Chapter eight. Surfing the Web with Internet Explorer

IN THIS CHAPTER

Introducing Internet Explorer 6 190

Personalizing the Browser Interface 192

Configuring the Browser 194

Surfing Safely 199

Blocking Pop-Ups 204

Speeding Up Your Browser 204

Working with Web Sites 206

Changing Browsers 210

The Bottom Line 212

Most computer users spend more time surfing the Internet than they do working with traditional computer applications. This is why Microsoft includes the Internet Explorer Web browser as part of its operating system. And Windows XP features the latest and greatest version of Internet Explorer Internet Explorer 6 (IE6).

IE6 is a sleek and versatile program, updated to reflect XP's Luna interface, and crammed full of new and useful features. If you're like most users, IE6 will be the browser you use to surf the Web. It's not the only browser available (see later in this chapter for some other options), but it's the most popular one.

Of course, that begs the question is Internet Explorer popular because it's the best browser, or because it's included with every copy of Windows? In the case of IE6, the answer is probably "both." Yes, it's easy to default to IE6 because it's right there. But IE6 is also a darned good browser, one that's earned its number-one position.

I think you'll like the latest changes in IE6. The apparent changes are relatively minor (which is a good thing), so the basic browser operation is similar to what it was with previous versions. The new and changed features actually make the browser easier to use, which is a good thing.

Read on to learn more about the latest version of this popular Web browser.