There is a good chance that you surf the internet with Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome or Safari. However, there are dozens of other browsers available that are faster and more compact or contain specific features that are of interest to you. Time to get acquainted with thirteen alternative browsers.
Tip 01: Opera
OS: Win, Mac, Linux
Opera is the most famous browser on the list and is used by millions of people. The browser has some unique features. One is that it provides a faster internet experience if your connection is not optimal.
Opera does this by loading the web page you requested on its own server and sending a compressed version of the page to your computer. Instead of taking a very long time to load, you have the web page in front of you quickly. You find yourself looking at a compressed version of the page because images are grainier than usual, for example. click on Opera and select Off-road mode to activate this option. A nice addition of Opera is that you can press the button To discover clicking to see interesting news and entertainment tidbits. Opera is available for all possible systems, including mobile devices with Android, iOS or Windows Phone.
To install the mobile version, go to //m.opera.com on your device.
The Off-road mode loads pages faster.
Tip 02: Maxthon
OS: Win, Mac
Maxthon Cloud Browser is a well-organized browser with just as much functionality as your current browser. The advantage is that Maxthon is very fast at loading web pages. The hobbyhorse, however, is the integration of its own cloud service. You can save downloaded files this way not only on your computer, but also on the Maxthon cloud.
In addition, all your bookmarks and tabs will be synced with other devices you have installed Maxthon on. In addition to Windows, the browser also supports Mac, Android and iOS, so chances are all your devices can be integrated into the Maxthon Cloud. A nice feature is that you can select words or phrases and drag them to the address bar. The browser automatically opens a search query in a new tab.
Flash is installed by default in the browser so you don't have to download it separately and if you want to build more functionality into Maxthon, you have access to a few hundred extensions. You install an extension by clicking on the three lines at the top right, for Extensions to choose and press Get more extensions to click.
Maxthon has a number of useful extensions.
Tip 03: SeaMonkey
OS: Win, Mac, Linux
SeaMonkey is not just a web browser, it is a complete Internet package. In addition to a browser, the package contains an email program, an address book and a chat service. The SeaMonkey browser is based on the same system as Firefox, with the big advantage that SeaMonkey works faster than Firefox, especially on older computers.
In terms of functionality, the program is not inferior to its big brother Firefox, but it is a lot more cluttered. For example, at first it seems as if the browser has no tab function, but when you click File / New / Browser Tab click, a tab will appear. When you start SeaMonkey for the first time, you can choose whether you want to use the program as the default program for browsing or e-mail. Place or remove the check marks and click OK. At the bottom left of the browser you can easily switch between the browser, the mail program or the address book.
SeaMonkey is more than just a web browser.
Tip 04: Torch
OS: Win, Mac
Torch's website is very similar to Firefox's, but the browser is more like a Chrome clone. This is not surprising since the underlying code is based on Chrome's code, called Chromium. Just like in Chrome, you have access to a speed dial page from which you can visit frequently visited sites.
A nice touch is that Torch already has a few handy extensions pre-installed. At the top you will see a few icons. The button is striking Torrent. This defaults to OFF, put this on ON then you can immediately open torrent files with your browser, you don't need a special torrent program anymore. Next to it you will find a button for Torch Music. This is a service similar to Spotify, but relies entirely on available YouTube videos of songs. You will find well-known pop albums here, but the quality is not always good.
Torch has a few other useful features on board, such as blocking ads easily and sharing pages via Facebook and Twitter.
Torch Music is a nice addition.
Mobile browsers
Not only for your computer you can choose from dozens of browsers. You can also install a different browser on your smartphone or tablet. There are countless well-known and lesser-known browsers available for your iPhone, iPad or Android device. A popular choice is Opera Mini, the mobile version of Opera. Chrome also has a mobile version for both iOS and Android, Firefox only offers an Android version.
There are also browsers that have been specially developed for your smartphone or tablet. Dolphin Browser is a good example of this, it gets the best out of your tablet or smartphone by working with a lot of swipes. You can also open Facebook, for example, by writing the letter F on your screen. You have to activate these gestures beforehand.
If you want to watch Flash videos on your iPhone or iPad, download Photon Flash Player. This will cost you a few bucks, but will allow you to watch Flash videos on Apple's otherwise Flash-unfriendly products.
Drawing an F will take you to Facebook.
Tip 05: Midori
OS: Win, Linux
Midori is originally a browser for Linux systems, but can also be installed on Windows PCs. Mac OS X is not supported. During the installation you can indicate which components must be installed. Do you choose Full, then you immediately install the most important extensions.
By default, the browser uses the DuckDuckGo search engine, which is an alternative to Google. DuckDuckGo displays almost the same search results as Google, but does not make them location-dependent and does not collect any data from you, something that Google is notorious for. Midori surprises with its uncluttered appearance and works very quickly. The entire browser feels simple, but still contains a number of tricks.
You can easily open a private search window so that your history is not saved and by going to the menu for Conditions / Conduct For example, you can disable images from being loaded automatically. This makes surfing much faster.
In Midori you can indicate whether images should be loaded.
Tip 06: Tor Browser
OS: Win, Mac, Linux
The Tor network is a kind of sub-internet where you can roam anonymously. Normally, your IP address (your computer's personal 'barcode') always leaves traces. Websites you have visited can see your IP address. Although your name and address cannot be traced by the website, your provider can link your personal data to your IP address and possibly pass it on to authorities.
If you sign up to the Tor network, your internet traffic is sent through countless anonymous servers, so a provider can never find out that you were on a certain website at a certain time. This is why, for example, many journalists and whistleblowers work with this Tor network. You can join the Tor network with any browser, but the dedicated Tor Browser is the easiest. Not recommended for beginners, but if you want to hang out on the internet anonymously, the browser is a good option.
Make sure you load the correct installation file.
