December 2004 Mfg.Trust

Mfg.Trust is a monthly feature of the
            NCMS InfraGard Manufacturing Industry Association
                        Infrastructure assurance for manufacturers
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This month – ABOUT THAT ‘OTHER’ WEB BROWSER WHY MANUFACTURERS WILL WANT TO HAVE OPTIONS ON THE DESKTOP

See the Resources Page for this Story 

Editor's Preface:

Most corporate desktops currently run some version of Windows that includes Internet Explorer. But security flaws have caused some experts to recommend that organizations consider using a different internet browser altogether.

This month we’ll discuss Mozilla Firefox, an open source web browser that it is touted as being superior to Internet Explorer. Firefox has received a great deal of attention in the media and many companies are now evaluating it.

Can your organization benefit from replacing Internet Explorer? Will Firefox make your desktops more secure? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each browser?

This is a layperson’s view of the practical usefulness of the two programs in a manufacturing workplace environment. These thoughts and comments also apply in the home, which is often an extension of the work environment.

The opinions contained here are solely the responsibility of the author. Computers and web browsers are business tools and it’s a good idea to evaluate new tools as they become available.

As usual, the Resources page that accompanies this article offers a rich information set for more study. See http://trust.ncms.org (Publications Index tab).

Editor

INTERNET EXPLORER AND MOZILLA’S FIREFOX

Internet Explorer (IE) has 92% of the browser market and comes bundled with the Windows operating system. IE is a derivative of Mosaic, the web browser that started it all. The resemblance is now very faint as IE has evolved to add new features.

Mozilla Firefox is increasingly becoming the browser of choice among savvy users replacing IE. Some sources estimate that Firefox has captured nearly 6% of the browser market despite being a relative newcomer to the market. Firefox is open source which means that anyone can download and modify its source code and even make improvements. The Linux operating system is another example of open source software that many companies are now using.

So, which browser do you need? I’ll start with the answer. If you use the Windows operating system, you’ll probably need both. Both browsers are fine products, and it does not cost much to get both. Now, let’s find out why.

About Internet Explorer

IE is the browser of choice among most Windows users since it’s included with their computers. This popularity has made IE a popular target of web based attacks. Such attacks take the form of malicious web sites that install unwanted programs to steal user information or broadcast internet usage information. These risks can be minimized by applying security updates on a regular basis and using a personal firewall to protect your computer. Microsoft recently released Windows XP service pack 2 which increases security of Windows XP and upgrades IE with new security features.

Unfortunately, many companies don’t actively patch their desktop computers. This leads to a situation where IE is vulnerable to security breaches.

Where to Use Internet Explorer

Web-based applications became enormously popular due to the cost advantage of not having to deploy a client application to every user. Most web developers have created sites and applications that are IE compliant.

Many manufacturers have invested in the earliest of web-based applications for EDI, inventory, and supplier coordination. These are largely IE-based, complex, and specialized. These legacy systems weigh heavily in consideration of a switch to Firefox to gain the benefits of fewer malicious hacks. Many organizations currently have decided to maintain a well-defended network, impose discipline in the configuration control of corporate computers, and work with Microsoft to continue to improve security.

The author prefers to use IE for trusted sites, and for the more complex web-based applications like on-line shopping and corporate remote access. This is simply because these web-based applications were mostly written for IE and uses a Microsoft technology called ActiveX to display content. For instance, Lotus (Notes) Domino Web Access and Outlook Web Access “sort of” work using Firefox, but they are not as easy use. Also, AOL software has its own built-in browser, which is a version of Internet Explorer. Extra steps are required to use Firefox on AOL. However, commercial sites are quickly becoming more “Firefox – aware.”

Another point worth making is that Microsoft Windows Update does not work at all using Firefox. So, you will need to use IE to update Windows during your regular maintenance.

IE seems to be well suited to a corporate environment where professionals manage security patching and computer configurations, and where there is a need for complex web-based applications.
 

About Firefox

Firefox is the new, compact successor to Netscape and appears much improved over its distant cousin. Although many claims have been made for the browser, it has one truly cool feature that is not found in IE yet – tabbed browsing. Tabbed browsing displays different web pages in the same window and allows you to quickly switch among your open web pages. This is pleasant and efficient. Firefox converts tout other features, like stopping pop-up ads and the integration of Google search capability. But the same capabilities are available via free add-ins to IE and/or Windows XP Service Pack 2.

Be aware that getting started with Firefox isn't a one-click operation. After installing the browser, you'll need to reinstall plug-ins for some programs, as well as Sun's Java engine for any Java-powered pages. (See Resources Page link to ‘Are the Browser Wars Back?’ article for details.)

Firefox is attractive to many organizations and individuals because it hasn’t yet been targeted by the hacker community. So far it seems to be more secure than IE and no major security flaws have yet been exploited by the hacker community. A few security updates have been released and as Firefox but nowhere near the number that have been released for IE.

Where to Use Firefox

The author prefers to use Firefox when using Google, and other unknown, un-trusted sites. Google has made finding relevant information on the internet much easier and is the search engine of choice for more most users. However, using Google, is not without risk. (See “The perils of Googling” link in the Resources page). Google works hard to defend you, and others work hard to get around Google, but the fact remains that you don’t always know where you’ll end up when searching on the internet. Last year, my computer was hammered by malware after clicking on the results of a Google search. The repair was a time consuming software rebuild, and resulted in my instant conversion to Firefox for some purposes.

Firefox seems most useful to those Windows users (perhaps at home) who do not always keep their security patches up to date, and who do not use corporate remote access tools It is also well-suited to Mac and Linux users. Interviews with Linux users elicited uniformly happy responses about both the browser and its mail software.

Some corporate IT departments are leery of deploying a mission critical application (which the web browser has become) and being dependant on open source developers for support.

CONCLUSIONS

What does mean for corporate who users who browse the internet? The short answer is that you now have a choice when it comes to what internet browser you use. Competition in the browser space has been lacking since IE vanquished Netscape. The advent and popularity of Firefox will surely raise the stakes in the battle between Microsoft and the open source community with consumers reaping the benefits.

It’s a pretty sure bet that Firefox features will start appearing in future versions of IE. All users may want to evaluate Firefox to see what place it may have in your future software plans.

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