Connoisseurs of technology users prefer chrome

Summary: NetMarketshare says that Internet Explorer is the browser choice in general terms, but readers ZDNet as more than any other Web browser chrome.

If you believe that figures NetMarketshare, Internet Explorer (IE) not only leading Web browser popularity contest in September 2013, with 51.09%, is actually expanding its advantage. But tens of millions of monthly readers ZDNet have a different favorite: chrome.

On behalf of NetMarketShare, IE is the first Web browser.

Breaking figures NetMarketShare, we see that IE is still the dominant browser with a split with the equality between IE8 decrease to 21.3 per cent and increase in IE10 to 19.5 percent of the market.

IE gains came mostly at the expense of fourth Safari, which left more than one percentage point the 11.19 percent. Firefox, came in second, with a slight gain at 16.39%. Chrome also made a slight gain, retain third place with 14.87%.

NetMarketShare massage ts data to reflect the number of Internet users by country. StatCounter, which do not massage your data in this way, shows a world totally different from your Web browser.

StatCounter, however, sees chrome on the top by a comfortable margin.

According to StatCounter, Chrome is the world leader of the Web browser with 40.8 percent. IE, which has been gaining in Chrome since August, is still very from behind with 28.56%. Firefox, which has been in a long, slow decline, has the third place with 18.36%; Safari is in fourth place with 8.52 percent and the remains of the opera, as ever, present in the list top five with 1.16 percent.

Tens of millions of visitors to the ZDNet Web site also prefer chrome by a wide margin. In the most recent numbers available the site since August, 29.8 percent of ZDNet page views came from Chrome users. IE ranked second with 19.9 percent and Firefox was in third place, with 13.2 percent. Coating on the back was a Safari with 4.7 percent and operates with 0.5 percent. 27.7 percent of browsers could not be identified.

Of course ZDNet readers aren't normal Internet users. They tend to be very interested in the technology and the business of technology or do not visit the site. You can also see this in its rate of adoption of 9.4 percent of the relatively new IE10, and how some of them, 0.4 per cent, still using the IE 7 now obsolete.

Thus, while some people, using numbers NetMarketShare, are claiming that IE has won the war of browsers, ZDNet both StatCounter's numbers indicate that the battle between Chrome and IE is still raging - and Chrome, for now, still has the advantage.

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Topics: Networking, Google, Microsoft, Web development

Steven, aka sjvn, has written about the technology and the business of technology from leading edge PC operating system CP/M-80. SJVN covered by networks, Linux, open source, and operating systems.

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Verizon HTC One vs Motorola Droid Maxx: I still prefer the One

I have now been using an HTC One for over five months, and I see that Verizon customers finally can pick up the device. I also have spent over 10 days with the Motorola Droid Maxx. Verizon customers can choose either device and be satisfied.

However, after comparing the two handsets side-by-side -- both hardware and software -- my choice remains with the HTC One. Here's why.

Nearly all reviewers have written about the fantastic design and build of the HTC One and I have yet to find another phone to match its hardware. The metal body with curved back, front facing stereo speakers, tight design with no creaks or movement, inclusion of an IR port right in the power button, a solid camera that takes excellent low light photos, and a gorgeous 1080p Super LCD display that is very viewable in sunlight make the HTC One tough to resist.

The IR port is a great feature for travelers since you can now use your HTC One in hotels to control your viewing experience without using a nasty hotel remote control. Combined with the Roku app and WiFi I don't even have to worry about finding my remotes at home.

The Droid Maxx is also well constructed with a soft Kevlar back, excellent glass display that curves down at the edges into the sides, vivid AMOLED 720p display, whopping 3500 mAh battery, Qi wireless charging, and the ability to listen for your command at all times.

Even though the HTC One is an elegant piece of hardware, almost like jewelry, if I was just making a selection based on hardware I would go for the Droid Maxx because of the long battery life, wireless charging, and use of the AMOLED display for active notifications. However, the One is more pocketable and still feels better in the hand.

Motorola is doing some great things with Android on the new Droids and Moto X, but I still find Sense 5 on the HTC One better meets my needs and fills a vital role for my business Exchange use and media. As you can see in the screenshots in this image gallery, the Exchange client in Sense is tough to beat. With the Exchange client provided by Motorola, I do not have access to all my personal email folders and the UI is not as good as it is on the One. For example, I can easily just swipe my finger across the screen to jump to unread emails or those with attachments on the One while I have to jump through a couple menu items to filter email on the Droid Maxx.

I know there are not many people who care about making phone calls or managing contacts, but if this is important to you then you should take a close look at the HTC One. HTC has always focused on connecting people, even back in the Windows Mobile days. The dialer supports smart dialing that is now rolling out on the latest version of Android. Beyond that though, we see HTC letting you open up a contact in the Phone app and then swipe from right to left to view recent text messages, emails, and calls you had with that contact with another swipe revealing their social network updates, and a final swipe revealing their recent images. This is an extremely powerful tool for the enterprise customer who wants to know all about the person they are communicating with or meeting with.

Motorola's new software enhancements with Google Now voice control and Assist perform much better than 3rd party options you can install on the HTC One. That said, I work in an office and commute where voice control isn't a desired functionality.

The HTC One is priced $100 less than the Droid Maxx. If you need a phone out in the field and don't want to strap a Mophie on the HTC One, the you should look at the Droid Maxx. If you need a rich Exchange and phone experience with a very pocketable and elegantly designed device then look at the HTC One.

Over on PhoneDog, the HTC One continues to be ranked #1 in both the People's Choice and Expert's Choice rankings. It has been my choice for nearly six months and it continues to be my top smartphone available today.