Browsers And Add Ons

From IT Jalakam - Unofficial IT syllabus for grade 10 students

An Internet Browser is a Software Application used to Get Information from WWW or the World Wide Web This Includes all type of Information like Text , Audio , Video Or even multimedia content .

Although browsers primarily intended to access the World Wide Web, they can also be used to access information provided by web servers in private networks or content in file systems.

Contents 1 Different Types Of Browsers 2 Mobile Browsers 3 Addons 4 User Interface (UI) 5 Safety with Browsers 6 Theory and points to mention 7 Download Managers 8 Practicals

Different Types Of Browsers

There are Many Internet Browsers in the World , But the most popular contemporary browsers are as follows :

• Internet Explorer
• Mozilla Firefox
• Opera
• Apple Safari
• Google Chrome

A majority of people use Internet Explorer as their primary browser since it is bundled with windows operating system that is why it is the most commonly used browser in the world. With newer versions of windows we get better version of IE , the latest is IE8 which comes with windows 7 and can be downloaded from microsoft web site . Internet Explorer is a propriety closed source software - This means you cannot view or edit its source code (Source Code refers to "any collection of statements or declarations written in some human-readable computer programming language")

Mozilla Firefox on the other hand started its life as a Phoenix browser and later evolved with mozilla . This is the perhaps most flexible browser , we can customize it endlessly by addons (also known as Plugins ) .It is Bundled with most of the Linux OS . Mozilla Firefox is an Open Source software - This means you can view or edit its source code

Opera . most probably because of its Speed and capability to do everything out of the box . It Doubles up as a email client and a bit torrent client . Also it is Free but not Open Source . also it was the only paid browser in the history , now it is free . Opera is also a propriety closed source software - This means you cannot view or edit its source code

Apple Safari and Google Chrome these browsers are more like the same since they are based on same Webkit engine . They are one of the Fastest and their user interface is very good . They are very new to the people and more people are adapting it .

Mobile Browsers

Any browser which runs on a handheld device such as a Mobile Phone or a PDA etc is known as a mobile browser

There is another line of Browsers in the mobile category , These are basically classified by the device , The most common of these are

• Proprietary Browsers
• Java Based Browsers
• Symbian Based ( also known as nokia browsers )
• iPhone / iPod touch

Proprietary Browsers are the browsers which we see most commonly on our cell phones, these are located under internet icon in the main menu. These browsers normally accept WAP or HTML pages and have ability to download files . These browsers Often do not render page correctly and have trouble navigating pages (most probably because of the small screen )

java based browsers are commonly used in mid ranged phones. These are to be installed in the phone from a *.jar or *.jad file. Commonly used java based browser is Opera Mini which is a full Featured web browser. It supports rendering pages exactly like that in pc and navigation is pleasant and fast. Often the pages load fast , this is important especially if you are on slower connection like GPRS.

Symbian Browsers are browsers which works in Symbian based mobile phones. These are feature packed browsers with inbuilt download manager, tabbed browsing facility and also has other miscellaneous features. Opera is available for Symbian but it is commercial.

iPhone / iPod touch features the most advance browser capabilities on any handheld. It has Mobile Safari which renders pages very quickly and touch gestures are plus point here.

An Example of Mobile Safari On iPod Touch Showing A Latest feature of Copy Paste .

Addons

The Browsers may be sufficient for browsing the web and doing normal work, but the users who want more flexibility in their browsers can choose addons and custmize their experience .

Some of the addons are absolute must whereas others depend on users experience .

I will be discussing some of the addons for Firefox ,

1. Ad Block Plus ! - This addon can Not only save user from distractions by blocking Useless Advertisements but Also helps users who are on low on bandwidth (internet speed) or are on per MB plan , (like BSNL 250 or 125 ). This save The MB as well as money This is a Simple tutorial on Installing This Addon .

Link : [1]

After Restarting Firefox, there will be window asking you to subscribe the blocked ads list. For most of us, Easylist (First one) should be sufficient.

2.video DownloadHelper - This addon is Helpful for Saving Videos from Youtube, dailyMotion and metacafe to computer for local viewing.

Link : [2]

3.WOT - Web of Trust, warns you about risky websites that try to steal information from users. This Addon Blocks harmful and risky Websites from even being visited.

Link : [3]

you can find a complete list of Useful [4]

User Interface (UI)

Bigger Image : [5]

The Firefox and IE Interface are simpler Whereas Safari and Opera look prettier .

Safety with Browsers

With increasing number of Web users and increase in plastic money ie. credit cards, it is of utmost importance to have an idea of online security, especially in such browsers.

Theory and points to mention

Introduction to browsers.

Text only browsers.

Internet Explorer - history and different versions. Mosaic -> Spyglass -> IE to IE 8

Browser wars, Netscape start and end.

Mozilla Firefox - Mozilla suite - Stand Alone - Add-ons

Opera Browser - Paid to Free. Latest developments in opera.

Apple Safari - For windows too.

Google Chrome

Browser add-ons. ABP for FF, IE 7 Pro for IE. Password managers for browser

Browser bookmarks

Browser cache and cookies

Browser for kids. Browser add ons for kids

Download Managers

As the name suggests, these are basically software that manage all your internet downloads. They usually have special algorithms which can speed up your downloads considerably compared to the download managers in your browser....They also have features to directly take download links from websites, add site logins, download youtube videos etc.

Good free download managers would be: FlashGET, Free download manager (FDM)

Practicals

Get different browsers, old and new. Old from http://www.oldversion.com Talk about the difference in web page rendering and layouts.

Installing different browsers. Exporting bookmarks and preferences from one to another.

Different functionality, bookmarking, saving passwords with browser - security issues, portable browsers - from http://www.portableapps.com

Offline browsing, file saving directly from browser, browser add-ons, browser plugins (pdf, media player, quicktime, flash, shockwave, java etc)

Safe browsing habits, blocking ads using add-ons and in-built functions.