Article - Netscape 4.0 Can't Top IE 3.0

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Netscape 4.0 can't top IE 3.0
Published on 8/1/97

Navigator 4.0, part of the new Netscape Communicator package, has been in the market for a while now. Microsoft's Internet Explorer 4.0, on the other hand, is still in beta. Comparisons between the 4.0 versions of both browsers currently dominate the pages of computer publications. But, in actual fact, Navigator 4.0 is barely able to keep up with Internet Explorer 3.0, let alone the upcoming IE 4.0.

Let's start with the aesthetics of both browsers. IE 3.0 sports a nice, clean, consistent, user-friendly interface. Navigator 4.0, however, comes complete with inconsistencies and sometimes archaic interfaces. For example, Navigator's Preferences dialog box uses an outline tree to access its various settings, while IE 3.0 uses the more industry-recognized standard of a tabbed interface. As far as the discrepancies go, compare Navigator 4.0's Security Info dialog to its Preferences dialog box. The former uses a web-style interface, while the latter somewhat uses a familiar Windows interface. Yes it's true that the new Navigator has a customizable toolbar, but IE 3.0 is already at that stage.

If you're not an Internet Explorer user, you can't always believe what you read. An article previewing Netscape Communicator appeared in the April 1997 issue of Windows Sources. In that article, when relating Navigator 4.0's bookmarking capabilities to those of IE 3.0, the author says, "Unlike IE's fixed set of Microsoft-centric links..." This is a false statement. The links in question--the ones called Quick Links--are completely customizable. In the same article, the author also praises Navigator's ability to display a tooltip from the Back and Forward buttons, as well as its support for keyboard navigation. Both of these features are already in Internet Explorer 3.0.

Let's take a look at another example of inaccurate reporting. The June 1997 issue of ZD Internet Magazine contained an extensive browser-comparison article. In a section describing the results of various compatibility tests, the author states that "It [IE 3.02] failed spacer tags, right-aligned images, and centering tables, among others." First of all, the spacer tag is a proprietary Netscape tag, so you can't really say that IE failed the test. Additionally, IE 3.0 does support both right-aligned images and centered tables. In fact, if you're using Internet Explorer 3.0 or higher, take a look below:

Centered
table

On a more technical note, Navigator 4.0 once again plays catch-up with--but does not surpass--Internet Explorer. The browser has now gained support for cascading style sheets, which allow for enhanced web page design and layout, but these were already available in IE 3.0. Even complex Java applets execute around 30% to 40% faster in Internet Explorer 3.0 than they do in Navigator 4.0.

A major shortcoming of Netscape is its lack of support for ActiveX and VBScript without the use of clunky third-party plug-ins. And no, this is not a security feature (see ActiveX: A Security Risk?). Both ActiveX and VBScript are important Internet technologies that should be supported by any browser contending to be the best.

There is only one reason why one would even consider using Netscape Communicator, and that is its multi-platform support. IE 3.0 only runs on Macintosh, Windows 3.1, Windows 95, and Windows NT. Netscape supports all of the above, plus OS/2, Unix, and Linux. Still, in most cases, Internet Explorer will be your best choice. And remember, IE 4.0 will also support Unix operating systems.

Finally, don't forget to check the price tag. Netscape Communicator, despite its various deficiencies, retails for around $49. Internet Explorer, on the other hand, is completely free.

As we have presented in this article, Internet Explorer is the superior browser. If you're still not convinced, just keep in mind that we were focusing on IE 3.0, not the soon-to-be-released Internet Explorer 4.0. Netscape won't be navigating much longer.

If you would like to comment on this article, please visit our Feedback page. We apologize if we have offended any Netscape users, but we felt it was important for us to publish an article of this sort.