Pros:    The setup file of this program (5.5MB) is much smaller than IE7 (15MB), tabbed browsing mode is considerate to users on dial-up who want to multi-task while waiting for slow pages, and there are many user friendly designs, such as integrating pop-up ad blocking, integrated Google search, smart spell checking for web forms and persistent sessions will restore the session after system restart.

Cons:    Despite Firefox is a great tool, there are some small deficiencies in this application. Plug-Ins do not auto-install as easily as IE, Firefox users need to manually search and download/install these tools. Images inconsistently load slower than IE - Firefox seems to intermittently take 30% to 100% longer to render the same graphics. Firefox also fails to integrate with Pocket PC Windows and USB cradle synching, and does not integrate well with Outlook or Outlook express email.

The Bottom Line: There are times I need to switch back to IE since there is a lack of function as synching the Pocket PC, and it is better in IE to browse certain website which is full of images. But outside of these few exceptions, I prefer to browse websites with Firefox; it is an alternative browser to IE with many features that, I believe, surpass the latter.

Benefits:
    In just a few years, Firefox has taken the previously dormant browsing market by storm and woken the slumbering giant Microsoft. Because of its great features, Firefox has cut down IE's lead in the browser market. Let's look and see the how Firefox improve the browsing user experience and what innovation it makes.
    Download Manager. It allows you to take control of your downloaded files. You could pause your download and continue it a later time, something which is not possible with IE’s download manager.
    Keeps HTML Formatting. When copying html formatted text from a webpage and pasting it on a notepad, the text copied using Mozilla Firefox keeps the format yet the text copied from IE doesn’t.
    Undo the last closed tab. You could right click on the tab bar to undo the last closed tab, or use the keyboard shortcut,
Ctrl + Shift + T on Windows. It’s a very considerate feature; since we often mis-close the tabs we really don’t want to be closed.
    Anti-phishing. Protection has been added to alert when you visit a known fake site. An alert pops up with options to ignore it, report the site or go to somewhere else.
    Spell checking. Firefox automatically checks any text entered in multiline text boxes for proper spelling. Any word not found in the currently selected dictionary is highlighted with a red underline.
    Session restore. If you experience a crash in Firefox, fear not. The next time you start Firefox, it will detect an abnormal shut down and will prompt you to choose whether you want to restore the open session or start a new one.
    Pop-up Blocking. Firefox’s built in popup blocker was able to close all those pesky pop-up advertisements windows while the page loaded and during the page's onload.
Integrated Search Engine. The default search engine is Google’s, of course, with the ability to add others, such as Yahoo, Amazon and etc. Firefox adds the search completion mechanism, which works just like Google complete. As soon as the user starts typing, potential search phrases show up.
    Open Source Advantage. The Mozilla project is an Open Source project where thousands of independent programmers can work on finding security holes before they are exploited.
    Block Images. When right clicking on an image, the user is given the option to block all images from that webpage. This feature comes in handing when visiting a site that holds many pictures, many due to ads, which can be disabled for faster surfing.
    For me, the biggest factor that inspired me to start using a browser other than Internet Explorer was the constant bugs and security fixes that were plaguing the latter, not to mention the tons of plug-ins that took over your browser - since IE holds over 70% of the internet browser market, the majority of these spyware and vulnerabilities are commonly programmed for it. There are many useful 3rd party extensions designed for Firefox. As far as I’m concerned, I would like download/install some of them, such as Adblock Plus, FlashGot, Web Developer, and so on. You could choose other extensions or plug-ins according to yourselves, Firefox is a good stage to show your unique characteristic.

Set up:
    The setup file of this program (5.5MB) is much smaller than IE7(15MB), and there is no adware as well as spyware combined with it. The installation is easy and straightforward, following the wizard, you could easily finish that. Before you start browsing website, you should add Flash player, Shockwave, Quicktime, and Java Virtual Machine first. Though it is not as easy as IE, gain and loss are in separate - it is flexible for users to choose their favorite extensions to consummate their own Browser.
    Should you ever want to uninstall Firefox and switch to another browser? The uninstallation is as easy as installation; it does offer us a quick door to remove the entire program.

Interface:
    The first time I launched this program, I felt that Firefox is shinier, more playful and more clickable than IE, and Tabbed browsing was a major browser innovation that Firefox popularized. As part of the user interface enhancements, the Options window got the most dramatic update, making it simpler and cleaner. As you can see download options have been brought to the front, along with the option to start with the tabs and windows that were opened at last close time. That is considerate and convenient to both novices and power users.

System Requirements:
    Firefox is compatible with nearly all of the operation systems; the following are the requirements on different OS:
Windows: Windows 98/98 SE/ME/NT 4.0/2000/XP/2003 and Windows Vista. The minimum hardware requirements are Pentium 233 MHz, 64 MB RAM and 52 MB hard drive space.
Mac: Mac OS X 10.2.x and later. The minimum hardware requirements are G4, or G5 processor, 128 MB RAM and 200 MB hard drive space.
Linux: Please note that Linux distributors may provide packages for your distribution which have different requirements.
Linux kernel - 2.2.14 with the following libraries or packages minimums: glibc 2.3.2, gtk+2.0, XFree86-3.3.6, fontconfig (also known as xft), and libstdc++5. The minimum hardware requirements are Intel Pentium II or AMD K6-III+ 233 MHz CPU, 64 MB RAM and 52 MB hard drive space.

Conclusion:
    Firefox is clean, fast, similar enough to IE for immediate transition, and better in many little aspects. It is a highly recommended alternative, IE has been the most popular Browser for years, and a recent post about IE7 on TechCrunch generated a lot of comments complaining about the lack of innovation in the Microsoft product. Firefox’s appearance maybe urge on the development of IE, as a user, I wish both of them could absorb its rival’s advantages and improve its features better and better, and bring up more benefits for users.