Well, I have been running Firefox for a few years, with periodic upgrades, I am not surprised that Explorer is having problems - part of that "we own the cyber universe" fantasy. They don't. Took me a bit to figure out why you were giving software advice, I am so slow... off to the range now.
While it's by no means a panacea, the security advantages of Firefox are significant:
- No ActiveX, which is a perennial source of hacking attempts. It's basically executable code that downloads and runs on your computer, so it's a big target for the Bad Guys.
- Since IE has ~ 75% market share, that's where most of the Bad Guys spend their time, when they're looking for exploitable flaws.
Net/net, using Firefox not only reduces the number of potential weaknesses, it reduces the number of potential threats. Double win.
Oh, and use Opera (www.opera.com) for on-line financial transactions, and *only* for financial transactions.
Be sure to check out SSL Blacklist to help users detect weak SSL implementations. That whole Debian crippled-SSL thing is still resonating.
One of the other incredibly useful things I'm aware can be done as follows: 1. Go to the URL "about:config" 2. Filter by "browser.identity.ssl_domain_display" 3. Right click on it, select "modify", and change 0 to 1.
Making that change makes it more obvious when one is visiting a secure site. See here for more information.
I don't understand why IE makes obnoxious "clicks" all the time, but it really gets on my nerves. Fortunately, Firefox is silent.
I went to Firefox years ago for security reasons. And since people are suggesting add-ons, let me put in a plug (ha!) for Foxmarks. It synchronizes bookmarks between computers, which is a life saver if you use multiple computers to surf.
You rock. I'll throw in my +1 for noscript, its a bit of a learning curve but between it, adblock plus and flashblock you can really make your browsing experience faster. Jim
Be polite, please. (also I'd like to add that I reserve the right to delete any and all comments that I find offensive, argumentative, or just plain tiresome.)
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.
Indeed! And check out some of the addons like IE Tab, NoScript, Sage, Book Burro, Copy Plain Text, and of course Adblock Plus.
ReplyDeleteAnd Safari and Opera, too!
ReplyDeleteWell, I have been running Firefox for a few years, with periodic upgrades, I am not surprised that Explorer is having problems - part of that "we own the cyber universe" fantasy. They don't. Took me a bit to figure out why you were giving software advice, I am so slow... off to the range now.
ReplyDeleteuexpldx un explained x (unkwon)
Spelled unknown wrong didn't I?
ReplyDeleteI made the jump about 3 weeks ago.
ReplyDeleteI've been using firefox for years now. I.E. sucks.
ReplyDeleteAmen, Little Sister!
ReplyDeleteM
Been using Firefox for five years. I love NoScript and AdBlock.
ReplyDeleteWhile it's by no means a panacea, the security advantages of Firefox are significant:
ReplyDelete- No ActiveX, which is a perennial source of hacking attempts. It's basically executable code that downloads and runs on your computer, so it's a big target for the Bad Guys.
- Since IE has ~ 75% market share, that's where most of the Bad Guys spend their time, when they're looking for exploitable flaws.
Net/net, using Firefox not only reduces the number of potential weaknesses, it reduces the number of potential threats. Double win.
Oh, and use Opera (www.opera.com) for on-line financial transactions, and *only* for financial transactions.
Be sure to check out SSL Blacklist to help users detect weak SSL implementations. That whole Debian crippled-SSL thing is still resonating.
ReplyDeleteOne of the other incredibly useful things I'm aware can be done as follows:
1. Go to the URL "about:config"
2. Filter by "browser.identity.ssl_domain_display"
3. Right click on it, select "modify", and change 0 to 1.
Making that change makes it more obvious when one is visiting a secure site. See here for more information.
I don't understand why IE makes obnoxious "clicks" all the time, but it really gets on my nerves. Fortunately, Firefox is silent.
I went to Firefox years ago for security reasons. And since people are suggesting add-ons, let me put in a plug (ha!) for Foxmarks. It synchronizes bookmarks between computers, which is a life saver if you use multiple computers to surf.
ReplyDeleteAnother long time Firefox user - and another cool plug in is Woot Watcher, so you can keep track of the daily Woot plus Woot-Offs.
ReplyDeleteI can do inline SVG in Firefox 3, which inspired me to make this http://layerv.com/jsdraw/index.xhtml.
ReplyDeleteIt's not done so I would welcome any suggestions.
You rock. I'll throw in my +1 for noscript, its a bit of a learning curve but between it, adblock plus and flashblock you can really make your browsing experience faster. Jim
ReplyDelete