What web browser is best?

@OP: You know, all of these browsers are free to download and install. Why don't you just do that, benchmark them, try out their user interfaces, and make the choice yourself?

That's really the only good answer to a subjective word like "best".

 

I've tested Iron and Waterfox, and unfortunately, none of them could impress me. Waterfox was as slow as Firefox, and while @StormJumper wasn't really friendly, my current impression is, that he wrote the truth. The browser got altered several times, so it really doesn't seem safe. Also the Iron support forum seems to be completely non-visited, so not even by the developers. This is, why I switched to Chrome again today.

Here's something interesting btw.:

Chrome Canary

As I learned, Chrome has 4 different channels, Canary, Dev, Beta and Stable, which is the order of release, so Canary is the newest possible version that's available. It's not garantueed to work fail-free, but it gets updated almost daily, and it's actually very interesting, because it installs in paralell to any of the other versions of Chrome. If something i.e. shouldn't work in the Stable release, there are good chances, that the Canary version will already have it fixed.

 

I wanted to try Chrome and installed it yesterday, when I saw Babylon search, immediately uninstalled it as I don't like the way it takes over my PC.

 

Do you mean by that, that Chrome installed Babylon search or that Chrome is so unsafe in general, that it cannot protect the user from that software installing? I used Chrome for 2y before switching to Iron and cannot remember ever having had a problem with a toolbar install. I cought myself the Ask-toolbar during the last weeks with Iron though, and as Iron is based on Chromium aswell, I'm not sure now, if Chromium itself maybe is not safe. Info on this would be interesting.

 

For those of you that don't know, or have forgotten - it was big news 4 years ago - Chrome stored passwords are easy to get to, so don't use saved passwords in Chrome.

It was worse when it was first noticed, Chrome stored passwords in clear text, but now they use a simple user credential driven encryption - and any hack that is running as your user context can decrypt it.

Here is a more recent (2013) investigation discovering how to difficult it is to get at stored passwords in several browsers.

How Browsers Store Your Passwords (and Why You Shouldn't Let Them)
http://raidersec.blogspot.com/2013/06/how-browsers-store-your-passwords-and.html

 

It didn't even ask me whether I wanted this tool bar and search facility of Babylon, I just wanted an alternative to IE11 and thought Chrome would have got rid of Babylon but it installs so many unwanted items in the tool bar, it was a good laugh, anyway

 

I understand that comment in the way, that you think that the Babylon-toolbar came with the Chrome-install, if that is true, you didn't download Chrome from it's official soure, because I installed it from that one today, and I have no Babylon-toolbar.

@hmscott : I use Lastpass.

 

Thanks for the link and info. Firefox seems to be the best regarding pw security, when using master pw. Am using this to configure it > https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/master-password/

 

You are right, I must have downloaded from cnet.com and their installer must have installed all those unwanted items, I used google chrome previously in Vista but the Babylon was really annoying and it was very hard to remove, I might try Chrome again as IE11 becoming very unstable recently.

 

Always go to the source when downloading...

Google's stuff is always under development, with many continuous updates. What I am saying is they are all just as likely to be unstable, so you might as well enjoy the cutting edge

Chrome is on 4 public tracks Stable, Dev, Beta, Canary.

I usually download and use Beta, but depending on "cool" features I hear about, I might try another channel.

Chrome Release Channels
https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/dev-channel

Downloader crapware is to be avoided. It's just as easy to find the source of a tool as it is to pick the first hit in a google search.

Refine searches a bit each time by adding specifics, learn how to focus your searches. This takes some time, but after a while it will be 2nd nature, and your searches will return what you need in the first 10 results.

 

I've been running canary for about 6 months, and only had to resort to regular chrome twice due to stability problems.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

@hmscott (but also others) :

Google search? Tzzzz ^^

Use Duck !

 

Not if Chrome installs it's bloatware that it comes with it.

 

ah well, i dont really care about their forums, development is very active and theyre keeping up with the chrome stable release versions, so thats good enough for me

 

Definitely not true, Chrome is faster, even with its bloatware, which btw. can be disabled. The problems Chrome has are E-Tags and that the easiest possibility to delete the Cache at shutdown actually involves a installing RAM Disk and learning how to create hard-links.

