[GRaduns340]

I'm a major fan of Firefox, and I still use it all the time out of habit, but as a webmaster I've had to use all different browsers for compatibility testing, and IE tends to do much better when it comes to uniformity, especially when using any of the plug-ins: Java, Flash, etc. The only huge advantage to Firefox is the tabbed browsing and the ability to more easily clear user settings which are often where spyware can easily be removed, but now with the release of IE 7, IE has both of those features, which in my mind brought it back up with Firefox. I still use Firefox because that's where I have all my favorites and everything, but IE is a more standard platform and it is a little more stable than Firefox.

I guess Firefox still does better at avoiding the spyware, but there has at least been an attempt in IE to implement new processes to limit malicious software in the new version. There is even an option to turn on the phishing warning which warns you when a site has been reported for phishing. I will grant that this version of IE is not yet full release (currently on RC2), but I have had no problem with it yet, and the built-in RSS function even has Firefox beat.

So if the problems with Firefox are enough, or you just want to try it out, I think IE 7 is a great way to go, and you won't have ANY trouble with a firewall or anti-virus software. It'll also put you one step ahead if and when you upgrade to Vista, as 7 will be the default browser with Vista installation.