First off, I recommend anyone using IE/Opera check this site out:
Complex Spiral
Hell, if you use Mozilla or a derivative, check it out anyway to see the cool effects.
Opera: Someone stated they used it b/c of stability. As far as I've seen, Mozilla is more stable. Working on my previous experience w/ Opera, Mozilla also has better standards-compliance.
Pop-Up Blocker: Built in to all versions of Mozilla. Which reminds me, all features of Mozilla should be near-identical across all platforms.
Image Blocker: Right click an image you find annoying (ads), choose "Block Images from Server", and reload the page. No more images from that server ;)
Now, for the Evangelism: Mozilla Firebird (formerly called Phoenix) is my choice. It's based off the Mozilla code, only it's a standalone web browser. No editor, no e-mail, no Useless Junk You'll Never Use â¢. In fact, due to the CVS structure Mozilla is built off of, many changes in Mozilla also appear in Firebird (though the reverse is not true). I'm currently running the recent milestone release 0.6, but I've been using the nightly releases alot to stay up-to-date on it.
If you want to switch Mail too, Thunderbird is in early development - only nightlies, not even a 0.1 release yet. It's the same concept of Firebird (standalone, based off MozillaMail). It's highly experimental right now, as their adopting many of the Firebird practices.
Mozilla.org is currently pushing for 1.4's release. They are doing Release Candidates to make sure this build comes out right. Why? Because as of 1.5, the Mozilla codebase will be the standalone Firebird/Thunderbird group. There is a huge amount of work to be done to make everything either standalone or plugin based (Read more at Mozilla.org's roadmap if you want further details). However, there's huge benefits speed-wise and code-wise (much more organized). Extensions, which are able to enhance any part of the programs, are becoming much easier to encode, install, change settings, disable, and uninstall.
Current Setup:
Firebird 0.6
Edit: I recommend installing using the Unofficial Installer, as it adds registry entries some plugins (like Flash) want for installation.
Pinball Theme (Here for Mozilla)
Extensions:
Tabbrowser Extensions (This is a must have for Mozilla AND Firebird!)
SmoothWheel 0.3 (Better than the smooth-scrolling built in)
AutoScroll (Like IE's middle-button click then drag scrolling)
And if you have any question whatsoever about Firebird, it's probably answered Here
Addition: I've also got custom user.js, user-Content.css, and user-Chrome.css running, as specified at the link above in the various tips they give out. With it I totally disable blink, marquee, change around a bunch of menus and stuff, and here's the kicker block the vast majority of advertisements from ever loading. Images and Flash Ads.
Complex Spiral
Hell, if you use Mozilla or a derivative, check it out anyway to see the cool effects.
Opera: Someone stated they used it b/c of stability. As far as I've seen, Mozilla is more stable. Working on my previous experience w/ Opera, Mozilla also has better standards-compliance.
Pop-Up Blocker: Built in to all versions of Mozilla. Which reminds me, all features of Mozilla should be near-identical across all platforms.
Image Blocker: Right click an image you find annoying (ads), choose "Block Images from Server", and reload the page. No more images from that server ;)
Now, for the Evangelism: Mozilla Firebird (formerly called Phoenix) is my choice. It's based off the Mozilla code, only it's a standalone web browser. No editor, no e-mail, no Useless Junk You'll Never Use â¢. In fact, due to the CVS structure Mozilla is built off of, many changes in Mozilla also appear in Firebird (though the reverse is not true). I'm currently running the recent milestone release 0.6, but I've been using the nightly releases alot to stay up-to-date on it.
If you want to switch Mail too, Thunderbird is in early development - only nightlies, not even a 0.1 release yet. It's the same concept of Firebird (standalone, based off MozillaMail). It's highly experimental right now, as their adopting many of the Firebird practices.
Mozilla.org is currently pushing for 1.4's release. They are doing Release Candidates to make sure this build comes out right. Why? Because as of 1.5, the Mozilla codebase will be the standalone Firebird/Thunderbird group. There is a huge amount of work to be done to make everything either standalone or plugin based (Read more at Mozilla.org's roadmap if you want further details). However, there's huge benefits speed-wise and code-wise (much more organized). Extensions, which are able to enhance any part of the programs, are becoming much easier to encode, install, change settings, disable, and uninstall.
Current Setup:
Firebird 0.6
Edit: I recommend installing using the Unofficial Installer, as it adds registry entries some plugins (like Flash) want for installation.
Pinball Theme (Here for Mozilla)
Extensions:
Tabbrowser Extensions (This is a must have for Mozilla AND Firebird!)
SmoothWheel 0.3 (Better than the smooth-scrolling built in)
AutoScroll (Like IE's middle-button click then drag scrolling)
And if you have any question whatsoever about Firebird, it's probably answered Here
Addition: I've also got custom user.js, user-Content.css, and user-Chrome.css running, as specified at the link above in the various tips they give out. With it I totally disable blink, marquee, change around a bunch of menus and stuff, and here's the kicker block the vast majority of advertisements from ever loading. Images and Flash Ads.
Trade yourself in for the perfect one. No one needs to know that you feel you've been ruined!