Internet -Browser

Browser

A web browser is a software you need  to use to view and access content on the internet. The browser allows you to surf and explore the content available on internet. The browser is the 'frame' or the 'window' through which you can look for various information. There are a range of browser from which you can choose. Some of the web browsers are Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari, Google Chrome, Opera, Konqueror etc.

The type of internet browser you choose depends on the brand and the type of device you have. For example, some browsers are designed to work best on a desktop computer or a laptop (Eg: Firefox) and others are designed for mobile devices like tablets and smart phones (Eg: Opera). To access the browser, select their respective icon (as shown below) from the desktop.

Functions of a Web browser:

The primary purpose of a web browser is to bring information resources to the user. This process begins when the user inputs Uniform Resource Locator (URL), for example http://www.ncert.nic.in, into the browser. It allows the user to interact with the web pages and dynamic content like surveys, forms, etc. It allows the user to go to a particular website through its URL and navigate the web pages.

Opening a browser

Browser can be opened in two ways. In the present example we are using 'Mozilla Firefox'.

Method 1: Through Icon on the desktop:

Look for the icon of the respective browser on the desktop and click on it to open the browser window.

Method 2: Using search your computer:

    If you are unable to locate the icon on the Desktop, you can search and find the browse.

    Step 1- Click on the 'Search your computer' option

Step 2- The following window will appear. Now, type the name of the browser in the search box. Click on the browser icon in the search result to open the browser.

As a result by following any one of the above methods given above, the browser opens. Interface of few commonly used browsers are shown below:

Mozilla Firefox is a free and open- source web browser developed for operating systems like Linux, Windows etc. The icon and the homepage of this browser looks as given below:

Google Chrome is a free web browser developed by Google. The icon and the homepage of this browser looks as given below:

Internet Explorer is a free web browser developed by Microsoft Corporation and is included as a default web browser in Microsoft Windows line of operating systems.. The icon and the homepage of this browser looks as given below:

Components of a Web browser :

All browsers are slightly different from each other but they all have some common elements. All internet browsers normally have:

1. An address bar, for typing in a website address (URL).
2. A back button, for going back to the last page you visited.
3. A stop button, which you can use to stop loading a website if it's taking a long time to load.
4. A button to use to add a website to your list of favourite websites.
5. A close button, for when you're finished with the internet.
6. A scroll bar, to move the page up and down.

The components of the Firefox browser are shown below:

Pointer	Feature	Description
1	Menu Bar	It contains the various Menu options like File,Edit, View etc. which allows the user to perform various operations like saving a web page etc.
2	Browse Button	Allows the user to navigate through web pages. The arrows on the top left are Back and Forward buttons. The refresh button is located on the right side.
3	Address Bar	This long box is where you can enter the URL of a web site to open it.
4	Tabbed Pages	Allows you to open multiple web pages simultaneously and switch between them by clicking on a tab.
5	Search Box	It is a text box which allows to type in the phrase or content to be searched.
6	Bookmark tools	Enables a user to bookmark a web page or a web site so that the user can refer it later on. It helps the user to remove, name, move or tag a bookmark.
7	Toolbars	Contains various tools for eg. Navigation buttons, bookmarking tools.