Links to our Google Docs Sources/Data and Google Slides Slideshow

Here is a link to our sources and data: Google Docs Sources/Data
Here is a link to our Google Slides Slideshow: Group 8 Browsers 2 Slideshow

Update 3

I have wrapped up my post on Safari and included in said post I have summarized my evaluation of the other browsers. I have commented on other group's posts and have set up a Google Docs site at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OA88SXeBZZYJ7lCsSHwLuR_qs3N3V4LoX90HJGPcJHU/edit
where we can compile our research as well as a Google Slides site at https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/18CkJ93BsqhZt19SAtigeUX9Z9Aq9lG6f00MjXjq6ilI/edit?usp=sharing where we can make a presentation. I have added group members and Ms. Browne to the authors section of each as well as edited the Slideshow settings so that anyone with the link can comment. This should allow anyone who has the link to our blog to get the link to the Slideshow and then subsequently comment on the slideshow. I think in order to enhance our blog as per page 7 in the syllabus, we should add links to the two sites mentioned above, which I have done in a post called "Links to Our Google Docs Sources/Data and Google Slides Slideshow". In addition I think we should add some sort of template to enhance the appearance of our blog. I think the template chosen should be simply, yet engaging. I went ahead and chose one of the templates, but Sean please comment saying whether or not you're ok with this particular template. It is the orange one from the awesome section of the templates. I believe these enhancements have really improved the appearance of our blog. When reviewing the blog by clicking the "View Blog" option, I found that the last table on my first post extends outside the white area, which I didn't like. I was eventually able to change the settings of the column widths though. I had to try two different settings because one of them made another post look a bit weird. The second try worked though! I also added three gadgets to the blog: a translate button at the top, a follow by email option at the bottom, and a poll also at the bottom. I was thinking of adding a link list gadget, but since there's already a blog post with links to our Google Docs and Google Slide pages, I thought it would be redundant and detract from the blog. After looking at Group 7's blog, I added a fourth gadget, a poll to ask veiwers what their favorite browser is.

Internet Explorer Links

 

These are a few links to other websites that compare different browsers and allows you to explore the new features offered by IE 10.

Which is best, IE or Chrome?
IE security and protection
Explore and download IE 10

Update 2

I didn't know where to post our updates, so I added them to the initial update section. After looking at one other blog, it seems we are to post them here. So here is a copy of what I added to the initial blog update:
There was no place for a second update, so I am presuming this is where we are to post them. This week I have fixed the blog so everyone can comment, as instructed. I have created a new post for the results of my tests/experiment and the results. I also summarized my viewpoint on the results of the experiment. According to my project plan and page 5 of the syllabus, I believe myself to be  on track. As far as the group goes, it seems Shawn Prescott is the only group member besides myself to have done anything pertaining to the blog. He is working on an evaluation of IE and it seems like it is going well.

Wrap Up and Conclusion

In order to wrap this blog topic up I will summarize the information previously presented, as well as add some new material, with the focus directed Safari once again. However, I will say that though I really disliked using Safari at the start of this project, I have learned a lot about how to use it and it has grown on my. I needed to actually use Safari to do my personal evaluation of it, and much of the learning came into play there. After I had completed this step, the testing I did later went much more smoothly than I would have expected. My personal favorite part about Safari is the reader function described earlier in this blog. I still prefer Firefox the most, but I am now armed with information such as what each browser was designed to do, which is currently the fastest, etc. Most importantly though, I have found reliable places and techniques to base my personal evaluations off of, rather than my sometimes limited perspective on the user interface. So, my conclusion begins!

Safari was created to provide Mac users with a platform on which to surf the web that originated from Apple. This only makes sense because Apple could design the platform to fit their products, which they did. Apple tends to be big on presentation, so it is no wonder that their browser, Safari, is known for being the most sleek and streamlined of the popular browsers. Supporters of Safari tend to say it has an intuitive user interface. As I have used this browser more, through this project, I appreciate its layout more. Now that Safari's foundations are known, we can examine its current stats from a more educated perspective.

