Off Brand Browsers
Opera, NeoPlanet And iCab

According to statistics, less than 6 percent of the web's visitors use browsers other than the Big Two - Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator. This 6 percent would vouch for the benefits they reap in terms of speed and simplicity. The off brand browsers worth mentioning here are Opera 5.0.1, NeoPlanet 5.2 and iCab2.3.

Opera 5.0.1 for Windows was written by two Norwegian programmers. Web pages download quickly and have the usual features and Web standards. What sets it apart from the rest is the list of impressive attributes that make it one of the most customisable of browsers. The program allows you to start from where you stopped last by going back to the last page you had visited. Also offered is a list of easy short-cuts that enable you to hide graphics or to enlarge or reduce the page size. You are given full power to deal with those cookies or preferred documents that Web sites deposit on your hard drive. However this browser does not have enough financial backing to dish out free versions. Hence they give you two options: the free edition where ads blink in the corner and the $40 ad-free version. Even here the customisation package enables you to turn off the blinking ads that come up in the free version.

NeoPlanet 5.2 is a free to use browser at www.neoplanet.com. In appearance this is definitely better than the Big Two. They have alluring options such as "Show Fancy Graphic Effects" and "Modem Speed Booster". The NeoPlanet browser however requires Internet Explorer to facilitate its functioning. This may be one reason why it is slower than the other browsers when it comes to giving information for which it depends on the Internet Explorer. This may slightly take away its appeal.

On the Macintosh front there is Internet Explorer 5 for the Mac already but in case you'd like to avail the extra some things they are offering here's iCAB2.3 for you. This does a lot of time saving on your behalf like downloading pages linked to what you have started reading and so on. There are various customisation options that you could use. However the most outstanding feature on iCAB is the check-box that allows you to hide ads. They are however careful in not wording the option as " Make ads disappear" or any such command that invites the wrath of advertisers who make the Web go round. Instead it is carefully worded as " filter graphics by size."

Today Opera, NeoPlanet and iCAB are among the best of the off brand browsers. However all is set for stiff competition here with the entry of many more in the field. There is a word of caution for all those who are planning a launch of new browsers- the task ahead can be trouble shodden from the word go. The positive side is that web users will now have a wider choice, which is welcome any day.