3. Browsers
A browser is the application that allows you to access the Web. Most computers come with a default browser installed although you can also have more than one browser in use on your computer. Computers with a Microsoft® operating system installed will usually also have Internet Explorer® set as the default browser. Other popular browsers include: Google Chrome®; Mozilla Firefox®; Safari®.
Browsers allow you to type in an address to go directly to a page you already know about (e.g. www.col.org) or to search for a web page by key word.
Just like the operating systems, the browsers are frequently updated to provide new features or more often, to fix security vulnerabilities. If you are using an older version of a browser and your computer is not set to automatically update, you will sometimes go to a webpage and receive a message that your browser is out of date. It is usually quite easy to follow the link provided to update your browser and there is no cost to do this.
Browsers are set to open to a default page that is usually a service that provides a search engine so that you can quickly find what you are looking for. You can change this default page to anything you prefer. At the top of the browser there will be a bar where you can enter the address of a website. There will also be a feature where you can bookmark a page so that you can save it later.
Note: Programs called web apps are reducing the role of the browser and the search engine. On the tiled Start Menu of Windows 8® and on most smart phones and mobile devices, many of your favourite "sites" are already there as an icon or button. Instead of searching on the Web for your Facebook® page, you are given quick direct access via an app that can do extra things like notify you when some new information has been posted.