SciTech Shark – Science & Technology News Reviewer

IE 8 vs FireFox 3

Posted on 03. Apr, 2009 by SciTech Shark in Software, Web

We have been all anticipating newest release from Microsoft – the mighty Internet Explorer in its 8th reincarnation – and it finally arrived in March. Now, Microsoft is aggressively marketing new browser just anywhere – on Facebook, major technology related online magazines and even in the normal mail (yes, I got some postcards featuring movie-like poster of IE 8).

The questions is: how IE 8 stands up to its major competitor FireFox?

The answer may not be so easy. Our tests showed that IE 8 performs better and faster than its predecessor (version 7); rendering pages faster, complying with the Standards, processing Java Script better, using its tab system more efficiently.  But… it still feels like Internet Explorer is just trying to be FireFox and Microsoft did not invent or revolutionized the browsing experiencing.

Some of you may disagree.

Well, new IE features nifty ability to group the related pages opened in tabs by applying same colors to tab groups. And, yes, there are web slices, built in “suggest similar site” drop down and cool search window with pop-up results. However, these features are not inventions but nearly built-in extensions and I bet next version of FireFox add-ons will mimic these functions exactly or even better.

Power Search

Do not forget hundred of FireFox add-ons, large community devoted to improve the browser and strong fan base. I also need to mention widely spreading dislike tendency toward Microsoft’s browser.

The IE 8 will be popular enough so Microsoft’s executives will have material to say: “we did it again”. But this comes from the fact that Internet Explorer comes with every Windows installation and may people won’t bother to check alternatives. Version 8 will be pushed by automatic updates and web site logs will start showing growing usage curve. Web developers will end up cursing the situation because they will have to write their web pages supporting yet another browser.

Do you think you will switch to IE 8 completely?
Please leave the comment below.

Tags: browser, FireFox, IE, IE 8, Internet Explorer, microsoft, war