Netcraft: Will Firefox Repeat Netscape's Mistakes?

"As a recent column noted, the spate of security problems that have plagued Internet Explorer could well mark a turning point in the fortune of one of its main rivals, Mozilla Firefox. But there is another side to this story, for it is important to note that many of Microsoft's woes in this area are self-inflicted, a result of its dogged determination to integrate the Web browser with its operating system.

"This formed the heart of its defence in the US anti-trust trial, where it justified the bundling of a Web browser with Windows on the grounds that the two were inextricably mixed. While that was hardly the case at the beginning--Windows 95 originally came without a Web browser, which was available separately as the Internet Jumpstart Kit in the Windows Plus! Pack--Microsoft took great pains to make it so afterwards. But a consequence of this is that flaws in the browser are so deeply plumbed into the operating system that they give almost unlimited power to anyone able to exploit them..."

Complete Story

Related Stories:

• Mitchell's Blog: Time Flies When You're Having Fun(Jul 15, 2004)
• Slate: Are the Browser Wars Back?(Jul 01, 2004)
• Editor's Note: RIP, IE(Jun 25, 2004)
• WebReference: Browser Wars v.2004: Parts 1 & 2(Jun 23, 2004)