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Resources

Supplementary class materials

“Web Browsers: the Next Generation”

This web page provides additional information and resources for students of the "Web Browsers: the Next Generation" class, offered through the Arlington Adult Education program; and "The Browser Wars" presentations at Capital PC User Group.

What to look for

As discussed in the presentation, we are starting to see a convergence of features within the various web browsers. Here's my list of some of the most important features that can help make your web surfing more productive and safer. (Note that different browsers may use slightly different terminology to describe the same features.)
Tabbed browsing — with features to manage the tabs
Session saving — open several web pages, in different tabs, simultaneously
Search suggestions — common search terms suggested as you type in the search box
Pop-up blocking
Phishing protection — reports if websites are possible scams
RSS feeds — simplified management and reading of news feed items
Page zoom — enlarge an entire web page, including text and graphics
Preview — hover over a tab to see what that page will look like
Forms auto-fill
Private browsing
Easy management of bookmarks
Mouse gestures
Smart keywords for searching at different sites

Free downloads

Internet Explorer keeps getting better. But there are other web browsers too, and they might suit you better. Download another browser (or two or three) for your system. All of these are free downloads.
Chrome — from Google
Firefox — from the Mozilla Foundation, open source software
Opera — the originators of many of today's must-have features
Safari — Apple's browser, runs on Windows too
Firefox Portable — run this version from a USB flash drive (useful when you're using somebody else's computer)
Opera Portable — run this version from a USB flash drive (useful when you're using somebody else's computer)
Opera Mini — run Opera on your PDA or cell phone
Thunderbird — no, not a web browser, but an e-mail client program, a great replacement for Outlook Express, brought to you by the same people that created Firefox

Books

Plenty of books about web browsers are available — too many to give an exhaustive list. Here are a few that I've found helpful.
Take Control of Safari 4. By Sharon Zardetto. TidBITS Publishing, 2009. ISBN 1-933671-66-1. Order on-line (e-book or print edition). A good overview of Safari's compelling features. Although written for Mac users, nearly all the content will apply for the Windows version.

Read the review of these books as it appeared in the CPCUG Monitor, November 2005; requires Acrobat Reader. Although these books cover earlier versions of Firefox, they still have a lot of useful material.
Firefox Secrets. By Cheah Chu Yeow. SitePoint, 2005, ISBN: 0-9752402-4-2.
Firefox Hacks: Tips & Tools for Next-Generation Web Browsing. By Nigel McFarlane. O'Reilly Media, 2005, ISBN: 0-596-00928-3.
Don't Click on the Blue E!: Switching to Firefox. By Scott Granneman. O'Reilly Media, 2005, ISBN: 0-596-00939-9.

Tutorials

Here are tips to help you get started with some of the web browsers. Actually, you should start by just browsing and playing with the software, and then come here to find out about the great features that can make your browsing more productive.

Chrome tips
Chrome comic book — nice explanation of the underlying technology
Firefox Browser Guide and Tutorial
Firefox online manual
Firefox help and support
Firefox Tweak Guide
Opera tutorials
Safari tips (from Apple)
Thunderbird help and support

Miscellaneous

How a browser works — schematic diagram that we discussed in class
InfoWorld guide to browser security (February 2009)
Comparison of web browsers — Wikipedia article provides comprehensive look at history of browsers, comparison of features, etc.
Spoon Browser Sandbox — allows you to try multiple browsers (including Safari, Opera, Firefox, IE6, IE7, IE8 beta, Chrome) without actually installing them on your computer. (I've had mixed results with it, but it's worth trying.)