The BBC finally advising users to switch browsers is great news. Not only for us, but also for Microsoft who it seems need some reminding that it is the consumer, not their wallets, who should be top priority when it comes to addressing shortcomings in their products.

Would you like an example? Look at the XBOX360, since the day it launched 1000’s of them world wide burnt out because of faulty hardware, (and still continue to) and were replaced with the same hardware - MS denied the issue until the press finally released the official survey that approximately 20 bajillion Xboxes had the flaw. I had two mates with XBOX360’s, both of which suffered the “Red Ring of Death” on their original, and replacement machines.

IE has been flawed in terms of security for years. Not only that, Microsoft seems to be so ruddy lazy at addressing security shortcomings that it’s almost insulting. Factor in the idea that the exploit affects all previous iterations of the browser and you have a recipe for an exodus.

And props to the Microsoft employee who states that he doesn’t condone switching to another browser despite this and other vulnerabilities, or the numerous freak outs and substandard rendering abilities, or awful tacked on features and gimmicks. That man is towing the company line in the face of a shit storm

As with most IE products that are released, only to be swamped with a series of patches to keep it stable, it seems the general company line is this:

“Err, yeah it’s broken. Err…no, it’s not as good as the other browsers. Tell you what, keep using our overpriced and underdeveloped software, and we’ll be sure to repay you by bending you over and rogering you up the arse”

The install base of windows and IE obviously contribute to the concept that hackers tend to hack the stuff the majority of people use, but this doesn’t excuse the fact that a company with the size and turnover of Microsoft has to take quite so long to pull their finger out.

They still support IE 6 for Christ’s sake. Have you seen the rendering on that? Or the fact that it has a complete meltdown when confronted with any kind of flash or complex css.

Anyway, as well as all that, lets look at a few other reasons to choose an alternative browser over Internet Explorer

Massively superior pop-up and pop-under add blocking capabilities. Just try surfing morally dubious websites with IE, and then Firefox - you’ll see what I mean.

The address bar acts as a Google search engine on Chrome and Firefox, and takes you to the most probable page when you type an incomplete address. Type “Arsenal” on Firefox or Chrome, then on IE, and watch as IE freaks out and takes you to the crappy msn search facility that barely shows you anything relevant

Better bookmarks, and history. Arranging and organising your bookmarks is easier, quicker, and less pernickety in Firefox and Chrome.

Faster and more stable browsing. Chrome uses tech that devotes resources on a per tab basis allowing the rest of the browser to carry on working even if one of the tabs crashes or hangs. Firefox is widely considered to be the most stable and standards compliant browser currently available, while also being on a par with Chrome in terms of pace.

IE however still crashes unexpectedly, still locks up for minutes on end, takes the longest time to load pages and graphics, and buffers video the slowest of all three browsers mentioned here.

That the majority of the world uses IE when there are better alternatives on the market is simply astonishing.

What are you waiting for?

FireFox

Chrome

Get cracking.