Is Firefox better than IE?

[newomij]

I would like to learn more about Firefox's web browser - pro's and con's. Is there a thread here or in the archives that thoroughly discusses the attributes of this product and its differences from IE? A lot of opinions with some technical information is better than a complete technical breakdown of the inner workings. Thanks for your input.
newomij

[mystvearn]

You can do a search, but I'm not sure there is any such article. Best way is to go to mozilla.org and try firefox yourself. Firefox is explained in depth there.
Differences? Well, supposely FF is safer, it still is but then some recent flaws showed up. But all fixed.
Tab browsing
pop-ip blocker
very small resource app.
In fact IE has done lot of catching up with FF.
Using it more than 3 years, will never go back to IE, unless for windows updates.
Technically, IE is the fastest? browser. I may be wrong.

[Force Flow]

Almost any browser is better than IE.

Opera, firefox (and a few people still clinging on to netscape) seem to be the best alternatives to IE.

[bigandy]

I don't necessarily know if I'd say it's better. I use Firefox because I like some of the features better than IE, and I like the look and the ability to customize it. There are security holes in IE, but there are in other browsers as well. Staying secure is much more dependent on the user than the browser, and I really don't like all the fanboys saying that Firefox is way better than IE or IE is way better than Firefox, just because.

My suggestion: Try the different browsers out and see which one works for you.

/me waits for HAL to see this thread

[Stuey]

I personally like Maxthon (formerly MYIE2) since it offers similar features to firefox but is based off of IE. I prefer Maxthon's tabbed interface over firefox but that's just a personal preference. This is what you should do: download firefox and give it a whirl. If you like it, there's no need to try anything else. If you only kind of like it, try other browsers such as Maxthon or Opera. If you keep your computer updated and have proper protection (firewall, periodic spyware checks), there's no reason why you need to stop using IE.

Hmm... didn't see bigandy's post before I replied. I totally agree with him. Although, I understand why some people are over enthusiastic abotu firefox. I've used outlook express for over four years now and it recently deleted some of my emails when it crashed. So now I am avidly against OE and for Thunderbird. The firefox enthusiasts probably experienced something similarly bad with IE to have turned them to firefox.

[kram 2.0]

Each side has its merits - I personally use Firefox more because I happened to like it better. However, I do keep MSIE on my system when accessing Microsoft specific websites (MS Exchange Server/Email online, Windows Updates, etc). One thing I like about MSIE more than Firefox is their updates - I don't know about everyone else but I like patching better than reinstalling.

kram

[bigandy]

Yes, I like that better as well Kram. I remember seeing this article before which claims that Firefox will be switching to a patch system (like we currently have with IE and the Windows Updates) rather than their current system of reinstalling.

[kram 2.0]

Originally Posted by bigandy Yes, I like that better as well Kram. I remember seeing this article before which claims that Firefox will be switching to a patch system (like we currently have with IE and the Windows Updates) rather than their current system of reinstalling.

All the more reason to stay with it . Thanks for the news - it's the one thing that has puzzled me most about Firefox.

kram

[piasabird]

I was reading something the other day that said the most dangerous software on the Internet is Outlook Express. I had problems with outlook express always telling me I had too many open connections, but never with other products like Netscape Mail.

[Stryker]

I'm with mystvearn,
If you want to know if Firefox is right for your needs/wants, just give it a try. I currently have one of my test boxes running with IE, Firefox, Netscape, Maxthon and Opera to see which I like best. I would say it's a tie right now between Firefox and Opera (I'm favoring FF a little, but I think that's only because I've been playing with it a little more), but I haven't explored all the different features of Opera yet. I've been using Firefox for months, but wanted to compare for myself.

Download it, use it for a while (more than a day!!) and see what you think. If you don't like it... Start > Control Panel > Add/Remove Programs

[sbailey12]

I've been using Firefox/Mozilla for a few years now, but recently I have noticed myself using IE more frequently, I've also have been playing with Opera. I just find Firefox (atleast the Windows version) to be a little too crash happy for my taste, especially with Java apps.

[Stryker]

Originally Posted by sbailey12 I just find Firefox (atleast the Windows version) to be a little too crash happy for my taste, especially with Java apps.

Very strange sbailey12,
I use FF constantly on Windows (XP Pro and 2000 Pro) and it has quite literally NEVER crashed. You may have an underlying problem there.

[piasabird]

Could try installing sun java

[tomster2300]

I use Firefox all the time, unless I find a site which isnt compatible with it, like MSNBC.com's news videos - then I switch to IE.

I enjoy the tabbed windows in Firefox and the ability to right click and drag my mouse to switch between pages. Also placing my mouse on tabs and rolling the mouse wheel to switch them is cool too. I just love its extra features.

[bucksfanjimj1]

Keep in mind that Opera, FireFox and Maxthon are free. You will only be out of some of your time as you try any or all of them. I personally like Opera, I've been using it for a year now. But like you, I have been curious about trying FireFox just for kicks and giggles. And after reading everyone else's comments I just might go download FF for myself.

There's only one way to find out what you like and that is to try it.

This is a link to the features in Opera in case you might be interested.

http://www.opera.com/features/

Happy Surfing!

