Topic:

Browser Features

Web browsers are an essential tool for navigating the Internet. There are over 40 Web browsers available, each with varying features, abilities and compatibilities. Locating the right browser is an important task you should carefully undertake. The browser you choose will inevitably bias your view of the Web and how you interact with it.

What are My Options?

When selecting a browser there are a few key features you need to look for and demand. After that, there are hundreds of add-ons, abilities and expansions that some browsers take advantage of and others ignore. Below you will find a required features list as well as a list of bonus features that you may want to look for when selecting a browser.

Required Features

HTML 2.0 DTD compliant

The absolute minimum HTML standard

Supports GIFs, transparent GIFs and JPEG images

Allows you to view the Web as the authors intended

Load Images On/Off

Turning off images on some pages will speed access time

Bookmark or Hotlist site URL storage

So you can return to sites easily

Can save documents to disk

To capture documents and resources

Print Web pages as appears on the screen

To print out good layout and important visual information

Supports Forms

Allows use of online forms, such as search engines

Built in FTP and Gopher operation

To provide increased Internet resource access

E-mail support

Allows you to easily send e-mail to page authors

Helper application support

Allows you to add third party applications to handle non-HTML resources

Bonus Features

Global History capture

You'll never lose a URL again

JAVA support

Lets you view the amazing new JAVA applications

USENET newsgroup support

Allows you to read newsgroup postings

Archie or WAIS support

Will give a wider range of Internet resource access

Allow multiple connections

Get more done by multitasking with your browser

URLs:

Web Browsers [PC Magazine]

Yahoo's Browser Index

World Wide Web Browsers

W3E References:

Browsers

World Wide Web