This time around we’re going to focus on Internet Explorer, since it hasn’t gotten much love around these parts lately. However, before I get to the links, I just want to say that keeping a finger on the pulse of Internet Explorer is a task I wouldn’t wish upon anybody. You literally have to crawl your way through piles and piles of end user complaints about script errors and outright functionality failures (e.g. bookmarks not working at all or home pages never loading) and questions about how the browser can be removed for good from users’ systems, permanently.
Once you get past all that, though, you do tend to find some interesting links, not necessarily all positive, but at least substantive. So without further ado, here goes…
Rowen Atkinson hates Internet Explorer “with the heat of 1000 suns,” but refrains from telling us how he really feels.
It’s not surprising to see that as you scroll down the page semi-quickly, a majority of the red shows up in the Internet Explorer and iCab columns. Beyond that, it looks like Firefox and Opera deserve some props for having only one red box each for the features in the first three categories. Konqueror’s not far behind with about two-and-a-half, depending on how you count the “Incorrect” implementation for background-attachment.
What stands out, though, is the support for experimental features. Konqueror leads in that category with support for three features, Safari’s next with support for two-and-a-half, and then Firefox and Opera with two each. The other browsers fail to even register in this area (again, not surprisingly).
See anything else interesting in the stats? Post a comment.
According to YugaTech, Internet Explorer will remaing king of the browsers. Several of the reasons given hold water, such as the fact that IE comes bundled with all computers that ship with a Windows operating system installed. However, there are a couple that are flat-out wrong, like:
You want online banking? More or less, you’ll need to fire up IE. You want to pay utility bills with your credit card online? IE again.
I don’t know about you guys, but I can’t remember the last time I had to use Internet Explorer for anything that required security, a credit card or paying a bill.
If you don’t let a single front page item on Digg pass you by unnoticed (like me), you’re likely to run into quite a few browser-related diggs over time. Let’s take a look at some that have shown up over the course of the past month.
Get your Firefox Wonder Edition, most efficient Firefox build! – “Firefox Wonder Edition is a special version of Firefox that combines one of the most efficient Firefox build[s] with special extras that make it the fastest Firefox around for Windows.”
Firefox memory usage and memory leak news – “Many Mozilla community members, including both volunteers and Mozilla Corporation employees, have been helping to reduce Firefox’s memory usage and fix memory leak bugs lately. Hopefully, the result of this effort will be that Firefox 3 uses less memory than Firefox 2 did, especially after it has been used for several hours.”
Firefox/Camino vs. Safari Image Quality — Big difference (IMAGE) – “There seems to be a pretty big significance between these two browser[s] in terms of displaying this image. Not sure why this is happening…but it’s making me consider leaving my favorite browser.”
Can IE’s architect explain why it’s so bloated? – “More good news for Internet Explorer users: Microsoft’s IE chief explains why IE is fatter than Firefox and will never have a similarly comprehensive plugin system.”
Firefox Coming To Your Phone – “The iPhone, with its fully-functioning Safari browser, showed us that mobile browsing need not be a compromise. Now, the folks at Mozilla are working on a mobile version of Firefox.”
Mozilla: We’re Ready to Rock the Mobile Web Now – “Here’s some information about what we’re planning to do with hiring, technology, partnerships, and products, and how you can get involved.”
As you can see, Digg is pretty heavy on Firefox, but you got a little Safari and Konqueror in there, too (the IE stuff probably doesn’t count ).
The browsersphere is a busy place, and only gets busier as I start to hone in on all the web browsers that are actually out there. Without further ado…
In a lengthy post on the future (or lack thereof) of Internet Explorer, Alex Russell compares and contrasts the transparency of the major web browser development teams:
The features planned for Firefox 3 are impressive and the work is being done in the open, meaning it’s easy to have confidence that not only will Mozilla ship what they say they will, it’ll be here when they say it will. Same goes for the excellent work the Safari team has been doing. Even Opera keeps its community on fire by shipping regular updates, showing tech previews at conferences, and blogging about the progress being made on many fronts. If the IE team is holed up working on something stonkingly [sic] good, they certainly aren’t doing themselves any favors by not telling us about it. The result of their radio silence isn’t mystery, it’s distrust. Deep, divisive, troubling distrust of the kind you can only get when folks who break up stop talking altogether.
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