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We all have our preferences regarding browsers of choice. Linux Today has an interesting article giving some visitor statistics to CNET's site showing Opera at the bottom of the list at only 1.2% of the visting browser makeup and Google's Chrome at a modest 3.2% in October 2008, up 1% from the previous month. It isn't surprising Internet Explorer would come in at a cool 40%+, but that's to be expected.
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it of CNET goes on to say, and I quote "Of course, CNET News has a more adventurous and techno-savvy audience". That being the case, then why would so many people visiting their site be Internet Explorer users? I don't know about you, but in any technically oriented job I've EVER held, the least adopted and used browser was ALWAYS Internet Explorer - and at least one of these companies happens to be a MS Certified company touting all Microsoft usage, etc... So, is it safe to figure from that comment that IE users are more technically savvy or just when they visit CNET News? What gives?
Google has always had a tendency to come out of the darkness with something truly profound, i.e. Google Chrome. They are equally adept at capturing market share. This year, they absorbed one of the leading affiliate marketing groups - Performics.com. Nothing surprises me about Google. Then there's Microsoft's seemingly endless supply of resources for marketing and development. There you have it. Microsoft will continue to play a huge role in the browser market simply because they are a leader in defining what it means to browse the Internet. Google will continue to inch it's way up the browser market share ladder and the others will simply go on and on about how they value your security first and foremost.
On the home front, I rarely use Internet Explorer for anything other than the occassional site that just won't work with anything but. I hesitate to call those site's developers inept, but when you cripple a site to a particular platform, what are you really setting out to accomplish?? Beyond all of that, IE is just too "heavy" for my purposes, Firefox crashes a lot, and Chrome just doesn't get it when trying to load some sites I frequent.
It wouldn't appear Opera's browser has been given a fair shake. For everything it offers - and I mean it is jammed packed full of features - it is a feature rich, fast, and reliable browser. Crashes with Opera have been very infrequent for me. Some of the Ajax sites can be a litlte quirky at times, but they're improving. Opera is likely the browser I'm going to make "fit" for a while. I like the features at my finger tips and overall compact design.
Then we have Safari. You've got to visit their page to see how they claim their product stacks up against the competition. I wonder if that is only while being used on a Mac? Safari wouldn't have what they do if it weren't for their Mac exclusivity now opening up to Windows users. A bit back now, Apple began sending the Safari browser along with iTunes updates. A sneaky approach, but it worked on me. I enjoyed it for a while, but it didn't "feel" right to me. Now there's the Mozilla Camino project intended to compete directly against Apple's Safari. I have not had an opportunity to review Camino, as I do not own a Mac.
