Different (browsers, reasons, preferences)

After complaining nonstop about the internet access my school has about blocking almost all forms of entertainment decent entertainment from the net, I decided it was time to stop complaining and do something. In fact, it seems like I already had everything I needed (almost) to make it happen.

Yes, people, my schools internet service provider is such a killjoy. While unable to provide quality access to internet services consistently, it never fails to surprise me at how their efforts to increase their QoS end up in not doing much except bring the students closer to the pit of despair boredom.


Back to the quest, I wasn't expecting much. Maybe, just to return my ability to blog away my free time, to distract me from the ever present perils of schoolwork. It probably isn't much, seeing as the WiFi access here isn't that good (except maybe for a few spots I now frequent). But still, for all of you who are interested, here is some of the stuff that I came across with on my search.

Internet Explorer 7 - The flag only ship of Microsoft when it comes to browsing, the pros are definitely outweighed by the cons when it comes to ease of use. Probably the only thing I use this for is the quick view option which I hope becomes a feature in the other browsers I use.

Seriously though, it takes quite a few mouse clicks to change proxy settings, its slow, it doesn't offer easy management of downloads and is subject to the onslaught of virii out there (or is viruses the term used for computer virus (pl.)?).

Unfortunately, in some cases, you really can't let this go. Aside from the fact that it comes pre-installed with Windows, as long as you do use windows, proxy-based ISPs require IE to grant you access. How the heck can I access Yahoo! Messenger or Google Earth in school after all. Still, even with these to consider, it is still very difficult to re-embrace IE after trying some of the other flavors of the browsing sundae. Speaking of sundaes, maybe IE is the plain vanilla.

Opera 9.1 - hailed by most as the best browser available, used in desktops, notebooks, mobile phones and gaming systems alike, Opera does have what it takes to be one of the best. In fact, in certain aspects, it is. Excellent download manager, widget support, out-of-the-box RSS functionality, and easy customization, well, what's not to like? Considering that proxy enabling/disabling is only a few keypresses away. But its not fast enough. Nor is it completely compatible with this blasted network. Still, it can save your open tabs if something goes wrong and allows you several startup methods so its something to keep in mind. Personally, for other networks (especially airborne access), I do prefer this.

Firefox 2.0.0.2 - take note of the version number though. The previous ones don't work as well as where I am now. Its not as good at downloading as with opera. But its a lot faster in my case and it is well supported. I can blog again! After thinking that it won't work (after all how much change would you expect in a version only 0.0.0.1 higher than the last?) but I was wrong. In that 0.0.0.1 increase, Mozilla added RSS support (or I just didnt notice from last time?). But maybe what solved my problem was the add-in installation. Well, whatever it may be. Other noteworthy things about firefox is the roughly 5-click proxy switch so I guess its not so bad. It also securely saves my passwords which saves a lot of time.

Overall, as I noted before, Opera is the best at times. Downloading to be specific. But for browsing in extremely strict networks, especially when accessing multimedia content, Firefox takes the cake.