In the early 90′s, the Internet was a place for science. It didn’t have a very useful commercial purpose. At that time, Internet programs were limited to a fan favorite called Web Weaver (WW). It was the most unpleasing thing to look at. Later, a company called Netscape improved on WW and introduced Netscape Browser. This was an amazing program because it handled tables, frames and additional formatting features.
The Internet took off like a rocket. Soon people were dialing into the network and looking around. 99% of them were using Netscape Navigator. Netscape was quick, OG, and pointed to some good sites. The key here is money. Netscape cost $19.95 to start and you got two upgrades (about $19.95 every two years or so). Or, the company that hosted you would supply the browser to you for free. But Netscape was making money hand over fist. Advertising rates were off the chart. Not to mention that this technology as an advertising medium was totally unproven. So the cash rolled in.
When cash rolls in, people notice. Some of those people were in Redmond, WA. They wanted some of this cash, so they developed and distributed Internet Explorer (IE). Instead of selling this program, they gave it away for free. No upgrade cost, just free. IE was an inferior product. But it was $19.95 cheaper than the competition. Fast forward, IE became the dominant web browser.
With great power comes great responsibility. IE is a flawed piece of software that everybody uses with out concern for security. Right now, there is a hole in IE that allows you to go to a bank site, enter your online banking password and account number and then the information gets sent to your bank as well as to a location yet unknown. Why, because of the flaws in IE. So how can you solve this problem and protect yourself (there is no fix from Microsoft as of yet)? Change your Internet browser.
If you are using an Apple Macintosh, you can run Safari instead of IE. Safari is great. It loads quickly and supports all major plug-ins, and is free. Now for the majority of users out there switch to Mozilla Foxfire. This is a clean, easy to use program (also free). It has all the features of IE with none of the security risk. Why? When you have a team of 1000s working on 100s of software titles, corners have to be cut. But when you have a few people working on one program, you get dedication that comes out in the end product.
Enjoy.