<!-- 
.. title: Firefox vs. Opera
.. slug: firefox-vs-opera
.. date: 2009-06-21 17:48:58 UTC+01:00 
.. tags: web, 
.. link: 
.. description: 
.. type: text 
--> 

I praise myself of having a rather complete overview of the browser market. On my main sytem, I've got Opera, Firefox, Seamonkey, Konqueror, and Midori. In virtual machines, I can test Iron or Chromium, as well as IE 8 and Safari, and compare builds of all browsers to each other on various OS.

Years ago, I wondered why everybody was using IE. There was no rational reason. People ... just were used to it.

Now, I have the feeling that we got the same situation with FF. People use it without even thinking. It's just assumed to be without alternative.

Personally, I almost exclusively use Opera. Why? Because Firefox is basically an open-source hypocrite. The Mozilla foundation promised a slim browser already seven years ago. What happened? We got a browser with zero functionality but the memory consumption of three mozillas. They also promised a transparent browser. And look what you got: about:config. 😄 Compare that to the oldfashioned ini files of Opera (and there's always about:opera for converts from FF 😉 ).

There is of course one feature of FF which is outstanding: it's add-on system. It's what makes FF unique, and distinguishes it from all other browsers. I would guess that 90% of its current users are not even aware of this feature, which is as much blessing as it's curse. Curse? Oh yes. It's a security concern of gigantic dimensions. Major updates break most add-ons. Many add-ons render the browser sluggish and unresponsive. Playing with add-ons is addictive. 😄 Blessing? Well, without add-ons FF is just as unusable as IE. But with the right add-ons you'll get a browser with impressive value.

Let's look at the list of FF add-ons I've installed. I've installed many of them to mimic a function of Opera. Those which aren't are possibly not that terribly important ... but they are fun. 😉 Oh, and one more thing: while Opera does not feature add-ons, it can still be customized to an amazing degree. There are user buttons, user scripts, user styles ... check it out [here.](http://operawiki.info/Opera) Please understand that an NA entry (aka not available) in the table below simply means that _I'm_ not aware of a realization via the above means.

<div style="text-align: center;"><img src="../images/ff_addons.png" alt="addon-list" /></div>

<table style=
"text-align: left; width: 558px; height: 544px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"
border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top; font-weight: bold;">Firefox
add-on<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; font-weight: bold;">Available in
Opera?<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Adblock Plus<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">built in (rightclick: block
content) [1]<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Add to search bar<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">built in (rightclick on search
box)<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Better privacy<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">NA<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Cookie button<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">built in (rightclick: site
preferences)<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Distrust<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">NA<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Fast Dial<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">built in (speed Dial)<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Fire Gestures<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">built in (mouse
gestures)<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Flagfox<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">NA<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Forecastfox<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">available as widget<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Fox!Box!<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">NA<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Linkification<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">rightclick, go to web
address<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Long URL Please<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">NA<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">No script<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">built in (rightclick: site
preferences)<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Secure login<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">built in (Wand)<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">SSL blacklist<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">NA<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Stylish<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">built in
(.opera/styles/user)<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Torbutton<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">available as Opera
button<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Tweak network<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">built in (preferences)<br /></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">Undo Closed Tabs Buton<br /></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top;">built in (trash can)<br /></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>

[1] A comprehensive [urlfilter.ini](http://www.fanboy.co.nz/adblock/opera/), complete with a css for removing whitespace, and an adblocker realized as a [user script](http://www.adsweep.org/AdSweep.js).

Update: What a pity: [Adsweep](http://adsweep.org) has been discontinued.
