Version: 2008
  • On Metacritic: Why Avatar will win Best Picture
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Browsers

If you're looking for browsers or browser extensions, CNET Download.com has you covered. We feature all the latest versions of Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, and more, as well as Firefox extensions, Internet Explorer add-ons, even RSS readers. If you want to surf the Web, CNET Download.com is the place to start. See all 3,504 products in this category.

for the week of: February 07Downloads
  1. 1.
    Flash Player Mobile

    Web Browsers13,264

  2. 2.
    Opera Mini

    Web Browsers8,763

  3. 3.
    Opera Mini

    Web Browsers5,621

  4. 4.
  5. Write better-quality code, reduce security-related issues, and avoid bugs later in the development lifecycle.
  6. 5.
    Kinoma FreePlay

    Web Browsers1,368

  7. 6.
    Bolt Mobile Browser

    Web Browsers1,279

  8. 7.
  9. If your BlackBerry is missing these essential apps, you're missing out.
  10. 8.
  11. 9.
    Sompy Media Player

    Web Browsers749

  12. 10.
    Viigo for BlackBerry

    Newsreaders & RSS Readers740

See all most popular software

  1. Monitor PC activity by logging websites, keystrokes and chats.
Release date
  1. Whack Force (for the Pocket PC) Feb 09

    Web Browsers

  2. Net Force (for the Pocket PC) Feb 09

    Web Browsers

  3. PE Ftp Explorer Feb 09

    Web Browsers

  4. PE Pocket Explorer Feb 09

    Web Browsers

  5. NewsRack for iPhone Feb 08

    Newsreaders & RSS Readers

  6. Weave Sync for Maemo Feb 05

    Firefox Add-ons & Plugins

  7. Zynked Feb 05

    Newsreaders & RSS Readers

  8. ZiNP Feb 05

    Newsreaders & RSS Readers

  9. Ziarul Financiar Feb 05

    Newsreaders & RSS Readers

  10. zaubzer.de App Feb 05

    Newsreaders & RSS Readers

See all new releases

  1. 1.
    Viigo for BlackBerry

    Access news, weather, entertainment, live sports, markets and stock portfolios with a single click.

  2. 2.
    gDocsBar

    Quickly upload, access, and manage Google documents from a handy Firefox sidebar.

  3. 3.
    Skyfire for Windows Mobile (Touch Screen)

    Browse your favorite Web sites exactly like you do on your PC.

  4. 4.
    NYTimes for iPhone

    Enjoy The New York Times on your iPhone.

  5. 5.
    Opera Mini

    Opera Mini is a fast and tiny Web browser, that allows you to access the full Internet on your Palm OS device. Take all your favorite Web sites on...

  6. 6.
    Opera Mini

    Browse the Web quickly with your mobile device.

  7. 7.
    PocketMusic

    Play your favorite MP3 files on your Pocket PC.

  8. 8.
    Super Mario Bros. 3 Firefox theme

    Add a retro videogame theme to Mozilla Firefox.

  9. 9.
    Aluminum Alloy

    Add a Firefox theme inspired by the old Netscape Aluminum theme.

  10. 10.
    Noia 2.0 (Extreme)

    Add a colorful theme to Firefox.

See all editor's picks

from the download blog

Log in with your face

Posted by Seth Rosenblatt on Feb 09, 2010
KeyLemon adds an extra layer of security to your computer log-in process by making your Webcam do all the heavy lifting.

Get free trials and software from our premier partners

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an introduction to Browsers

Browsers, often called Web browsers, are software clients that allow users to navigate to sites on the World Wide Web. The majority of these Web sites use the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), but many browsers can also interpret other protocols, including FTP, RSS, and P2P protocols such as BitTorrent. Hypertext pioneer Tim Berners-Lee created the first ever Web browser, WorldWideWeb, in 1990, but the software didn't become popular until the release of NCSA Mosaic, the first graphical client.

Browsers truly hit the mainstream with the launch of Netscape Navigator, which was later shortened to simply Netscape, though the free client's popularity was radically affected by the 1995 release of Internet Explorer, Microsoft's entry into the browser market. In the years since, IE has completely dominated the market, only recently losing ground to alternative browsers such as Mozilla Firefox and Opera.

Aside from general Web browsers, various subsets of the category offer special services. Offline browsers cache content from the Internet for future reference when you're not connected to a network. Newsreaders manage content from Usenet newsgroups and syndicated feeds.

In recent years, the open-source browser Mozilla Firefox has earned praise for the ability of third-party developers to easily create extensions that add functionality. Among the thousands of home-brewed add-ons for Firefox, we've narrowed down our favorites in a collection of the best. The Microsoft browser also allows for IE add-ons, but its closed framework makes it a bit more difficult for developers.