Web Browser Basics: Internet Explorer and Firefox

1. 2 Web Browser Basics: Internet Explorer and Firefox

2. Give us the tools, and we will finish the job. —Sir Winston Churchill We must learn to explore all the options and possibilities that confront us in a complex and rapidly changing world. —J. William Fulbright

3. OBJECTIVES In this chapter you will learn: • To understand the Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 (IE7) and Mozilla Firefox 2 (FF2) web browsers’ capabilities • To use IE7 and FF2 to search the information available on the World Wide Web. • To customize a browser according to your own needs and preferences. • To understand the differences among various browsers.

4. 2.1 Introduction to the Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2 Web Browsers 2.2 Connecting to the Internet 2.3 Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2 Features 2.4 Customizing Browser Settings 2.5 Searching the Internet 2.6 Keeping Track of Your Favorite Sites 2.7 File Transfer Protocol (FTP) 2.8 Online Help 2.9 Other Web Browsers 2.10 Wrap-Up 2.11 Web Resources   

5. 2.1 Introduction to the Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2 Web Browsers • Internet is an essential medium for worldwide communication • Web browsers • Software programs that access web’s rich content • www portion of the Internet • hyperlinked documents written in XHTML and rich media • Popular web browsers • Microsoft’s Internet Explorer • Mozilla’s Firefox • Apple’s Safari • Opera Software’s Opera • All examples in this book are supported by both IE7 and FF2

6. 2.2 Connecting to the Internet • Computer + web browser software + ISP = Internet access • Computer must have modem or network card • Modem - hardware and converts data to audio tones and transmits the data over phone lines • Network card or network interface card (NIC) - hardware that allows a computer to connect to the Internet through a network or a high-speed Internet connection, • Internet Service Provider (ISP) - connects computers to the Internet • Wireless access • Popular commercial ISPs AOL (www.aol.com) Comcast (www.comcast.net) Earthlink (www.earthlink.net) Verizon (www.verizon.com) Microsoft Network (www.msn.com) NetZero (www.netzero.net)

7. 2.2 Connecting to the Internet (Cont.) • Must consider bandwidth and cost for ISP • Broadband • DSL • Dial-up service • Fiber optics • Web browser • Internet Explorer (www.microsoft.com/ie) • Firefox (www.mozilla.com/firefox)

8. 2.3 Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2 Features • Web browser • Software that allows the user to view certain types of Internet files in an interactive environment • URL (Uniform Resource Locator) • Each web page on the Internet has unique URL • Usually begin with http­:// or https:// • Hyperlinks • Visual elements on web pages that when clicked, load a specified web document • Images and text • Can reference other web pages, e-mail addresses, files and more • Download files • Tabbed Browsing • Allows the user to browse multiple pages without many windows • Page Organization • Using the History Feature • List of previously visited URLs in chronological order

9. 2.3 Internet Explorer 7 and Firefox 2 Features (Cont.) • AutoComplete • URLs from the history can be displayed in a drop-down list when a user types a URL into the Address bar • Off-Line Browsing • Web pages can be saved directly to the computer’s hard drive for off-line browsing • Not connected to the Internet • Downloads • Files from the Internet may be copied to a computer’s hard drive • Applications • Plug-ins • Extensions • Viewing Source Code • Understand how the programmer created the page • Learn how to develop your own pages

10. Fig. 2.1 | Deitel website in Internet Explorer 7.

11. Fig. 2.2 | Deitel website in Firefox 2.

12. Fig. 2.3 | The History menu in Internet Explorer 7.

13. Fig. 2.4 | The History menu in Firefox 2.

14. Fig. 2.5 | AutoComplete suggests possible URLs when given a partial address.

15. Fig. 2.6 | Saving a picture from a website.

16. 2.4 Customizing Browser Settings • Browser settings • Determine how sites are displayed • How security measures are applied • How outputs are rendered • Privacy settings for IE7 and FF2 can be set under the Privacy tab. In IE7 there are six levels of privacy • Many levels lenient to strict • Security options • Specify how much information you want to hide from unfamiliar sites • How much of the site’s content will be blocked from a computer • Personal home page • Web page that loads when the browser is first opened • History options • Web page cache • Previously viewed sites

17. Fig. 2.7 | Internet Options in Internet Explorer 7.

18. Fig. 2.8 | Options in Firefox 2.

19. 2.5 Searching the Internet • Internet is wealth of information • Search engines help locate more specific information on a given topic • Google (www.google.com) • Yahoo! (www.yahoo.com) • MSN (www.msn.com) • AltaVista (www.altavista.com) • Ask.com (www.ask.com) • Use databases that facilitate quick information retrieval • Metasearch engines (do not maintain databases) • Send the search criteria to other search engines and aggregate the • MetaCrawler (www.metacrawler.com) • Search engines can help resolve programming errors

20. Fig. 2.9 | Searching the Internet with Internet Explorer 7.

21. Fig. 2.10 | Searching the Internet with Firefox 2.

22. 2.6 Keeping Track of Your Favorite Sites • Organize and track Web browsing history (URL and title) • Bookmarking • IE7 - Favorites menu’s • Favorites can be categorized and grouped into folders • FF2 – Bookmark This Page... option • Most browsers have their own version of Favorites or Bookmarks.

23. Fig. 2.11 | The Favoritesmenu helps organize frequently visited websites in Internet Explorer 7.

24. Fig. 2.12 | The Bookmarks menu helps organize frequently visited websites in Firefox 2.

25. 2.7 File Transfer Protocol (FTP) • File Transfer Protocol (FTP) • Set of rules by which computers transfer data over the Internet • URL begins with ftp:// rather than ­http • Accessed either with the web browser or software that supports FTP • Filezilla (http://filezilla.sourceforge.net) • FF2 FireFTP (http://fireftp.mozdev.org) • FTP site can be browsed as though they were files on the local computer • Files can be downloaded • FTP site may require login • FTP can also be used on the Internet for • Uploading files • Downloading files • File-managing tasks

26. Fig. 2.13 | FTP site access.

27. 2.8 Online Help • Built-in help features for browsers • Answers to frequently asked questions about using browsers such as FF2 and IE7 • Contents and Index menu item in IE7 • Help Contents in FF2

28. Fig. 2.14 | Internet Explorer 7 Help dialog.

29. Fig. 2.15 | Firefox 2 Help dialog.

30. 2.9 Other Web Browsers • Opera (www.opera.com) • Safari (www.apple.com/safari) • All browsers differ in functionality, performance and features • Use different HTML layout engines • Opera, as well as IE7 and FF2, • Designed to be accessible to all users, including those with visual or mobility impairments • “Mini” version of the browser for mobile devices • Safari • Created for Apple’s Mac OS • Simple interface • Impressive speed for executing JavaScript • Different browser functionality and features makes cross-browser compatibility difficult to achieve