less than a year – in August of 1996 – IE 3 was released. This was a huge improvement over the first two versions in that it was more integrated with other applications and developers were able to use Cascading Style Style.

IE 4 came in the next year, surrounded by controversy. At this point, Microsoft’s propensity for monopoly was already becoming well known, and their web browser was no exception. Some of you might remember the issue of IE being the sole browser used for Windows, which the courts declared to be unfair. (As an aside: thank God we have other browsers at our disposal now.)

The numbers (IE#) went up with each version and now, in 2010, we are looking at Internet Explorer 9. It is slated to be released on the 15th of September. Supposed to be on the cutting edge of technology, IE 9 is proof of this browser’s tenacity. Despite having a lot of competition in the recent years, it seems that it still has a solid foothold.

Never mind that I haven’t used this browser since forever – Happy Birthday anyway, IE!

Firefox: IBM’s Browser of Choice – Should You Follow?

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Earlier this month, IBM made an announcement that Firefox is now the default browser of the company. The announcement came straight from the horse’s mouth – Bob Sutor, the vice president of open source and Linux at IBM’s Software Group. In his blog, he said:

We’re officially adding a new piece of software to the list of default common applications we expect employees to use, and that’s the Mozilla Firefox browser.

Firefox has been around for years, of course. Today we already have thousands of employees using it on Linux, Mac, and Windows laptops and desktops, but we’re going to be adding thousands more users to the rolls.

This development definitely gives Firefox points in the browser wars. Here’s the thing – if such a group as IBM has publicly announced its browser preference, should we follow suit?

I don’t know what browser you’re using, but I have been switching between Firefox and Chrome in the past year. Before that, Firefox was my main choice. I have been having to pull up Chrome because of speed issues (I know Firefox is supposed to be fast but for some reason I have problems with this), but Internet Explorer has been out of the picture for the longest time.

Why should you even consider following IBM’s example? Sutor gives his reasons for his browser of choice:

• Firefox is stunningly standards compliant, and interoperability via open standards is key to IBM’s strategy.
• Firefox is open source and its development schedule is managed by a development community not beholden to one commercial entity.
• Firefox is secure and an international community of experts continues to develop and maintain it.
• Firefox is extensible and can be customized for particular applications and organizations, like IBM.
• Firefox is innovative and has forced the hand of browsers that came before and after it to add and improve speed and function.

Is that enough for you?

IE7Pro 2.0: A New Year’s Gift from Internet Explorer

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Here’s a quick news from Internet Explorer 7 or IE7 this year. Some time last year, the Internet Explorer team released an add-on, named IE7Pro, for their latest browser software. Some of the features that this add-on offers include management of your tabs, a new drag-and-drop option for opening links, proxy switching option, spelling check as you type on text boxes, and blockers of advertisements and Flash applications.

Last January 2, the IE team has released the 64bit IE7Pro Version 2.0. It feels more flexible being fully modular than the past versions, in which the creators hope for stability of the software lie on. Also, they team claims that “you can customize not just Internet Explorer, but even your favorite website according to your need and taste using IE7Pro.”

Further, there are Language Packs that IE7Pro boasts of, although only Chinese and English are the only complete translation options as of the moment. However, this can help in customization of your browser, as you can translate the entire IE7Pro to your own native language.

Also, despite the name, IE7Pro 2.0 works for IE6, too. It can transform your dusty IE6 browser to a hippy and modern look and feel. That’s great news for both the multiple-window-browsing fans and the tabbed-browsing fans alike. You can get the add-on from their official download site and see if it fulfills its goal to make your IE browser “friendlier, more useful, secure, and customizable. See for yourself.

End of the Line for Netscape

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On February 1, 2008, Netscape Navigator will be resting in peace completely, as detailed in “Days dwindle for Netscape Web browser” by the Associated Press.

After the 13-year run of Netscape, within it is its struggle against the browser giant Internet Explorer and the rest of the browsing new-comers, Time Warner Inc.’s America Online or AOL, Netscape’s current owner and keeper, decided to halt further developments of the browser last December 28, 2007. Seeing what is more fitting, the company will instead focus on flourishing more in the advertising business, and the ongoing support for Netscape will be canceled next month.

Netscape fans and web developers will still be able to download and use the Navigator (probably for keepsake or for platform stability of created web pages, respectively) as remnant of the “dying” browser in its virtual household. The administrators recommend downloading and using Firefox in its place, as it is the more popular open source cousin of Netscape.

Netscape director Tom Drapeau posted in his blog last December 28, 2007 that there had been efforts on reviving Netscape Navigator to continue its heritage as the first widely-used web browser, but such efforts weren’t successful in gaining a better share from the pool of web browser’s market.

“AOL’s focus on transitioning to an ad-supported web business leaves little room for the size of investment needed to get the Netscape browser to a point many of its fans expect it to be,” posted Drapeau. “Given AOL’s current business focus and the success the Mozilla Foundation has had in developing critically-acclaimed products, we feel it’s the right time to end development of Netscape branded browsers, hand the reins fully to Mozilla and encourage Netscape users to adopt Firefox.”

In Commemoration of Netscape

A central figure during the Netscape’s glorious birth in 1994 was Marc Andreessen, cofounder of Netscape Communications Corporation, who developed the first commercial web browser ever: Netscape Navigator, which also stood as its flagship software. It was financed by the recently-departed founder of Silicon Graphics Jim Clark, seeing that it has great commercial potential.

Netscape rose in popularity throughout the remaining years of the 90’s, with its Navigator being able to integrate sound and images to the boring, text-filled web atmosphere then. Netscape Navigator introduced a whole new world for browsing fans, with its features ranging from cookies and frames for ease in browsing to JavaScripting capabilities, which later became the standards of browsing technology. Netscape was then known as de facto standard raiser, monopolizing the competition. Netscape Navigator also led the browsing market with more than 50 per cent share.

The Big Loss

However, Microsoft noticed the booming success of Netscape, prompting it to release within its flagship Windows operating system its Internet Explorer for free. Suffering from a great loss as users started migrating to Internet Explorer, Netscape eyed the open-source license as a resort for regaining its audience. However, the product named Netscape 5 never saw release because it was deemed to suffer from poor quality.

With a large contribution from the open-source community, the project saw light, transforming into Mozilla and was released as Mozilla 1.0 on June 5, 2002. And with the same code base, standalone applications Firefox and Thunderbird were born, although they suffered from a long-drawn-out development.

With Internet Explorer leading the browser race, Netscape was sold for $10 billion to AOL, which released Netscape 6 based from the open-source Mozilla browser. That alone gave enough reason for people to abandon Netscape and migrate to Internet Explorer.

Sadly, Netscape’s popularity in the market dropped from 19.25 per cent in the first quarter of 2000 to a depressing 0.06 per cent in 2007’s last quarter, according to the tally of Wikipidia from the stats of The Counter. The decreasing popularity and market share Netscape receives are what prompted its closing next month. Seems like we wouldn’t be seeing much from the pioneer of web browser technology anymore.

Farewell, Netscape Navigator.