WEEK 2 (WEB BROWSER)

WHAT IS WEB BROWSER ???

A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier (URI) and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content. Hyperlinks present in resources enable users easily to navigate their browsers to related resources. A web browser can also be defined as an application software or program designed to enable users to access, retrieve and view documents and other resources on the Internet.

Although browsers are primarily intended to access the World Wide Web, they can also be used to access information provided by web servers in private networks or files in file systems. The major web browsers are Firefox, Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Opera, and Safari.

Examples of web browser::

• Microsoft Internet Explorer
• Mozilla Firefox,
• Apple Safari
• Netscape
• Opera

METASEARCH ENGINE ??

-A metasearch engine is a search tool that sends user requests to several other search engines and/or databases and aggregates the results into a single list or displays them according to their source. Metasearch engines operate on the premise that the Web is too large for any one search engine to index it all and that more comprehensive search results can be obtained by combining the results from several search engines. This also may save the user from having to use multiple search engines separately.

Examples of METASEARCH ENGINE:

BOOKMARK (WORLD WIDE WEB)???

-In the context of the World Wide Web, a bookmark is a locally stored Uniform Resource Identifier (URI). All modern web browsers include bookmark features. Bookmarks are called favorites or Internet shortcuts in Internet Explorer. Bookmarks are normally accessed through a menu in the user's web browser, and folders are commonly used for organization. In addition to bookmarking methods within most browsers, many external applications offer bookmark management. Bookmarks have been incorporated in browsers since the Mosaic browser in 1993. Bookmark lists were called Hotlists in Mosaic and in previous versions of Opera; this term has faded from common use. Other early web browsers such as ViolaWWW and Cello also had bookmarking features.

With the advent of social bookmarking, shared bookmarks have become a means for users sharing similar interests to pool web resources, or to store their bookmarks in such a way that they are not tied to one specific computer or browser. Web-based bookmarking services let users save bookmarks on a remote web server, accessible from anywhere.

CLEAR HISTORY ??

-Clear History is free and powerfull windows desktop application to clean search history from your computer. It is full featured program that greatly surpasses most commercial programs out there. What does it clear :

• Clear search history (browser history)
• Clear typed URL-s (website address)
• Clear location bar history ( option to exclude URL-s from clearing)
• Clear cache (temporary internet files)
• Clear cookies (with option to exclude some cookies from deleting)
• Clear autocomplete forms and passwords
• Clear index.dat files
• Delete recent documents (in Windows)
• Delete run history
• Delete find computers history
• Delete Windows temporary files
• Delete Recycle Bin without recovery (shred it after deleting)
• Clear clipboard (memory space reserved for copy/paste operations)
• Clear Windows Open/Save dialog history
• Clear tracks from Ms Office, Word, Excel, Access, Power Point and Front Page
• Clear tracks from WinZip, WinRar, Windows Media Player, Wordpad, Media Player Classic

WHAT IS CLEAR CACHE(VIDEO)???

-Cache files are nothing but regular files from web pages you visited, pictures, videos etc. Those files are used by browser instead of downloading again so your pages load faster. But, cache files are an evidence of where you have been and what you were doing on internet. So if you don't want your internet habits to be discovered you should clear cache on regular basis. To clear cache in your web browser is very straightforward - follow the instructions bellow.

To clear cache from your computer do the following:

     In Firefox:

• Go to the Tools menu
• Select Clear Private Data
• Make sure Cache is checked. Uncheck others as you wish.
• Click on Clear Private Data Now and your cache is cleared.

CLEAR URL HISTORY ???

-If you don't clear URL history files, your web browser automatically keeps a detailed record of all web sites you've visited usually for more than forty days. The history feature enables you to have a more exact internet surfing experience. However if you want to eliminate only specific private searches from your URL history because there are other users of your PC who would like their URLs logged, you can selectively clear URL history files.If you don't clear URL history files, your web browser automatically keeps a detailed record of all web sites you've visited usually for more than forty days. The history feature enables you to have a more exact internet surfing experience. However if you want to eliminate only specific private searches from your URL history because there are other users of your PC who would like their URLs logged, you can selectively clear URL history files.

MULTITASKING ??

-The ability to execute more than one task at the same time, a task being a program.

In multitasking, only one CPU is involved, but it switches from one program to another so quickly that it gives the appearance of executing all of the programs at the same time.

PLUG-IN ???

In computing, a plug-in (or plugin) is a set of software components that adds specific abilities to a larger software application. If supported, plug-ins enable customizing the functionality of an application. For example, plug-ins are commonly used in web browsers to play video, scan for viruses, and display new file types. Well-known plug-ins examples include Adobe Flash Player, QuickTime, and Microsoft Silverlight.

Among popular plug-ins to download are Adobe's Acrobat, a document presentation and navigation program that lets you view documents just as they look in the print medium, RealNetworks' streaming video player, and Macromedia's Shockwave for DIrector, an interactive animation and sound player. There are now hundreds of possible plug-ins. Most users wait until they need a particular plug-in before they download it.