For many people they can go unnoticed, but web browsers are essential for access and circulation on the Internet, they are the vehicle through which we navigate through the infinite network. If we look at the definition that Wikipedia gives us , “a browser or, in English, a browser , is software that allows access to the Internet, interpreting the information on websites so that they can be read.” And he continues: “The basic functionality is to allow you to visit web pages and do activities on them .”
Today we know that there is a wide variety of browsers. The use of one or the other is very subjective, it depends on each person and the comfort that they have with each of them, because the differences between the most popular ones are quite small if we see it from the perspective of an ordinary user, not that of a computer professional. In this article, then, we will talk about some of the best-known browsers and try to find some of the differences between them, so that later each one can choose the one that best suits their needs.
Google Chrome
It is one of the best known and most used , basically because it is the one that ensures a higher speed. It hit the stage in early 2008. Since then, it has managed to go from a market share of 0% to the current 25% last month. It starts quickly from the desktop, loads pages instantly, and runs complex web applications at high speed. Its great advantage over its competition is also its main drawback: Google .
Google assures you permanent financing and is always up to date in terms of improvements and news; However, it is also one of the most influential and profitable multinational companies in the world, and as such, its ultimate goal is profit, and not everyone feels comfortable leaving them their personal and non-personal data.
Apart from this, the Chrome browser window is intuitive and simple. It is designed to offer greater security on the web, by updating automatically so that we always have the latest improvements in this field. If it is your favorite browser for the PC, Google Chrome will also be the favorite to do it through the tablet, presenting equally powerful versions on both Android and iOS.
Mozilla Firefox
For many people it is the browser that transmits the most confidence, surely because, apart from being one of the oldest (it came out in 2003) it is solid, stable and has very few errors . Firefox, the second most used browser on the Internet, is characterized by being a standalone program, and for many it is their favorite because it is not for profit. It has been developed over the years by dozens of programmers who improve it with each update.
In addition, it is a highly customizable browser , since it has a wide range of themes and plugins. But best of all are extensions, small free additions made by hundreds of developers around the world that do all the work and functions imaginable.
Opera
It is the quintessential alternative web browser . It is also one of the oldest and, for many years, it has been one of the most widely used in mobile phones, until the popularization of smartphones . It is developed by a Norwegian company and, like Firefox, is non-profit.
Its latest version, Opera 15 , uses the same engine as Google Chrome, so you can use the same extensions available for the Google browser. In addition, it incorporates a very interesting novelty, what they call the ” Shelf “, a reinvention of bookmarks or favorites that allows you to save pages that are interesting to read later.
Opera is also highly customizable; It contains a wide variety of themes and its speed has nothing to envy the most popular Chrome or Firefox.
Safari
Safari continues to be a web browser associated with Apple Macs , despite the fact that in 2008 it also jumped to the Microsoft platform, with its Windows systems. Despite the fact that it is the fourth most used Internet browser, maintaining a market share that is between 5 and 8%, its growth is very slow, especially due to the fact that its version for PCs is nothing remarkable. in virtually no respect. In addition, they have not been updated for more than a year, with the security breaches that this can cause.
Apple’s version of Safari is something else; It offers good performance and is preferred by its users, since it benefits from the fact that its operating system is developed internally by the same company.
Also, Safari has some interesting options; one of the most relevant is its “ Reader ” mode , through which part of the screen is blurred and the central text becomes highlighted in black on white, which is ideal for reading online publications .
Safari is not the fastest browser of all that exist, but it is stable and efficient , with a very simple aspect intended for a type of user with basic computer knowledge. Of course, in terms of the offer of features and extensions, it is surpassed by its competition.
Internet explorer
Explorer maintains its wide market share ( around 60-65% ) thanks to the fact that it was the first to come out and also that it is predetermined on all Microsoft PCs, but it is not currently up to the standards of the other large ones, basically due to the large number of bugs that drag.
The various developers of Internet Explorer have failed to keep up with the competition; However, it appears that Microsoft is currently getting its batteries back to consider Explorer a priority in its action strategy.
Today, Internet Explorer is not characterized by its special speed and is the browser that presents the most security problems of all the candidates. The unnecessary restrictions Windows places on your updates on older operating systems are also not an incentive to opt for this option.
