I have a dual-monitor setup, and the way in which I personally compute is that I do assign certain sites to specific browsers because it just seems to work better.
Fact: No one browser does everything well
At this point I’ve pretty much given up the idea of using one browser for everything because certain browsers handle certain sites better than others.
I admit that using multiple browsers isn’t necessarily the most efficient way of browsing, however it depends on the tasks you need to get done, which I’ll explain below.
My personal browsing preferences
What I’m about to tell you is not an instruction manual for how you should do things with browsers. This is simply how I handle things.
Sites that sit there for a long time and self-update
Browser I assign: Chromium 13
Two sites I keep open all the time are my webmail and Facebook. Both these sites self-update and require a browser that has proper memory management and doesn’t slow down even when those sites are just sitting there self-updating for hours on end. Chromium handles this task very well.
Another reason I use Chromium for this task is because it does not poll for software updates like Google Chrome does. At no time will the browser pop up a nag notice that states “Update! Restart your browser, you fool!”
Mapping Sites
Browser I assign: Internet Explorer 9
Map sites (Google Maps, Bing Maps, etc.) are very graphic and script intensive. When I need to use them, I use IE9. Why? Because it takes full advantage of my video hardware and runs liquid smooth. There’s no chop and no stutter when using mapping sites with IE9. With anything else there is – even with GPU support.
Default browser assignment
Browser I assign: Mozilla Firefox 4.01
The default browser I have loaded on any external program link click (such as from Thunderbird) is Firefox; this is because I know the site for whatever it is will render correctly in that browser all the time. I cannot trust that certain sites will render correct in IE9 or Chromium, hence why Fx is the default browser in my Windows 7.
General browsing
Browser I assign: Mozilla Firefox 4.01
I bookmark a lot of stuff and use Xmarks for bookmark synchronization. However only in Firefox can you use Xmarks to sync to your own FTP server, which I do. It is for this reason I use Fx for all my general browsing.
In addition I have all my custom keyword searches loaded into Fx – over 50 of them. And I simply do not want to reprogram all those because that would just be a huge waste of time. And no, exporting keyword searches does not work and neither does syncing between non-like browsers using a sync service like Xmarks. Believe me, I’ve tried.
Fx is still the best power user’s browser, even if it does require you to restart it every few hours from being the memory-munching monster that it is. I cannot get any other browser to do what Fx does and do it well.
“Failsafe” browsing
Browser I assign: IE9 with Compatibility View enabled
This is something I don’t have to do often but I’m glad the feature exists.
There are some sites out there that absolutely will not work with modern Firefox, modern Chrome/Chromium or modern IE9. You’ll be browsing along a site and then something happens. A menu disappears. A graphic won’t display that’s supposed to be there. Something is just messed up.
When that happens, I open the site in IE9 and mash that “broken paper” icon, which is Compatibility View:
The only time I’ve ever had this feature not ‘fix’ a messed-up site is if the site itself is having some sort of major issue behind the scenes that Compatibility View can’t address. Otherwise, it always works.
Should you be a browser hopper?
I think everyone should try all the major players of browsers out there, because chances are really good you will find certain browsers just do a better job with certain sites.
Lastly, I also want to point out that browser-hopper habits are also largely dependent on the computer and operating system you’re using.
On my netbook I use Chromium 13 a lot more compared to the desktop because that computer is significantly slower and Chromium running with zero extensions is more or less as fast as you can get on a slow computer box.
When I’m in a Linux environment I obviously don’t have IE9, but given the choice between Chromium and Firefox I almost always go with Firefox because it seems to operate a whole lot smoother in that environment. Yes, it still has memory issues (the browser, not the environment) but the way Linux threads processes allows you to “throw a lot more” at the browser before having to restart it (again).
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