# I have finally lost my patience with Internet Explorer. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 4, 2004, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071 "2004-09-04T03:41:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![BytopianDream](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9de0a6/32.png) [@BytopianDream](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BytopianDream)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2004, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/41 "2004-09-04T20:42:59Z")
Am I the only person on the board who uses Netscape? I dunno, I never have problems with this stuff. And I’ve been tabbing for a while now. _shrug_ ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2004, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/42 "2004-09-04T22:46:50Z")
Psst. Bytopian Dream? Netscape _is_ Mozilla. Just a version older. Firefox is Mozilla, without the mail client. Thunderbird is Mozilla, without the web browser. ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2004, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/43 "2004-09-05T00:43:36Z")
> [@Hodge](#): > > No need. Download the very handy [Prefbar extension](http://prefbar.mozdev.org/). Allows you to spoof the user agent settings, turn on/off java, flash, etc. and change many other settings. I wonder if it using that spoof feature would let me use Mozilla at work instead of IE. See, the company where I work makes extensive use of Lotus Notes and something called SameTime Connect, which is sort of like AIM or Yahoo but it also lets you share screens–and the damn thing doesn’t work with Mozilla, as I found out just the other day. I hate IE. Stupid buggy non-tabbed browsing monopolistic piece of shit. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2004, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/44 "2004-09-05T20:23:54Z")
> [@E-Sabbath](#): > > Psst. Bytopian Dream? Netscape _is_ Mozilla. Just a version older. Firefox is Mozilla, without the mail client. Thunderbird is Mozilla, without the web browser. Mozilla is what happened when Netscape released the source code to its browser to the hands of the geeks of the world. Interestingly, the [Netscape code was so complex and crappy the Mozilla team decided to scrap it and do a total rewrite](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mozilla#History_of_Mozilla). You win some, you lose some. (This was on December 7, 1998, less than two months after the initial code release.) Then, in 2003, AOL (which bought Netscape) killed its browser division and agreed to use IE for the next seven years, giving the new Mozilla Foundation two million as a consolation prize. A lot of the old Netscape hackers jumped ship and are now coding Mozilla. So the Netscape of old is dead, and Mozilla is what remains. _Le roi est mort. Vive le roi!_ (Oh, and try typing about:mozilla (without the underscore, damn this software) into the address bar.) ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/45 "2004-09-06T07:48:57Z")
Netscape of old is dead? Not quite. At least the name is still around. From [ComputerWorld](http://www.computerworld.com/softwaretopics/software/story/0,10801,95322,00.html) > [@](#): > > Netscape 7.2 released > There’s life in the old Web browser yet > News Story by Joris Evers > > AUGUST 18, 2004 (IDG NEWS SERVICE) - After being written off by industry observers last year, America Online Inc.'s browser unit showed signs of life yesterday as it released an update to its Netscape Web browser. > > Netscape Communications Corp. released Netscape 7.2, the successor to the aging Version 7.1 released in mid-2003. ---
**Author:** ![TwistofFate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@TwistofFate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwistofFate)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/46 "2004-09-06T11:16:24Z")
Airman, have you put Adaware SE on the machine yet? ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/47 "2004-09-06T12:53:06Z")
Yep. Took care of that yesterday. That’s what got me the 300+ hits on the search I was describing earlier. I ran it again last night along with Spybot and I only got one hit for something called BackWeb Lite from Spybot, and that appears to be nearly ubiquitous. So it seems that Mozilla keeps it pretty clean. Of course, it’s only been one day, but so far so good. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/48 "2004-09-06T13:02:55Z")
As long as all you Firefox gurus are hangin’ out here, anyone have a sec to help a Firefox noob? 😉 I love Firefox, but there’s one idiot-proofed “feature” that I gotta kill. I did a format and restore of my system a few days ago and I’m reinstalling my Winamp skins/plugins. However, the browser won’t let me just execute the plugin .exe files. I understand _why_ they’ve done that–letting the browser install .exe files must be a security nightmare for network admins, and normally I’d be happy to leave that feature enabled, but dammit, I want to be able to turn it off when I choose to. Is it possible to disable that feature? (Also, why is there a timer that counts down from 2 when I try to download extensions? How can I kill that?) Thanks Fenris ---