 

I noticed the other day when I downloaded 7-zip it had it too but you had to be looking for it. It was very small print. Most would not of seen it.

 

I have been using Firefox X64 Nightly also, I have only had one problem with it opening multiple tabs, Its a fast browser, sooner or later firefox developers will issue 64 bit of Firefox and get it off the nightly channel download. which it updates itself almost every night to a newer version, its an experimental browser, running it with win 10 pro.


Cheers
3Fees

 

Firefox, no question.

 

If like Firefox try Pale Moon it`s based on Firefox so most of the stuff is the same, it just runs and loads websites faster, Also there is an version for Intel Atom processors that is low on resources if you have an netbook or an atom Windows tablet.

Give Pale Moon a try, don't just think it`s another crap browser.

https://www.palemoon.org/

John.

 

I use both FF and Chrome at the same time.

 

Same here, on some pages sometimes works better than the other and vice versa, so I keep both.

 

A new article about some other browsers. I haven't tried any of them though.
https://www.maketecheasier.com/browsers-online-security/

 

I use Edge on my Surface 3. It's really the best for battery. With Edge I get around 6 hours of battery with the screen at 75% brightnes, with Chrome I get about 4 hours with brightness at 25%.

I can't decide if I want to wait for Edge extensions with Redstone, or use a host file-based adblock.

 

yea its funny how ms browsers suck at performance, security and features but excel when it comes to battery life

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

Safari on OS X is the same way. Thankfully, Google has made massive strides in improving Chrome on Macs so I can use it seamlessly on all my computers at both home and work.

 

I love these words "Faster" ya with bloatware is faster-when pigs fly. For Savvy users they can do this but you take your john/jane doe install chrome express and you will be guarantee they be calling you why is my computer loading all this ***** on my system. That is not faster in any sense of the word Faster....

 

I was a big fan of Firefox but I've had enough with it. I say Chrome but I am not completely happy with it either. Its bullying tactics of auto updates make me crazy.

 

Firefox allows you to stop stop it even checking for updates - it's in the preferences, under 'advanced'.

With Chrome, check this thread: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/18483087/how-can-i-disable-google-chrome-auto-update

 

On Windows, I use Firefox primarily for easy customizing, and Chrome for work, as I need to access a particular site that only renders correctly in Chrome.

In Android, I use the Ghostery browser, which is the only way I've found to successfully block unwanted content (ads & trackers) while leaving most of the other content usable.

 

If you aren't going to chrome.google.com to download it, that's your own fault. If they are appearing after you sign in to your Google account, all you have to do is remove the extensions. It sounds to me like you have beef over nothing that is Google's fault but rather user error as the installer from Google comes with no garbage, however, Chrome automatically installs any extensions you had on your last install as soon as you sign in so if you got Chrome from an unofficial source and got an extension as a result, it will indeed follow you from computer to computer until you remove it.

I haven't been terribly amused with Chrome lately but switching back to Firefox is next to impossible at this point and since I have an Android phone, it would interfere with the user experience for me anyway since last I checked, Firefox for Android was a mess. The only exception is I use FlashFox so that I can watch Flash videos on my phone.

 

Primary browser on my computers is Firefox (and sometimes Edge, now that I've upgraded to W10 on both my laptops). No one big reason really, I just like it better than Chrome overall, and Opera/Vivaldi are not sufficiently mature for me to switch. You really can't go wrong with any of the modern browsers, however.

