• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

The millennial generation has split, new Fed research shows: Those over 35 are edging toward boomer-style wealth, while everyone else falls behind

2

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

3

Scott Bessent casually says the U.S. has more than $1 trillion in gold—and that it doesn’t matter for the dollar

1

The millennial generation has split, new Fed research shows: Those over 35 are edging toward boomer-style wealth, while everyone else falls behind

2

Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock

3

Scott Bessent casually says the U.S. has more than $1 trillion in gold—and that it doesn’t matter for the dollar
Logged In

Web browsers aren’t fun anymore

By
Jason Cipriani
Jason Cipriani
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Jason Cipriani
Jason Cipriani
Down Arrow Button Icon
May 30, 2014, 4:29 PM ET
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Many years ago, when I first getting acclimated to the Internet, I only used the browsers included with the operating system. I had no idea of the world that existed outside of Internet Explorer besides the random dabbling with Netscape.

Then along came Firefox, my gateway browser. “Download it!” a trusted friend advised me. So I did. And I never looked back at Safari or Internet Explorer. It was the best browser. Then when Google first launched Chrome, I installed it, only to scoff at its look and minimalist feature set.

As time passed, Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOG) began releasing meaningful updates to Safari and Chrome. Mozilla’s Firefox started falling behind. Not just in terms of looks, mind you, but in terms of features. It felt slower. It lacked a synchronizing mechanism for other desktop computers and mobile devices. Most of all, it flat out looked ugly, even with all of its customization options and themes. So I jumped ship, and quickly took to scoffing at those who still used Firefox. (I know, I know. I’m a fair-weather fan.)

In the last couple of years since that fateful jump, I have split my usage between Chrome and Safari. I probably opened Firefox a total of five times, and those instances were usually reserved for trying to verify or dispel an issue I was seeing in another web browser.

On April 29, Mozilla released Firefox 29. The long-overdue update brought a new look to the browser that so clearly draws inspiration from Chrome that devout Firefox users took to the MozillaZine support forums to voice unpleasant opinions. In use, I found the redesign to be effective. A new settings menu presents easily identifiable icons, which make it easy to quickly find and select the settings category you’d like to view. The ability to quickly bookmark a page by clicking on a star icon is easier to use than the old option, which demanded that you name and organize the bookmark.

It doesn’t work with all websites, either. This problem is, of course, a tricky one to solve — it’s partly the responsibility of the website-builder to build to standards; it’s partly the responsibility of the browser-maker to adhere to them — and in no way unique to Firefox. But it makes me wonder why, in 2014, we still haven’t moved past the need to completely tailor websites to fit requirements of individual web browsers.

I digress. But that brings me to a major point about today’s browsers: They’re mostly the same. Today’s crop of browsers are so similar that the marginal differences between them are what can sway a user one way or another toward adoption.

Safari, for example, does not allow for tabs to be pinned; Chrome and Firefox do. Pinning a tab may not seem like a huge deal, but for those people who regularly have 20 or 30 tabs open and need to quickly identify what can be closed, the capability can be crucial — and a deciding factor.

Similarly, Firefox, Chrome, Internet Explorer, and Safari all offer some form of personal data synchronization: bookmarks, open tabs, system preferences. But not all browsers are available on all operating systems — especially for mobile devices — allowing the final experience to vary widely among them. In the case of Firefox, Mozilla refuses to release an iOS app, so its support list for mobile devices begins and ends with Google Android devices. (Mozilla is working on Firefox OS, a platform for mobile devices, but it’s not widely available.)

It is possible that I’m overstating how important these small features are: How much time they save, how much frustration they cause. But I don’t think I am. When web browsers nearly have feature parity, the importance of minor features is amplified. For a piece of software you use for hours each day, it’s even more conspicuous.

Should you download Firefox? There is little reason not to give it a try. But you may soon find that, like checkout lines at a busy supermarket, hopping between browsers is a fool’s errand. I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’m sticking with Chrome, even if it no longer has a clear lead among web browsers. Whatever your browser, you may find the same, too.

“Logged In” is Fortune’s personal technology column, written by Jason Cipriani. Read it on Fortune.com each Tuesday.

About the Author
By Jason Cipriani
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in

s
BankingElections
California Republican’s awkward pitch: vote for me even if you hate Trump
By MIchael R. Blood and The Associated PressJuly 23, 2026
1 hour ago
Alphabet’s SpaceX stake fuels a $98 billion gain, beating estimates
Big TechMarkets
Alphabet’s SpaceX stake fuels a $98 billion gain, beating estimates
By Barbara Ortutay and The Associated PressJuly 23, 2026
1 hour ago
bieber
Arts & EntertainmentStreaming
Justin Bieber’s World Cup halftime song streams jumped 110%
By Maria Sherman and The Associated PressJuly 23, 2026
1 hour ago
z
EconomyElections
Democrats decide 2026 midterm elections are the perfect time for a civil war pitting socialists against moderates
By Jill Colvin and The Associated PressJuly 23, 2026
2 hours ago
police tape
North AmericaCrime
American homicides on track for lowest level in more than a century: ‘one of the most significant public safety developments in decades’
By Nick Lichtenberg, Safiyah Riddle and The Associated PressJuly 23, 2026
2 hours ago
house
PoliticsCongress
The Republican-controlled House just passed a stock trading bill — that exempts Trump’s 3,600 Q1 trades
By Joey Cappelletti and The Associated PressJuly 23, 2026
2 hours ago

Most Popular

The millennial generation has split, new Fed research shows: Those over 35 are edging toward boomer-style wealth, while everyone else falls behind
Real Estate
The millennial generation has split, new Fed research shows: Those over 35 are edging toward boomer-style wealth, while everyone else falls behind
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 22, 2026
1 day ago
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
Success
Mark Cuban says he has the solution to growing income inequality, and it's to reward every employee—from CEO to janitor—with company stock
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 20, 2026
3 days ago
Scott Bessent casually says the U.S. has more than $1 trillion in gold—and that it doesn’t matter for the dollar
Economy
Scott Bessent casually says the U.S. has more than $1 trillion in gold—and that it doesn’t matter for the dollar
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 22, 2026
23 hours ago
'The man who dies rich dies disgraced': The last time America had such wealth inequality, Andrew Carnegie knew he had to give it all away
Success
'The man who dies rich dies disgraced': The last time America had such wealth inequality, Andrew Carnegie knew he had to give it all away
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 22, 2026
1 day ago
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
AI
Mathematicians grapple with a ‘very rapid and very unsettling change’ as AI cracks yet another century-old problem
By Eva RoytburgJuly 21, 2026
2 days ago
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
Success
Despite a $156 million contract, Knicks star Jalen Brunson still calls his parents for financial advice any time he makes a big purchase
By Emma BurleighJuly 21, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.