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Monday, October 06, 2003
Frustrated Web Developer in Search of Industrial-Strength Bookmark Manager
I don't know about you, but the built-in bookmark manager offered by Internet Explorer is absolutely horrid. It's nearly impossible to rearrange favorites, add new favorites and edit categories due to its inherent limitations. It's very disappointing that Microsoft seems to be signaling the end of new development on IE, beyond minor updates or bug fixes.
Internet Explorer 6.0 is at least two years old now, and the overall feature set of Microsoft's browser technology hasn't changed much since version 4.0, which came out four years ago! I want a new IE, and I want real innovation. Microsoft seems to think there is no innovation left in browser technology. But that's baloney. Just look at the new features offered in recent versions of Netscape (another dead browser now) and Opera. Features like cookie managers, password-filling, more robust navigation, advanced settings and such are examples of innovations that IE doesn't offer. Why is this?!
I would actually pay -- yes pay! -- for a new version of IE. As a web developer, when more than 90% of users browse with IE, I don't have any other choice but to use what they use. Plus the one feature that IE has that others don't -- the ability to remember what you typed in online forms -- is invaluable from a development standpoint. Just imagine trying to test and debug a gigantic online form without a quick way to populate text fields! This ability is provided by online form managers like RoboForm, but it's not quite the same. Google's new Toolbar also provides similar functionality, but it's very limited when compared to RoboForm.
I don't actually use IE, however. I have adopted NetCaptor as my browser of choice. NetCaptor is one of those multi-browser apps that uses the IE shell but give it a much better interface and feature set, such as a built-in pop-up killer, ad blocker, quick search and more. But, the favorites manager is the same as that of IE. Sigh.
So, if I can't have a new IE, I'll just have to keep searching for utilities that can do the job. Which is probably for the best anyway. I'd rather give my money to someone who needs it than to simply fill the coffers of the world's largest corporation. Spread the wealth, baby.
Posted by
Cory Kleinschmidt
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