 

I'm really sry to say this, but you really don't know what you're talking of, and cursing won't make Firefox faster. I've tested both, the Bloatware from Chrome is not nearly a problem and can be disabled. In a regular configuration, so with about 5 AddOns to enhance safety, like RTC-Block for Chrome or also to increase Privacy, like Ghostery, https-everywhere, block referrer etc. Chrome performs lightning fast on my computer. Maybe you got a weak PC, but mine is 3y old, so it's not as if it was overly powerful. When I run Chrome from the RamDisk and open 20 Tabs at once, those 20 Tabs are there instant, and because Chrome has the better Cache management, they load at twice the speed that Firefox does in the same test. Seriously, I had both, I tested thoroughly, Chrome needs up to 50% less time to load the same page under the same circumstances. The advantage Firefox has, is that it has a slightly better privacy management with AddOns to block E-Tags and similar, but if one can live with those, Chrome is simply better. Even the most hardcore Firefox lovers say sentences like "I at least hoped, Chrome wouldn't surpass Firefox that fast" .

But you don't have to use Chrome, if you prefer Firefox and think it's better, do what you like, just don't spread false info and don't argument with curses.

 

I prefer Edge, it's fast enough and clean with no extensions, use IE11 occasionally.

 

If you like Firefox try Pale Moon browser as i mentioned in post 72, It`s built on Firefox and looks very similar but runs a lot faster.

https://www.palemoon.org/

John.

 

I use both Chrome and Firefox/Seamonkey. Chrome is best for loading flash content, but takes a lot of resources.

 

Actually I do know what I am talking about so unless your me don't think you are me. If you want NSA Chrome then by all means go ahead. Keep saying faster and other will think faster that's a mantra I hear lots of but seen none of. Why use RAMdisk is Chrome that slow - obvious your test would say so. Unless we have a independent source test it anything of the test your testing doesn't come with much data to support it. What hardcore Firefox fan - care to show that link?

 

Sorry but you're actually wrong. Again.

http://www.digitaltrends.com/comput...lorer-vs-chrome-vs-firefox-vs-safari-vs-edge/

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2966...irefox-chrome-edge-ie-and-opera-compared.html

Thanks to Chrome's Pepper Plug-in API, your plug-ins are always up to date and Chrome crashes far less than Firefox. I stuck with Firefox for a long time - as in I was using it when it was called Phoenix. It was a fantastic browser. WebKit killed Gecko and they've been unable to recover and now Chrome is on Blink. On top of that, they're still using the outdated Netscape Plug-in API which means that plug-ins are not sandboxed in a secure environment.

Now when it comes to security, nothing beats Firefox with the appropriate security modifications and add-ons but when it comes to speed and stability, Chrome wins. Chrome also wins on security when it comes to plug-ins that are notorious for security issues because of this sandbox that isolates the plug-ins from the underlying OS, particularly Flash.

 

I switched to Opera recently because Firefox had become slow and hang-prone across my home and work machines. I was a long term FF user (since my first XP laptop). I find Opera fast and stable with a nice UI which suits me.

I don't like Chrome as I found it too resource heavy in the past and coming from Firefox I didn't like the UI. I have also been using Pale Moon for a couple of days thanks to the recommendation above, apart from having to manually implement the language/dictionary packs it's just like the Firefox I used to use so I'm happy with it.

 

With Firefox, sometimes you have to start again from a blank Profile - re-add your extensions 1 by one, and see if any individual extension starts to slow things down. Usually it is just a corrupted Profile, all the addons are ok when reloaded in a fresh profile.

I use FEBE to export the corrupt profile, restore image + individual files exported, and then import Bookmarks, and add the addons back in.

I am running 22 extensions in 43.0.4 and it's very fast.

One of those extensions is Nightly Tester Tools, so I can override compatibility checks, my favorite theme NASA Night Launch and a couple of my older favorite extensions won't normally be allowed to install based on their compiled in FF version limits - but they work fine.

Give FF a try again

 

Thanks, I will try that if I use Firefox again. I did fresh installs and it was still bad though, it's something I persevered with for a while. Quite happy using either Opera or Pale Moon at the moment, in fact I've been using Pale Moon at work pretty much exclusively and it's been great so I'm still kinda using FF!

 

I tend to run multiple browser's anyway, FF for browsing - safer with all my extensions - Chrome for Video streaming, IE for secondary video and for those times websites haven't been tested on FF, and others just for a test in case it crashes the browser.

That way even if I lose a browser to a crash, I don't lose everything I was doing.