[tomster2300]

I forgot to add something about security. I believe Firefox is supposedly "more secure" because it's not as widely used as IE. Since IE is generally the norm, it is a larger target for hackers to attack, whereas the threat to Firefox is smaller since it is still relatively unused by the majority of the public.

It is growing tremendously though, so it will begin becoming beseiged shortly -- though I'm sure it already has on numerous occasions.

[Cricket]

No program is perfect.

Cricket

[als814]

I was using IE for years, and I really liked it. I had been using AOL until I was old enough to realize that if I just use aim it will stop eating my Ram. My mom is a teacher, and she has a G4 or G5 with MacOSX and Safari on it. I don't like Macs, but I used her's a couple of times for internet stuff, and it turned out that tabbed browsing became really handy. It is even more useful in a Mac system that doesn't have the windows toolbar across the bottom that holds a bunch of different apps.

I've since switched to Firefox after hearing some good things, and now I don't have to run spybot quite as much. If you think you like IE, maybe you do; however, maybe you don't know what you are missing. Personally, I would just give it a try.

[ffreeloader]

While it is true that no software is completely secure FF will never have hooks as deeply into the OS as IE does. That is a distince security advantage for FF. I've been running it for more than a year now and I really like it.

I used to be a staunch IE guy too, but when just switching to FF stopped 95% + of all the spyware on my machine I was sold. It's true that spyware will probably be written for FF specifically, but even that will never make me go back to IE. I like what Mozilla has done with FF and I'll stick with it. I like the ability to tweak it using about:config. That's something I doubt MS will ever allow people to do with IE.

I like Mozilla 1.7 pretty well too. It can be tweaked using about:config too. Opera, well, I hate all the ads and I'm not about to pay for it. I see no reason to when FF is free.

[bigandy]

Originally Posted by Cricket No program is perfect. Cricket

Yup, and that's another thing that bugs me about some of the "uneducated" people who simply tout Firefox as an end all solution to spyware and viruses. Sure it can help you cut back on them, but if you go to suspect sites, accept all cookies, allow the sites to install software, don't scan things you download, etc. you're still going to have TONS of problems, regardless of your browser.

[antgross@pacbell.net]

Originally Posted by sbailey12 I've been using Firefox/Mozilla for a few years now, but recently I have noticed myself using IE more frequently, I've also have been playing with Opera. I just find Firefox (atleast the Windows version) to be a little too crash happy for my taste, especially with Java apps.

See post http://forum.pcmech.com/showthread.p...t=java+firefox

i had 40 viewings and ZERO comments. We're either the only two people with a problem or people are quite content to watch FF crash constantly with java sites.

[Force Flow]

It's JavaScript, not java. There's a difference.

Did you try to uninstall and reinstall the browser?

[juppy]

There's definitely a problem with version 1.0.6 of Firefox when it comes to JavaScripts. I've been using Firefox for quite awhile with no problems whatsoever until that version came out. I upgraded to 1.0.6 and quickly noticed the screen would totally lock up on a page with a JavaScript application embedded in it. Worked fine everywhere else though. And yeah Force, I thought maybe uninstalling it and reinstalling it would do it to, but it didn't help. I tried both an over-the-top install over 1.0.5 as well as totally deleting the whole thing and starting the install from scratch. Both ways still locked up. I got to talking to HAL one night and he reminded me about a thread on here about Maxthon, so I tried it and have been using it ever since. IMO it's better at blocking ads than FF is anyway.

[cud666]

is firefox better than mozilla? i use the normal mozilla and i love it, much better than ie for sure except every now and then i have to use ie to view pages that have poor compatability in their coding on some sites, should i go firefox enstead?

[Stryker]

Give Firefox a try to see if you like it. If it doesn't suit your needs, just uninstall it.

[Winnipesaukee]

I use Opera for flash, etc, and Dillo (Linux only) for everything else. Both are very lightweight compared to IE they are SO *inapporpriate interjection* FAST

about IE, It is a resource hog, which slows your comp down, and can be insecure. These are the only reasons I dont use it on my windows comp.

[RazorDX]

I use it mainly because it is quicker longer. Why? Most spyware/adware is coded to feed off of IE. On clean installs, I would leave it with IE and within a week AdAware would have over 1000 hazardous objects. A clean install with FF after a week had 4. I don't know about you, but those 996 hazardous objects mean quite a bit to me.

[Karthik1019]

I've got both. I posed a similar question on this forum about the same topic in the past and got the same answers. I still use IE much more often, just used to it I guess. I've got zero spyware/adware/viruses etc. If you patch up IE right and if you've got broadband, it seems like its not much of an issue at all.

[Stryker]

Quite true Karthik. If you're careful and "browse intelligently" then you won't have any real issues. The biggest problem with browsing the internet isn't the browser you use, it's the person clicking the links.

Use the browser you like the most, because they all have their own problems. Is Firefox better than I.E.? It is if you think it is.

[ffreeloader]

i had 40 viewings and ZERO comments. We're either the only two people with a problem or people are quite content to watch FF crash constantly with java sites.

I run Firefox on both Win2K machines and Linux machines, and I've never had Firefox lock up on a Java site on either OS. I've had other problems with it once, but then it was with Windows and the machine itself was in need of a rebuild and many other apps were crashing too. After the rebuild I haven't had any further problems with it.