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While Internet Explorer has been the dominant web browser for the past decade or so since it began bundling it with its Windows OS, we have seen quite a few new web browsers surface over the years. Opera, Safari, and most importantly Mozilla Firefox. By now practically every single casual web surfer is either using or has at least heard of it before. Since it was first released back in 2004, Firefox has slowly gained momentum in the browser wars and with the latest beta released just a few days ago, it seems like the next major release of Mozilla Firefox 3, is only going to increase this momentum.

Note first of all that the program I’m reviewing is the Mac version and there might be slight differences between this version and the Windows/Linux version which I might not know of. That being said, the Mac version of the Firefox 3 beta works like a dream. In the past I’ve always favoured Apple’s Safari over Firefox 2 because Firefox was basically a port of the Windows version, making it a very sluggish and irritating browser to use, especially when it takes like 5 to 10 seconds to open. However, despite only being a beta, Firefox 3 for the Mac runs a lot more smoothly in terms of performance. When you compare the speed at which it loads webpages with Firefox 2, there doesn’t seem to be much of a difference, which is a good thing. In my opinion, rendering a website can only occur so fast and Firefox 2 is probably as good as it’s gonna get.

Firefox 3 looks a lot better as well, but this probably only applies to the Mac version since Firefox 2 really looked pretty bad on the Mac. Now, Firefox feels a lot more like a program that belongs on a Mac instead of one being shoehorned onto the Mac. While it’s just an aesthetic feature, it’s surprising how big of an impact it makes.

When it comes to new features, Firefox 3 definitely doesn’t come up short. From the release note, it’s obvious that the development team hasn’t been lazing around since it released Firefox 2 back in 2006. It’s based on an updated rendering system that allows web applications like Gmail to run at “twice the speed”, which is a pretty true claim since the lag times I used to experience while using Firefox with Gmail in the past no longer exist.

A brand new download manager has also been introduced which has a few new features. For example it has a search bar at the bottom so that you can quickly search through your downloads if you have a long record of them in the download manager. It also displays when and where you downloaded the file from, making it much easier to manage your downloads. Most importantly, users can now resume downloads even after you restart the browser or reset your internet connection as long as the server you’re download from allows resumable downloads. This will hopefully save a lot of people some frustration if their internet connection gets dropped when their download reaches 99%.

One of the biggest problems that users have repeated complained about is Firefox’s memory usage problem as Firefox is notorious for memory leaks after long periods of usage, seriously slowing down the user’s computer even if he/she isn’t doing much web surfing. Just letting it sit in the background will cause your other applications to experiecne a significant slowdown. Thankfully, Firefox 3 is addressing these problems by making use of new technology to prevent such memory leaks in the future. From my experience with it thus far, the development team has done a pretty good job, since I’ve been using Firefox for the entire day now without having to restart it even once and neither has it crashed on me yet, unlike Firefox 2.

However, being in its beta stages, this software is obviously far from perfect. Most plugins and themes (understandably) don’t work with it yet and the in-built dictionary that was perfect in Firefox 2 now draws squiggly red lines under words like “doesn’t”, thinking it’s an incorrect word. The text editing window that I’m typing this post in right now in Wordpress is also slightly buggy, occasionally not showing a space on screen even after I tap the spacebar several times. Still, all these are understandable problems that one would expect from a beta version of any piece of software. Just take note of this if you currently heavily rely on your Firefox plugins because none of them will work with this beta version, but it’d still be fun to download and play around with in anticipation for the final version.

With Netscape down for the count, only Firefox has a chance at unseating Internet Explorer as the dominant web browser. With Microsoft recently releasing the beta version of Internet Explorer 8 as well, it seems like the browser wars are far from over. Yet, from what we’ve seen from the beta version, Mozilla Firefox 3 just might have a shot at stealing even more IE users away from that darn browser. In fact, the only reason why this is getting a 4/5 rating is because it’s the beta version, I can’t wait to get my hands on the final version when it’s ready.

