Why I switched to Firefox

Like many of you, I'm torn between using Microsoft products -- which are easy to use but expensive -- and Open Source Software (OSS) -- which are free but usually kludgy.

If there's a a new-fangled gizmo or product out in the market and everyone's talking about it, I prefer to wait it out and let others try it out.

That was my strategy when Internet Explorer first came out and I was using Netscape. That was still my strategy when Mozilla came out with Firefox. I decided to wait it out, even though my Internet Explorer was giving me pop-up headaches and its security holes was letting various spyware to run on my system.

And then one day our Open Source tech guys at the office started to brag about Firefox -- well, more like for several weeks they started really recommending it. I guess that was the tipping point. News on the web also started buzzing with how Firefox had matured and how it was more secure than IE.

That did it for me. I downloaded Firefox 1.0 and installed it, being careful not to ditch IE. I started using the two browsers concurrently. Firefox loaded much faster and my spyware problems stopped. It has tabbed browsing like Opera. Tabbed browsing allows all my browser window to be contained in one window, reducing desktop clutter. It is easier to configure too, compared to IE.

I swear by Firefox now and when I find websites that are not friendly to Firefox, I try to send a message to the webmaster, telling them to be more open. :)

I also like the built-in interface with Google and other search tools (even Wikipedia!). That way, I can do my searches easier.

There was a news item lately on the web about a study that showed Firefox to be more insecure than IE. But based on my own experience, my pop-up and spyware problems disappeared when I began using Firefox (and now I'm testing Thunderbird too -- Mozilla's free email program, and so far, I like it).

So if you're still undecided, download Firefox now!