Netscape Navigator Editor's Review

Many people have heard or used Netscape Browser. This browser was first developed by the Netscape Communications Corporation, which doesn't exist anymore. Netscape Browser is now developed by AOL. The version I tested asked me during setup whether I wanted to use the Internet Explorer rendering engine automatically. At first I didn't realize what this means, but I searched a bit, and found some disturbing info. The fact that Netscape Browser uses both the Internet Explorer and the Mozilla Firefox engine theoretically means that it's more vulnerable to bugs than either Firefox or IE on their own.

This version of the Netscape Browser includes protection against ID theft and spyware. It also features popup blocking and an automated rating system that verifies whether the site you are visiting is trusted. It's true that many sites display the "Not Verified" rating. All these features can be accessed by opening the Security Center window of the browser.

Similarities to Firefox are visible everywhere in the program. For example, the main menu is structured just like Mozilla Firefox's menu. However, there are some improvements in terms of appearance and usability. The main browser toolbar is called Multibar offering the option to change the items it displays with a few clicks. In addition, the tabbed browsing experience is enhanced. Each tab has two small buttons. One is used to close the tab, while the other can be used to access the Site Control dialog. This dialog offers the option to change the rendering engine, to adjust the trust settings, and to modify other advanced properties (JavaScript, cookies, java, etc) of the current site.

Pluses: Site ratings and blacklists are automatically downloaded from Netscape's website.

Drawbacks / flaws: A standard based website will generally render better using the Gecko (Firefox) engine, thanks to its better standards support. However, the browser renders trusted pages using IE's engine.

In conclusion: Only a few people use Netscape now. I feel that it's time for Netscape to make a move, because Firefox is now at version 2 and Microsoft released IE 7. Although I consider Netscape to be better looking than IE or Firefox, I won't use Netscape because of the rumors concerning its security flaws.

version reviewed: 8.1.2

Note: Official support ended on March 1st, 2008.