By Koh Siang Liang

Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 Beta 2

Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) has been part of the Windows operating system (OS) since 1995 and is the most widely used Web browser by PC users. IE8 is under development, with a stable release expected by year's end.

Among its new features are Accelerators, Web Slices and Instant Search. Accelerators allow you to interact with another website or service without having to open multiple tabs or windows. For example, highlight the words on a Web page and have them translated into another language.

Web Slices deliver rich, updated Really Simple Syndication or RSS-like content to the Web browser, so you always get the latest news or blog entries that you have subscribed to.

Instant Search allows you to key in a search term and get quick, relevant search suggestions - without the need to type in the entire word or phrase - from your chosen search provider such as Yahoo! Search and your browsing history. IE8 also makes the surfing experience slightly faster.

Final say

The IE8 beta 2 is an improvement over IE 7.0 with new features like improved tab handling, better search and faster Web page loading. However, bear in mind the browser is still in Beta 2 and may be buggy.

Get it at: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/internet-explorer/beta/default.aspx

Mozilla Firefox 3.0.3

This free and open source Web browser is ranked the second-most popular browser worldwide, after Internet Explorer.

Apart from the run-of-the-mill features, it has keyboard short-cuts, live bookmarking, download manager and integrated search system that uses your preferred search engine.

The current stable version is 3.0.3, which you can tweak with - get this - 6,000 add-ons (from http://addons.mozilla.org).

The Firefox3.1 Beta 1, a public preview release intended for developer testing and community feedback, has recently become available for download from the Mozilla website.

Cool touches abound. Smart Bookmark Folders, for instance, provide quick access to the user's most visited bookmarks from the toolbar, or recently bookmarked and tagged pages from the bookmark menu.

Instant Web Site ID allows you to check the legitimacy of the site when you log in to sites or make a purchase: Simply click on a site favicon for an instant identity overview.

Full page zoom lets you zoom in and out of Web pages or scale the layout, text and images from the menu or keyboard short-cuts.

The pop-up blocker is very zealous in keeping unwanted advertisements out.

What is also good is that you can add features and change functionality in Firefox by installing the add-on extensions.

Start-up is slightly slow, though.

Final say

The Firefox 3.0.3 is one of the best Web browsers to-date with a clean interface, good features, enhanced security and fast Web page rendering.

Get it at: http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/

Apple Safari for Windows 3.1.2

Apple Safari is the default Web browser in Mac OS X 10.3 as well as for the iPhone and iPod Touch. It was opened up for Windows XP and Vista machines only in June last year. Safari also claims to be the fastest Web browser on any platform with a stylish and very Apple-like user interface on the PC. The current stable release is version 3.1.2.

Safari aims to please Apple enthusiasts.

Like most of the Web browsers, Safari also offers tabbed browsing, pop-up blocker, built-in RSS and supports plug-ins like QuickTime, Adobe Flash Player, Adobe Reader, Java, Real Player and Windows Media Player for a richer surfing experience.

The Web browser has a very neat layout with a standard toolbar that does not take up too much of screen space when you surf the Web. Right-clicking on a highlighted word provides the options of 'copy' and 'search with Google', which is useful especially for those who need more options on-the-fly.

Safari's 'close tab' icon is on the left of each tab as opposed to the right on other browsers, which requires some getting used to because the 'close' option is usually on the upper right corner of Windows applications and most browsers. The search engine in the search bar is limited to Google and Yahoo.

Final say

Safari is fast, easy to use and aims to please Apple enthusiasts. The Apple-like user interface looks a little weird on a PC, but if that does not bother you, neither will the Web browsing experience.

Get it at: http://www.apple.com/safari/download/

Google Chrome (beta)

The latest free, open-source Web browser that is based on the open source software Chromium and released under the BSD licence. Released in September this year, the browser works in more than 40 different languages from Russian, Spanish, Hebrew, Arabic to Japanese and Swedish.

Chrome has features similar to most Web browsers, but it has a slightly different user interface.

According to Google, the name is derived from the visible graphical interface features of an application or Web browser, which are referred to as 'chrome'.

Its combined search and address bar gives suggestions that can quickly take users to where they want to go in just a few keystrokes. Opening a new tab shows a snapshot of your most visited sites, recent searches and bookmarks, making navigation easy.

There is very little to configure and Chrome is very simple to use. Downloads can be monitored easily and the Web browser will warn you if it suspects that the website you are visiting is unsafe.

Once you close the only tab available on the browser, Chrome will exit itself rather than give a blank page like others.

Final say

Despite it being the beta version, Chrome pulls down Web pages quite quickly in a draw of a breath.

Get it at: http://www.google.com/chrome

Opera 9.6

Developed by Opera Software, this Web browser of the same name is not only designed to load Web pages, but it can also handle the most common Internet-related tasks such as Internet Relay Chat (IRC), peer-to-peer file sharing (via BitTorrent network) and sending and receiving e-mail messages.

The Opera stands out from the rest as a multi-purpose Web browser

The latest version - 9.6 - can run on various OS including Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, FreeBSD and Solaris.

In addition to tabbed browsing, Opera offers page zooming, mouse gestures (which you can execute common commands like close tab, open new tab and back/forward Web page by combining computer mouse movements and clicks) and BitTorrent client for easy transmitting and receiving of digital files over the BitTorrent network.

The default layout with enabled toolbars looks slightly cluttered until you decide which to close or disable. Whenever there is a newer version of the Web browser, you will need to download and install it. Don't expect a quiet update in the background.

Final say

The Opera 9.6 stands out from the rest as a multi-purpose Web browser with features that you can use conveniently without having to download and install separately. On top of that, it has good support and updates to ensure that bugs and gaps are constantly patched.

Get it at: http://www.opera.com/download/

This article was first published in Digital Life, The Straits Times on Oct 29, 2008.