Safari is the fourth most popular browser, preceded by Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Internet Explorer (in that order). Some of its rank can be explained by the fact that Safari was a platform exclusively for Macs for a very long time. This means that PC users had all that time to get cozy with other browsers. Mac users made Safari their most preferred browser, for a time, but that is not necessarily true anymore. With the cross-platform browsers available today, Safari no longer dominates the Mac world and has to compete just like any other browser. Safari comes in third for security tests, however. The ranking is IE with a block rate of 99.96%, Chrome: 83%, Safari: 10.16%, Firefox: 9.92%, and Opera: 1.87% (https://www.nsslabs.com/news/press-releases/which-web-browser-offers-best-malware-protection-nss-labs-releases-new-2013-web). When I evaluated Safari's speed compared with other browsers on a Windows 7 OS, cited in my second post, Safari came in last after Firefox, Opera, and Chrome. So to pair the data, above and from my first post, Chrome is the most popular, second most secure, and third fastest, Firefox is the second most popular, least secure, and slowest, IE is only the third most popular but the most secure, and Opera is both the lease popular and the least secure of the four, but is the second fastest. IE didn't even show up on the ranking of the speed battle test. Safari is the best browser, by far, in regards to its media-interface technology. There are extensions/add-ons/apps for similar functions on Firefox and Chrome, but only Safari has this function built in.

All in all, I still find that Firefox is my favorite, though through my own research and what I have read on my partner Sean Prescott's blog entries, I might start looking more seriously at IE. Safari doesn't quite cut the butter for me, but that would likely change if I had a Mac. I found this site very helpful as a starting point for my research as it is a set of numerous comparisons geared towards Safari. http://www.maclife.com/article/features/group_test_6_best_web_browsers It isn't biased towards Safari though, which I found to be a problem elsewhere. When I looked for comparisons, credible evaluations, and statistics regarding how Safari specifically ranks against other browsers, I found a huge amount of bias either for or against Safari. Again, I highly stress that this site is a great one to start your looking. Do your own research though, don't rely solely on one source--even those which aren't overtly biased. I recommend determining what functions you want in a web browser, be it speed, security, customization, OS compatibility, etc., and gear your research towards those components. Happy hunting!

I evaluated the browsers on http://www.speed-battle.com/statistics_e.php and Firefox was the clear winner by far. Opera 16 came up next, followed by Chrome 27, and Safari 5 came in last. This was evaluated on the Windows 7 OS. The most popular browsers are as follows according to http://www.w3schools.com/browsers/browsers_stats.asp :

Browser Statistics

2013	Internet Explorer	Firefox	Chrome	Safari	Opera
May	12.6 %	27.7 %	52.9 %	4.0 %	1.6 %
April	12.7 %	27.9 %	52.7 %	4.0 %	1.7 %
March	13.0 %	28.5 %	51.7 %	4.1 %	1.8 %
February	13.5 %	29.6 %	50.0 %	4.1 %	1.8 %
January	14.3 %	30.2 %	48.4 %	4.2 %	1.9 %

 

As far as Safari goes, it is known for its "intuitive usability", for those who are used to working on Macs, and being one the sleekest web browsers available (http://internet-browser-review.toptenreviews.com/safari-review.html). It's biggest drawback is its lack of customization compared with other browsers. It is also at an inherent disadvantage because it was purely a Mac product for so long. Safari is ahead of competing web browsers in the aspect of its reader function http://www.apple.com/safari/. When choosing between Safari and another web browser, it pretty much comes down to whether you are familiar with the layout of Macs/Safari, whether you want a lot of customization, and whether you want a sleek aesthetic.

 

Internet Explorer: The Browser

           The primary purpose of the Internet Explorer (IE) browser is similar to that of any other browser; it is used for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_browser “The days when practically everyone used Internet Explorer are long gone.” http://www.digitaltrends.com/web/the-best-browser-internet-explorer-vs-chrome-vs-firefox-vs-safari/ So what exactly is so special about Internet Explorer? When IE 9 was released, Microsoft claimed that “IE 9 is the most energy-efficient browser.” http://www.infoworld.com/d/applications/13-features-make-each-web-browser-unique-119  The layout that IE uses displays the page in a way that is both simple and convenient to most users. Internet Explorer’s interface includes a trimmed header with squared tabs, a back and forward arrow with the bottom of the back arrow cut off. A minimalist window provides more room to the web page than that of any other browser. Tabs are able to be dragged in an out of the browser window to create a new window. If a window is dragged to the right or left of the screen, it will automatically fill half of your screen. IE 9 also includes a single box for searching and website addresses. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2369160,00.asp