**Author:** ![TwistofFate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@TwistofFate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwistofFate)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/49 "2004-09-06T14:14:50Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > As long as all you Firefox gurus are hangin’ out here, anyone have a sec to help a Firefox noob? 😉 > > I love Firefox, but there’s one idiot-proofed “feature” that I gotta kill. > > I did a format and restore of my system a few days ago and I’m reinstalling my Winamp skins/plugins. However, the browser won’t let me just execute the plugin .exe files. > > I understand _why_ they’ve done that–letting the browser install .exe files must be a security nightmare for network admins, and normally I’d be happy to leave that feature enabled, but dammit, I want to be able to turn it off when I choose to. Is it possible to disable that feature? > > (Also, why is there a timer that counts down from 2 when I try to download extensions? How can I kill that?) > > Thanks > > Fenris Can’t help with the exe part, but I think the counter is Firefox caching the extention in order to make the install time quicker. don’t think you can turn it off. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/50 "2004-09-06T14:18:14Z")
> [@TwistofFate](#): > > Can’t help with the exe part, but I think the counter is Firefox caching the extention in order to make the install time quicker. don’t think you can turn it off. Ahhh…I never thought of it that way! 😛 Given the block on .exe files, I thought it was some sort of safety countdown. But caching it makes much more sense! ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/51 "2004-09-06T18:43:03Z")
You only have one browser on your puter? I got 4 If one don’t like sumptin, I just use another. Yeah, 99% is Irefox for use but just sayin… ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/52 "2004-09-06T20:32:50Z")
What kills me is all the poor clueless types who use IE because that’s what’s on their machines so they figure they’re SPOZED to use it, so when the Web slows to a crawl or they get popups out the wazoo and scumware and spyware too, they figure that’s the way the Web is, and just give it up. Sad, really. I’ve used Mozilla for months, and it’s amazing – the system just doesn’t crash any more. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/53 "2004-09-06T20:47:33Z")
> [@Evil Captor](#): > > What kills me is all the poor clueless types who use IE because that’s what’s on their machines so they figure they’re SPOZED to use it, so when the Web slows to a crawl or they get popups out the wazoo and scumware and spyware too, they figure that’s the way the Web is, and just give it up. Sad, really. > > I’ve used Mozilla for months, and it’s amazing – the system just doesn’t crash any more. That was me in a nutshell. ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/54 "2004-09-06T21:37:29Z")
> [@Evil Captor](#): > > they figure that’s the way the Web is, and just give it up. Sad, really. Not to mention those who in all seriousness reckon that when IE curls up and dies it’s because “the internet has crashed”. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2004, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/55 "2004-09-06T21:45:34Z")
> [@Futile Gesture](#): > > “the internet has crashed”. 😃 There are those who think the internet has crashed when their home page can’t be found. But face it, there are those sites where only IE will work. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2004, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/56 "2004-09-07T01:16:58Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > But face it, there are those sites where only IE will work. There are also sites full of German scheisse porn. It’s all a matter of deciding which content you really want to look at. Seriously, very, very few sites will only work with IE, and most of those sites are crap made by people who focus on glitter and don’t give a shit about content. Intelligent people design to the standards, not to broken browsers. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2004, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/57 "2004-09-07T01:22:40Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > T > Seriously, very, very few sites will only work with IE, Gateway’s site, when I enter a serial number about a PC we bought to get info about it; this feature works with IE, but not Opera. One is enough. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Badger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/848f3c/32.png) [@Dead\_Badger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Badger)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2004, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/58 "2004-09-07T01:44:59Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > One is enough. 🙂 How many times a week do you ogle your computer specs? 🙂 (besides which, that page seems to work fine for me with Opera 7.54 under Win XP…) ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2004, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/59 "2004-09-07T02:04:34Z")
> [@Dead Badger](#): > > How many times a week do you ogle your computer specs? 🙂 This is a work, dude. Warranty repair and stuff. Enter the serial number and I go nowhere in Opera 6; I get the info with IE. I downloaded 7.x, and mailbox wouldn’t import. Besides, they want more money. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![willrandolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/59ef9b/32.png) [@willrandolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/willrandolf)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2004, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071/60 "2004-09-07T04:39:52Z")
Hey **Airman** - I’m right there with you. Although I took it a step further… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-have-finally-lost-my-patience-with-internet-explorer/263071.md?page=4)