I used to run several FF versions at once too, as I recall, there is/was a trick to do that, due to major FF revisions breaking stuff at the time. Run the old one for compatibility, and run the new one for testing.

That lasted about a year, and I am sure that left a bad taste for FF in many users memory - the ones that didn't know about the multi-version trick.

It's all about not letting the software win

 

The way I see Browsers going is some sites are more suited for one Broswer and not the other if your looking to do specific software usage. Anything related to Microsoft will work better in IE since that is better integrated - my work place is like that we have Windows 7 and MS Office and those work better when opened in IE when using task Online just because of the nature of software integration. But at home I have IE11 and FF just cause I use FF for personal and IE for checking my work email. So any Browser has Cons/Pros its how much integration did you need for it to work.

 

Poor software design is no excuse to chose one browser over another.

Considering how easy it is to make a website or web app browser-agnostic, a better answer to your post would be "Don't use Vendor ABC's products" instead of "Use Browser X for Vendor ABC's products".

 

If that was the case we should all use Apple software and products? If your software can't do well in the O/S it won't get support that's how it goes. Windows O/S does what it does and if the Browser can't integrate with Windows O/S features then it doesn't get used-that's pretty straight forward. Windows O/S and MS Office is what everyone wants to compare and contrast to but so far no one has been able to knock either of those two off the top. So your going to have to make your Browser work with it or have problems.

 

I need a browser that is compatible with most sites but that i can put the buttons: refresh, save, bookmarks(favorites), history in the GUI(main toolbar)

I use Opera 12 but it is not anymore totally compatible with some sites like Vimeo.

Any opinion?

 

If you're talking about the online version of Office, I've had no issues running that on Chrome or Firefox (obviously it works on IE/Edge too, though those don't have decent adblockers). And most of the browsers discussed run well on Windows (by virtue of being installed on such).

As far as in-house work web apps, it's not that hard to make something that'll work with any browser; HTML, CSS and JavaScript don't really care much what they're running on and you have to go out of your way to make something IE/Chrome/FF-dependent. Making web apps browser-dependent is going back to the dark ages of the Internet when Netscape and IE were battling it out..

 

Use more than one Browser. That's what I have done for many years. There hasn't been one browser that can do it all for quite a while.

Firefox used to do it, and perhaps naked it might still do better, but I run a lot of extensions that limit function on purpose.

I use Firefox first, IE 2nd, Chrome 3rd, and so far haven't needed a 4th.

 

As a still-occasional-Opera-12 user, the browsers that I'm moving to as replacements are Firefox and Vivaldi. Both (slightly more so Firefox, but the gap is narrowing) solve the compatibility issues. Firefox is pretty customizeable and while extensions aren't as fluid and integrated as many of Opera 12's features (that's part of the reason Opera 12 is better in the first place), there are extensions to emulate a number of Opera 12's features, such as the Opera 12 style speed dial, with good results. Vivaldi was founded by Opera's original CEO, who left Opera before the switch to Blink, and aims to be the power user's browser that Opera 12 and earlier were. It's still being built out so it's not a complete replacement yet, but it's definitely showing promise and I consider it as good of a bet as any to be an Opera 12 user's replacement after another 6-12 months of refinement.

Which one is better now, will depend on which of Opera 12's features you prefer the most. Every Opera 12 user has their own favorite Opera features, so mine are probably not the same as yours. I'd try both for a week, explore around, and see which you like better. I've wound up using Vivaldi and Firefox about equally, but you may find one more to your tastes. And I still use Opera 12 occasionally too, since for sites that it doesn't have any incompatibilities with, it's still quite a nice browser. You may well find Opera 12 for most sites, plus, say, Firefox for a few incompatible ones, is the best option as well.

 

Apollo13 i already posted what i want - put this 4 buttons in the GUI(main toolbar) : refresh, save, bookmarks(favorites), history . Just that.


I have already muscle memory and i don't want to waste brain cpu's having to deal with it again.

 

You can customize what is on the viewable bars / panels in many browsers, including Firefox:

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/customize-firefox-controls-buttons-and-toolbars