“While Linux itself was born on the Internet, Web browsers
for this increasingly important operating system have lagged behind
their MS Windows cousins. Perhaps this is because the Web’s most
popular tools have mostly been driven and developed by commercial
interests, whereas Linux and its Open Source applications have not.
Another factor may be that Linux users have historically embraced
text commands and scripting, and nothing we’ve really needed to do
required a GUI desktop.“
“Even with such limitations, the popularity of Linux has been
growing exponentially. The Linux Counter Project estimates some
fourteen million Linux users today. Slashdot, a popular Web hangout
for Linux fanatics, claims to serve thirty million pages per month.
The Apache Web server, compatible with many operating systems but
commonly used with Linux, was recently reported by Netcraft to have
passed the ten million users mark, now having roughly three times
the market share of its nearest competitor, Microsoft IIS.”
“…Linux browsers have been featured earlier this year in Web
Review (see sidebar). What I’ll do here is provide updated
summaries, and speculate a bit about where these projects are
headed and which ones you should keep on your radar screen.”