Thinkpads Forum

I am in the process of reinstalling from scratch, 64-bit Windows 7 & SP1
on my set of Lenovo T61 machines.

I would lke to hear everyone's thoughts on Internet Browsers.


I have been considering:
32-bit Mozilla Firefox
https://filehippo.com/download_mozilla-firefox/

32-bit Avast Secure Browser
https://filehippo.com/download_avast-secure-browser/

Firefox gets memory hungry after a while, especially if you have a bunch of tabs open for any length of time. Go with the x64 flavor unless you have a specific issue or compatibility needs that prevent doing so. I've always stuck with FF and, with an occasional restarting of the browser (I'm a self-described tab junkie) it's OK and has been my go-to for a nearly-consecutive 15 years.

The Avast! browser I find bloated and riddled with junk notifications. I would never recommend it based on my limited experience with it at the in-laws'.

I switched to Flashpeak Slimjet a while ago (it's Chromium-based, closed source, but not tied directly to Google). The main reason for the switch were to get Chrome-compatibility level (let's face it - 90% of web development only caters to Chromium and doesn't care about anything else, just like 15 years ago they all catered to Internet Explorer) and speed.

So far I've been satisfied with it.

Firefox was my goto but really it was some of the addon that I actually liked. Those lost function several versions back and soon after Firefox seemed to change and I no longer considered it an alternative to Microsoft. Used Opera and some others for a bit but I've now settled with Brave (brave.com).

I know nothing about usage or security or what Brave is based on but it seems ok.

Been using it for a few months.

A few years ago, a few folks were recommending Pale Moon ..
viewtopic.php?f=57&t=126480
http://www.palemoon.org/

Is Pale Moon still a popular choice?

BTW: I have been happy using DuckDuckGo as my search engine.

In August 2019 I dumped Pale Moon and went with Waterfox.
I first tried Brave but didn't like it.
But lately there are a few hiccups in Waterfox, that relate to payment if you buy online in certain shops.
In such cases you just can't enter your personal data.
In Ireland such a problematic (for Waterfox) website is e.g. https://www.screwfix.ie/
Being an avid DIYer, I use that website a lot, but need to switch to Firefox to place online orders.
So I guess Waterfox is on its last legs for me.
Don't know yet which browser will 'win' for me.

I like DuckDuckGo, but they are extremely USA-orientated.

I am currently using Mypal on a lower end T43 Win XP Sp3 with no hiccups. It supports Pale Moon extensions and looks well maintained still. Might be too bare bones for the Win 7 installation, but I thought I would mention an alternative. Never heard about it before I had to for something to replace the old chrome installation.

I primarily use Opera both on my T60 and T601 Frankenpad (and have Chrome installed as a backup, but haven't used it for ages). I like the fact that it blocks ads on sites and in videos (for example Youtube) without needing any extensions. The same goes to their Android version, so I use it on my phone too.

I've been using Pale Moon for a while as an alternative to FF. It's slimmer and uses old extensions that FF no longer allows, like Cool Previews.