Mozilla Firefox 3 Beta 4 can be downloaded here

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(1 votes, average: 4 out of 5)
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Downloads have never been this fast or easy. With the Internet Download Manager (IDM), users can download files at a maximum of 5 times their normal speed. Unlike other download accelerators out there, this one actually works and I’ve already used it for several month. It even works on some file-hosting websites, making it a very versatile and useful tool for those who treat downloading files to be a norm.

IDM was created by the Internet Download Manager Corporation, which is a subsidiary of Tonec Inc. It is a comprehensive download manager that allows users to not only speed up their downloads, but also to resume broken links and schedule downloads. It also has an error recovery system which allows users to resume downloads which might have been broken due to a sudden power outage, lost of internet connection, etc. How does this program work? To put it simply, it splits the same file up into smaller parts and then downloads each individual part simultaneously; it finally patches the pieces together to form the original file.

Unlike other download accelerators that make groundless claims, Internet Download Manager actually shows the user what it is doing by indicating how many parts the file is split into, and the amount of data already downloaded in those parts. The speed of the downloads is truely amazing, averaging at around 300-600 KB/s, as compared to the usual 150KB/s (if you’re lucky).

Another function that the IDM has to offer is the capability to download clips off hosting websites such as YouTube and Google Video using its FLV Grabber. This means that users no longer need to use other unreliable websites to download media from those sites. The video quality downloaded is also not too bad. As for the other types of videos downloaded off websites of the same function, they are a far cry as compared to the ones the IDM has to offer.

Personally, I’ve been using the IDM for all my downloads as far as possible (except for those websites that do not allow the usage of download managers). The good thing about IDM is that it’s a free program to try out for 30 days. Those interested should consider registering and for just a small fee, you’d be able to drastically improve your download speeds. IDM has also been voted by several websites including Download.Com, TopShareWare.Com and many others as one of their top choices, regardless of it being user-picked top 5 or the editor’s choice.

All in all, the Internet Download Manager is an excellent program that allows users to increase their download speeds by leaps and bounds. The only drawback is that it is not a free program. Regardless of that, for those people that are looking for a reliable download manager, IDM is the one for you.

For more information on the Internet Download Manager, visit http://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/

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(1 votes, average: 3 out of 5)
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Google always surprises us with something unique and first-of-its-kind. This time Google wows us with a stunning application called Google Street View. Although Amazon’s A9 and Microsoft were the first to release street-level mapping two years back, Google Street View manages to outshine them all. Google Street View is a new feature on Google Maps and it is the latest phase in Google’s endeavors to organize the world’s information on the Internet. This feature is excellent in that it makes finding directions from one location to the next very easy. You can simply log online, type in the starting address follow by the ending address and get the exact detailed directions on how to get there.

To help you even further, you have live-feed cameras that will show you exactly how the streets and roads will look when you get near your destination. This helps tremendously in getting there in a timely manner, and avoids getting lost and confused by just dry text directions.

This tool can make life easier in many ways, but it also raises some serious questions. Google Street View shows live images of people of the locations shown on its maps without blurring their faces. Although Google Street View is not primarily geared to pedestrians, it will definitely make many people feel that their privacy is being invaded. There are photographs taken and they are provided by Immersive Media (a company located in Calgary, Canada that works in conjunction with Google). The images on Google Street View are no different than what people see in their every day lives, so make sure you don’t pick your nose while on the street, do it in a closed room instead.

One thing for sure, it has responded quickly to parents calling in with their concerns about the publication of images of their kids on the street. These statements have failed to appease privacy advocates. Director of Privacy International, Simon Davies, criticized Google because it failed to consult widely before launching their newest tool. He said that Google tries to excuse privacy invasion by claiming openness and that this is just one of many excuses.

Overall, the implications of this tool are serious because someone could lose their job, experience a broken marriage, or get hurt because of this Google Street View. Perhaps the idea of blurring out people’s faces and body images could help in giving individuals more privacy, while at the same time offering a very excellent service.

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(3 votes, average: 4.33 out of 5)
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