Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Browser Wars I & II

In the beginning (around AD 1994) there was Mosaic, a small, primitive HTML browser that first popularized the Web. Mosaic was created at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign by a bunch of hotshot programmers, many of whom moved to Silicon Valley and created the next big breakthrough, a much faster browser forever remembered as simply Netscape. Netscape Navigator was the browser of choice until the late ’90s when Microsoft released Internet Explorer (IE was first licensed from much of the lingering Mosaic code) and the first browser war ensued.

With a good initial product and its fabled marketing might, Microsoft captured more and more users and pulled ahead as the mainstream Internet browser. Netscape slowly faded into history. While IE began to dominate, however, it added everything and the kitchen sink. The browser bogged down and broke down more than many users could tolerate.

As time went on, the Web was supercharged with 2.0 apps. More and more ’Net apps, such as messaging, voice apps, streaming video, chat, social networking, and online word processing became popular. With Web 2.0, having a fast, reliable Web browser has become more important than ever. In a response to changing needs, a number of alternative browsers have come out to challenge IE. A second browser war is now in full force. This time, Internet Explorer faces stiff competition from Apple Safari, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, and Google Chrome. The focus of these browsers is a return to an efficient, secure, and fast browser that can get the most out of Web 2.0 apps. Regardless of who wins the next browser skirmish, users are the ultimate winners with a better way to view and use the Web.

Source of Information : Google Sites and Chrome FOR DUMMIES

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