Switching to Firefox
I am done with Google Chrome. I think.
I am a long time user of Google Chrome. I have been using Google Chrome since it launched in 2008.
In 2008, Google Chrome introduced several features and improvements:
- Speed
- Simplicity
- Security
- Stability
- Customization
15 years later:
- Google Chrome is big, a memory hog and not that fast.
- Google Chrome is still has a minimalist user interface and in the past 16 years other browsers have evolved to use minimalist user interfaces as well, so this is no longer a unique feature of Chrome.
- Today, the entire business of the Internet is tracking users and collecting data. I don't know what data Google Chrome is tracking, but to assume that it not tracking data is foolish.
- Chrome is still relatively stable and other browsers have caught up in this department.
- Other browsers have introduce customization features that are either same as or similar to the features available in Chrome. Again, Chrome is not longer unique in this area.
- Some websites don't work well with Chrome (granted what I have encountered have been minor issues related to printing web pages to PDFs and relatively easy to work around, but still annoying).
Chrome was innovative when it was launched and today the features which made Chrome a great web browser are either available in other browsers or surpassed by other browsers.
So why Firefox,
- Privacy - Firefox has a strong emphasis on privacy and security with features like tracking prevention. Firefox's protections are probably not 100% complete. Someone has figured out a way to track users even with Firefox's protections. However, when compared to Google Chrome, a browser created by a company who's business model is based on tracking, data collection and advertising, it is foolish to believe that Chrome is designed impede or operate counter to Google's business goals.
- Open-source - Firefox is open-source. Open-source means greater transparency. Greater transparency more often than not provides greater security.
