I have long wanted to use Opera. One big problem for me: instead of so many webpages in speed dial, can I just open my home page in new tab (like `new tab home' in firefox). Is there an extension/plug in for that.
Remember the browser wars of the 1990s. Netscape looked and felt better but IE ruled. I have been using Firefox for more than 4 years now and find it more comfortable. Recently Firefox is having some problems in loading some scripts (in win 7). So also increasingly using Chrome. I still find Firefox the best for me. One can install Opera, Safari and what not, but they only clutter the desktop if they are not your primary browsers. As for Safari, it may score more on synthetic tests, but I find it much slower than Firefox.
what i notice is people tend to use Firefox due to the overwhelming rave from other people.. but when it comes down to specifics.. i notice no one ever has any good reasons.. it's always .. "i like it" or "firefox rocks" or "firefox rules" .. i have been debating this issue on many forums.. and those are the usual responses.. many people don't have a clue as to which is better but repeat what they see or hear ..
I tried Opera a very long time ago, and although I liked most of its features, I stuck with Firefox at the time. However, I decided to download Opera v10.51 a few days ago and try it out ... after using it for a few days, and familiarizing myself with its features and styles, I have now uninstalled Firefox. Until now, I have always silent installed Firefox in my custom win7 iso, but that too I have replaced with Opera. In particular I like Opera's Speeddial; Password Manager; and Pop-up blocking (which can be improved by addition of urlfilter.ini being added to users folder); and the clear glass style that can be added.
I have been slowly increasing my usage of Chrome and reducing that of Firefox. Firefox is somewhat buggy in Win 7 esp. 64 bit. Scripts do not load sometimes. I found IE8 to be quite OK also, esp. in win 7. I do not like the Chrome interface but am getting used to it. Will have to try out Opera with tweaks to see if it works for me.
i have not tried this ..but i'll have to try it .. while security and performance is important to me .. aesthetics is also a factor as to why i have been using Opera .. hopefully ChromePlus is as easy on the eyes
I have been using Opera since Opera 8. Tried FireFox and is good but some how just did not appeal to me. The main reason I use Opera is security, it does not get hacked very often and is very quick on my computer. I typically limit my use of IE for when I need to access MSN, the Microsoft web site or Hotmail. I use Opera exclusively and wouldn't have it any other way.
I hate Opera's middle mouse button scrolling. Can its behavior be changed to act like Firefox, Chrome or IE? E.g. if I press the middle mouse button and move the mouse, then scrolling will stop when I release the middle mouse button, instead of having to click it again. Also the middle mouse button scrolling is far too slow for my liking, can this be changed? Edit: One last thing, Opera doesn't show the origin of the middle mouse click, is there a way to display it?
Well, aside from the complaints I voiced in my previous post, I have other reasons for prefering Firefox over Opera. For me, the bottom line is that Firefox has greater extensibility than Opera, and Firefox boasts a wealth of add-ons which can be installed directly from the browser. I think you are overstating the risk of acquiring malware from Firefox addons. Whenever I have found something I did not like in Firefox, I have always found a way to change it according to my preferences. It's like having a web browser built to my personal specifications. How could I not like that? If you like Opera's behavior out of the box, then that's lovely; what a timesaver for you! But I don't. You said, "many people don't have a clue as to which is better". But what defines "better"? I don't think Windows is the "best" operating system, but I use it because, among other reasons, it has the software availability I want. I don't necessarily think Firefox is the "best" web browser, but I use it because, among other reasons, it has the functionality availability I want. Thank you for your post regarding the release of Opera 10.51. I'm glad I had the opportunity to try the latest version of Opera. But, I will remain in the Firefox camp for the foreseeable future.
I've used Opera for 6+ years now and absolutely love it. As a Webmistress - the notes feature is handy for canned responses and many other things - Opera is feature rich - definitely the best browser available IMO! And yes - you can add all types of extensions to FF - but after a while it becomes a heavy app - a resource hog! On the other hand - Opera already comes fully featured so there's no need to want modification. Anyway - I love Opera - it's a sweet browser!
What do you mean better and yes I concur with denshigomi which is what does better mean??? Does it mean that it loads the page faster? Or is it that it has more add-ons? What about compatibility between pages? Bottom line I use Firefox 3.7a4 but it doesn't mean I'm willing to give things a chance... even if I've been using Firefox since Netscape... However I think we can all say that IE 8 sux...
I wish Opera had more of the things I need, although I absolutely love the mobile versions. Currently I use Firefox but I don't use it to be part of any crowd. Plugins for one, downloaded directly from the Firefox addons website and they all have high download figures. Now what plugins do I use? Greasemonkey, Firebug, Web Developer, Adblock Plus, NoScript, DownThemAll. What does this mean? It means I can modify and design webpages in a way that pretty much no other browser can offer me, it basically does what I require it to. Another browser thats on my list is Chrome, it's extension support is getting greater and it's a hell of allot lighter and more secure than Firefox. With Opera though can I easily block adverts or hack a web page's functions so that I can make it behave how I like? Unfortunately not, but its a pretty sexy looking browser with a nice feature set for most users. At the end of the day you pick the browser that best suits your needs