Browsers….IE vs Chrome vs Firefox vs Safari….and we can’t forget Opera!

Browser battles are ongoing regularly these days.  Mozilla is releasing new versions of Firefox with increasing rapidity, and market share has definitely changed, but a comment from one of my co-workers this past week made me ponder why so many are still using Internet Explorer when it is still having more problems than most other browsers.

To be fair, IE has made major progress from 7 to 8 to 9.  Regularly rotating into the top position in terms of speed and security features, Microsoft is doing their best to keep up with the competition.

New features, such as HTML 5 support, hardware acceleration, best plug-in libraries, and now RAM optimization (Firefox) must be emphasized by browser manufacturers in order to try to differentiate themselves.

One thing I have noticed is that, in most cases, speed is now the least relevant item to use to distinguish one browser from another.  All recent benchmark reviews I have seen, really over at least the last year, show no “human-discernable” difference between browsers.  However, one area where IE seems to consistently lag behind the other browsers is in Java-scripted site content, where it continues to struggle.

All this, and regular usage of all browsers, has led me to realize that the “look and feel” and feature-set are more important to me than raw speed, stats, or behind-the-scenes security settings that aren’t exactly visible.

For instance, the RSS-feed-aggregation in Safari I wrote about in my last update.  As an IT professional I regularly need to be seeing and digesting industry news, updates, tips, etc.  This method of adding feeds in Safari, and the built-in tools and sorting methods it provides, represent a real improvement in efficiency AND my own experience/perception.

All else being equal, it seems the individual user experience, which is NOT measurable in the way most benchmarks work, makes the biggest difference for individual selections.

Some of my co-workers like Firefox because they are used to the larger library of plug-ins.  Chrome, the first to introduce search in the address bar, with a more-streamlined UI and behind-the-scenes updates, impressed others and hasn’t done anything since then to convince them to switch.  Opera, long considered the “geeks” browser, actually won the latest round of speed tests done by Lifehacker, and continues to add new and interesting features, some of which are not immediately apparent.

However, looking at the stats, it seems the overwhelming issue for users is which browser is the default for their OS.  Even though I can and have installed Firefox and Chrome for Lion, I rarely find myself opening them because Safari does everything to my satisfaction and I really enjoy the minimalistic interface.  Since Windows still ships with the largest percentage of computers sold, and IE is the built-in, default browser, the majority of people still use IE. Despite its’ lag, bugginess, and lack of some features and UI design elements compared to other browsers, most users seem content to use it.  Maybe because they don’t need to spend extra time researching, downloading and installing other browsers, configuring and migrating favorites, plugins, etc?  Or maybe because a high percentage of the computer-using world doesn’t even realize other browsers are options, and might provide them value?

Regardless of the causes, I must say that when it comes to browsers, it is one area where ignorance is NOT bliss, and I am glad to have the time to regularly review, test, and experience the various products.

What are your experiences?

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