Internet Explorer Layout:
http://www.neowin.net/forum/uploads/monthly_04_2011/post-67543-0-09402100-1303278826.jpg

 





 

           However, there have been some problems with Internet Explorer. When it comes to html tags, IE “can display the HTML source code for Web pages, but it cannot display encrypted scripts or compiled modules such as ActiveX Controls. Internet Explorer also cannot display the source code for an Active Server Page (ASP).” http://support.microsoft.com/ An example being: http://www.microsoft.com/default.asp. There have also been occurrences when the web page attempting to be accessed could not be displayed at all, but this has been linked to the incompatibility of certain sites with the newer versions of IE that have only been capable of running on a previous update.  However, what IE lacks in consistency, it makes up for in security. It has been reported that Microsoft Internet Explorer is a leader in browser security. Simply meaning that IE has been able to intercept and prevent the access to more fake URL sites than any other browser.

NSSLabs Malware Security Test:
 http://blog.emsisoft.com/2013/05/23/which-browser-offers-the-best-malware-protection/



          Another pro to IE is its fast HTML 5 processing. http://www.infoworld.com/d/applications/13-features-make-each-web-browser-unique-119 Internet Explorer is extremely easy to download. Just got to the Microsoft Internet Explorer download site, enter what language you want your browser in, and download. The most current version is IE 10. http://support.microsoft.com/ It provides a simple, convenient layout for users to search the web. Personal customization and configuration of your own IE browser has proved useful over the years as well. Although I have not had much experience on browsers outside of Internet Explorer, I still highly recommend it to everyone.

Overview and Explanation of Technology (Safari)

We were instructed to answer the questions, in the syllabus I presume, for this section. The questions are as follows: 1. What is the main purpose for each? 2. How do websites display in each? 3. how do different HTML tags act in each? 4.Which would you recommend and why? The browsers included are: Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Safari, Chrome, Opera, "etc."

1. The main purpose for Internet Explorer is general web use ad a graphical web browser; it was the first browser used by consumers in the technology industry and has retained many loyal followers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Explorer Safari's main purpose is to provide Mac users with an internet platform from Apple instead of having to use one from Microsoft. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safari_%28web_browser%29 Mozilla Firefox was created to rid the former Mozilla browser from sponsorship and proprietary which impacted the use-ability of the browser. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefox Chrome is intended to act as an independent open source web browser geared towards fast, simple searches.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_chrome http://www.google.com/intl/en/about/company/philosophy/  Opera was designed to increase computer accessibility for persons who have visual or motor impairment to cork on a number of platforms. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opera_(web_browser)

2. In Internet Explorer:

     in Mozilla: 

   in Safari: 

  in Chrome: 

   in Opera: 

3. I have had a significant amount of trouble with this question. HTML tags are basically the URL and each URL presents in basically the same way in each browser, as can be seen above. The main differences are in the user interface (file, back buttons, right clicking, etc.). The only other way in which they would differ would be regarding the set-up of the pages (tabs, 3x3 layout, etc.). You can set most browsers to behave the way you want them to, provided you know how to work within that system well. I most often use Firefox and i have my pages set to appear in tabs if I have multiple web pages open at the same time. I haven't figured out how to do this in Safari, but I believe it can be done. In Chrome and Internet Explorer this is already how they are set up. If somebody knows how to better answer this question I would appreciate a comment.

4. I would recommend Firefox, Internet Explorer, Chrome, Safari, and Opera in that order. I found Firefox and IE easiest to use (Chrome has a feature where you have to go to the file menu to go back or press the backspace button to go back a page which I don't like). I found Safari very hard to use and very cluttered, despite it's being known for a "sleek" design-I fail to see the sleekness. I have PC's and there is some bias playing to my preferences because I like using browsers which have a very clean layout. I found Safari is the best by far for a media interface browser. If you have an iPhone, Macbook, iPad, iPod, etc. Safari is the way to go because it can transfer your pages from device to device. Also Safari has a nice "reader" function where you can save an article to read later when you don't have an internet connection. As of May 2013 the statistics for popular web browser use is as follows according to http://www.w3schools.com/browsers/browsers_stats.asp

Browser Statistics

2013	Internet Explorer	Firefox	Chrome	Safari	Opera
May	12.6 %	27.7 %	52.9 %	4.0 %	1.6 %