SillyDog701

by **Cable35** » Thu 01 Aug, 2002 3:56 am

isn't mozilla just a leaner faster version of netscape?

by **Fulvio** » Thu 01 Aug, 2002 11:29 am

Cable35 wrote:isn't mozilla just a leaner faster version of netscape?

Not quite. A complete Netscape download contains entire programs to download(I never understood why they call a huge Java JRE or RealPlayer a plugin, when it is the entire program), but you may have seen that this website offers much leaner download, making Netscape much closer to Mozilla. Netscape has AIM(or whatever Instant Messenger that is) which is required to be able to set up Netscape Webmail as an IMAP account.
In summary Netscape has all the objectionable commercial trappings, while Mozilla is "purer". Although a Mozilla should only be test program,it has all it needs. Netscape, although it can reduce its original bulk, it will pick it up after the installation. Is Mozilla faster? At what point? Some people have fits because their Netscape6/7 may take five seconds longer to load. So what? What is it in proportion to the time spent loading a page?
I do not believe that there is any difference between Mozilla and Netscape, after the "race" has begun.
fp

by **Mr. Tinkles** » Thu 01 Aug, 2002 11:36 am

Cable35 wrote:isn't mozilla just a leaner faster version of netscape?

Not really. It is kind of like the "a square is a rectangle but a rectangle is not necessarily a square" type of thing. Mozilla is not Netscape, but Netscape is based on Mozilla. This isn't the best explanation, but Mozilla is basically a testbed for Browser(suite) technology based upon the Gecko rendering engine. Netscape simply has taken the source code for Mozilla, modified it as it sees fit, and released it as Netscape. Anyone can yoink the Mozilla source code and modify it and release their own browser, Beonex being one popular alternative.

Mozilla is already beyond v1.1b, Netscape 7.0PR1 is based on Mozilla 1.0RC1, and I don't know for sure what Beonex is based on.

Netscape has added a few goodies, such as the ability to setup access to their webmail service from within the mail/news component, treating it like an IMAP mail service. Mozilla, Beonex, nor any other browser based on mozilla can do this. Netscape also includes integrated AIM/ICQ right into the browser suite, comes with Winamp, RealPlayer, Java v1.4, Net2Phone, and a couple of others. Now, some folks consider this bloat, some consider it feature-rich, it is all just a personal preference thing. Myself, I am running the Mozilla nightly build from July 31st

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One final note, nobody outside Netscape really knows for sure what build of Mozilla the final version of Netscape will be based on. Personally I am betting on Mozilla 1.1b, but I suppose v1.0.1 is a possibility if it gets released within days. Then again they may go with the most stable version released to date which is simply v1.0, even though it lacks a few features I LOVE that exist in later versions.