We have talked before about how to do various tasks in Firefox, but why should you use this alternate browser?

All Windows-based computers ship with Internet Explorer (IE) installed, and according to numerous web site statistics, most people choose to stick with that since it is the easiest solution for people to begin browsing the web immediately.  However, due to the high market penetration, and lackluster security features, IE is a popular target with hackers, heightening the possibility you will get infected with something by using it.

While there are other alternatives out there, Firefox is the most popular choice due to its open-source nature.  For those unfamiliar with the idea of open-source, it is a system by which anyone is allowed to download the source code for a program and work on it.  Due to the very nature of open-source, if a security problem does happen, they are fairly fast to react and release an updated version to take care of the problem.

One of the best things about Firefox is the extensions and toolbars you can add to it to customize it even more to your use.  This is another benefit to open-source projects is that it makes it easier for people to make extensions, add-ons and plugins for the program, extending it’s usefulness by just that much more.

This isn’t to say everything is wonderful in the world of Firefox.  While the extensions are great, the more you add, the slower your system will go.  It also has a problem with “memory leakage” in that the longer you have it turned on, the more of your computers resources it takes up.  They are working on the leakage problem, but you need to monitor yourself on how much you install extension-wise.

Even with its faults, everyone at StarterTech is a firm believer in Firefox, and we highly recommend it.