Thursday, January 2, 2003
The Browser Wars are But a Skirmish
Posted by Jason Dunn in "OFF-TOPIC" @ 08:33 PM
"Usage of the latest Mozilla browser doubled and Netscape 7 grew by 67 percent but the latest browser study shows that Internet Explorer 6 is king. The latest Mozilla and Netscape Web browsers are cropping up on more computers worldwide, but they still only represent a few trees in a forest of Microsoft's Internet Explorer browsers. According to new research from Amsterdam-based OneStat.com, Mozilla 1.0 global usage has grown from 0.4 percent in June to 0.8 percent this month, nearly four months after its release. Netscape 7.0 global usage has risen from 0.3 percent to 0.5 percent in the same period.
In comparison, global usage for Microsoft's latest browser, IE 6, has grown from 46.4 percent to 52.3 percent from June to September, the study found. In total, Microsoft's collection of IE browsers comprise 94.9 percent of the market; the browsers of AOL Time Warner-owned Netscape and Mozilla represent 3 percent of the market; and Opera comprises 0.9 percent."
We catch some flak on this Web site for being so IE-centric, so I wanted to post this article in my defence. :wink: We'll always try to be as cross-browser friendly as possible, but ultimately if I have to make a choice between using our resources for adding new features or optimizing for other browsers, new features are going to win. While we're on the subject though, other than our incompatibility with Netscape 4.x, are there any browser issues we should be made aware of? Yes, yes, I know the forums don't yet work with Pocket Internet Explorer - next comment.
In comparison, global usage for Microsoft's latest browser, IE 6, has grown from 46.4 percent to 52.3 percent from June to September, the study found. In total, Microsoft's collection of IE browsers comprise 94.9 percent of the market; the browsers of AOL Time Warner-owned Netscape and Mozilla represent 3 percent of the market; and Opera comprises 0.9 percent."
We catch some flak on this Web site for being so IE-centric, so I wanted to post this article in my defence. :wink: We'll always try to be as cross-browser friendly as possible, but ultimately if I have to make a choice between using our resources for adding new features or optimizing for other browsers, new features are going to win. While we're on the subject though, other than our incompatibility with Netscape 4.x, are there any browser issues we should be made aware of? Yes, yes, I know the forums don't yet work with Pocket Internet Explorer - next comment.
