Which is the most popular operating system in the world? No prizes for answering that no-brainer ? some version of Windows, of course. No wonder then that most Net surfers don?t bother to look beyond Internet Explorer (IE), the browser that comes bundled with Windows. But a world of IE substitutes awaits those who dare to try something different.

These are as feature-packed (if not more) as IE and provide support across several operating systems apart from Windows. On a dial-up connection (which most of us still use at home) every bit of bandwidth counts, and the need for maintaining a virus-free system can hardly be over-emphasised. So, speed and security are two key areas (learning from the numerous malicious attacks on IE) some of the better browsers stress on.

There are several lightweight feature-rich browsers available. But here?s a look at the top three IE alternatives. What suits you best depends on your surfing pattern, but do try each one out to discover what the worldwide web looks like through a window that?s not Internet Explorer.

Mozilla Firefox

One of the lightest browsers around, both in terms of download size and usage. Introduces the alien concept of tabbed browsing to IE users where, instead of opening every page in a new browser window, different pages can be opened as tabs within the same window. Result: managing tabs is far easier and time saving, since links open in the background.

Other features include built-in pop-up blocker and Google search, text zooming for better readability and a transition system to import your bookmarks and passwords from IE. For extra security, Firefox doesn?t load ActiveX controls (often harmful). Downloading files is also easy and managed through a single window. Allows the browser skins to be changed, too.

History lesson: Mozilla was the original code name for the browser that came to be known as Netscape Navigator, and later, Netscape Communicator. Mozilla products are now developed by mozilla.org -? a community of independent developers which works towards improving the source code, as part of the open-source software project.

Other products from the Mozilla stable include the email client Thunderbird, the bug-tracking server software Bugzilla, and Camino, a web browser optimised for Mac OS X. The Calendar Project is what is keeping the team busy currently, working hard at creating a first-class, cross-platform calendar application.

Current version: 1.0, though it?s only a preview (beta) release, with the final release expected in the fourth quarter of 2004. 0.9.3, the last full-version release is also available for download.

Platforms: Windows, Linux, Mac.

Download size: 4.5 MB

Site: www.mozilla.org

Opera

The fastest browser on the planet goes the tagline. And it?s surely one of the fastest, at least. For a simple comparison, on the same Internet connection, try opening a page with Opera that is loading very slowly on IE. The difference should be obvious.

Opera also offers the best platform compatibility with support even for OS/2, Solaris and smartphone operating systems. A great feature is the Wand. When you visit a page for the second time where you need to fill in user name and password, click on the Wand and voila, you?re in! The email client is built-in, which can also be used to read news feeds and Usenet newsgroups. Like Firefox, Opera supports skin changes too, only with greater variety from My Opera.

Several search-engines are built-in, including Google and Altavista. Opera supports many languages as well. Another useful feature is Sessions, which lets you save a collection of open pages as a session, allowing retrieval on later start-ups or in the middle of another session. Opera can also be set up to start with the pages you had kept open when the browser was last closed.

The only pinch is the price. You can try the advertisement-filled version where the options even allow you to choose the kind of ads you want displayed, but a lot of browser space and precious bandwidth is taken up by the ads. Conversely, $39 is steep.

History lesson: Opera started out as a research project in Norway?s telecom company Telenor in 1994, and branched out into an independent development company named Opera Software ASA in 1995.

Current version: 7.54

Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux, FreeBSD, Solaris, OS/2, QNX, smartphone/PDA

Download size: 16.2 MB (with Java), 3.4 MB (without Java)

Site: www.opera.com

Price: $39 to buy, try ad-version for free

Netscape Navigator

For old time?s sake, if nothing else. Netscape was one of the first real threats to IE, finding favour with a huge section of Net users in the early days. That was until it ran out of steam and couldn?t keep up with Mr Gates? bundling power. Lately, though, Netscape is trying to bounce back with an updated and jazzed-up version of the browser.

It is based on the Mozilla source code. New features include integrated radio and a Winamp player. Other nifty ones include a single-click page-saving option that allows you to save a page with all the graphics files (GIFs and JPEGs) and a text search option where you can right-click on a word and choose Web Search. The result appears in a separate browser window. The new version of Netscape supports tabbed browsing and lets you choose whether to accept or block pop-ups. You can even allow select pop-ups to appear. Tabs, zoom and download features are also offered.

History lesson: In mid-1994, Silicon Graphics founder Jim Clark collaborated with Marc Andreessen (a recent graduate of University of Illinois) to found Mosaic Communications, later renamed Netscape Communications. By the summer of 1995, the Netscape browser, though paid, commanded as much as 80 per cent market share. In 1998, owing to IE pressure, Netscape turned free and opened the source code to developers from all over the world to create a new and better browser. The Mozilla Project was born.

Current version: 7.2

Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux

Download size: 11.5 MB

Site: www.netscape.com