Netscape 8.1.3

If you recall, NS 8 could run two engines (Gecko and Trident). In the compatible mode, NS picked up whatever version of the Trident engine resided on one's computer. Thus a machine running Windows 8 could conceivably run NS 8 by having the rendering engine default to IE and it should be reasonably secure. Granted, I would not visit my bank, buy items online or visit questionable sites but for general browsing it could be done with little concern. Besides, who would target Netscape 8 in this day and age? What do you think?

 

No takers?

 

Well... these were some of the features that marked this version of NS:


1. Multiple Profiles.
Some browsers may have this already, but not like Netscape does. Each profile can have its own personal bookmarks, settings, toolbars, and themes. Not only that, but the admin profile has complete control over what websites the guest profiles can't visit, or can visit. This feature
is great for shared computers, especially a computer that is shared with your family.

2. The Multibar.
This is a feature I never used to use often, but lately I have been finding it to be very convenient. The multibar can combine multiple toolbars in to one, and switching between them is a simple click of a button. These toolbars can be completely customized, you can place anything you want in them. Even the search bar and URL bar.

3. Site Controls
This is a feature I use often. Now, perhaps you have stumbled apon a shady website, and you don't want it to use ActiveX, run programs, run Java, and use Javascript. Just set it as an untrusted site, and it won't be able to do any of that. You can customize each trust setting as well.

4. Two layout engines.
Say you find a website that doesn't really display well in Trident, but does in Gecko. Just switch it to gecko, and it will remember to use Gecko next time you visit the site. You can also make custom trust settings for the site, if necessary. It wouldn't be wise to use Gecko on an untrustworthy website because the Gecko engine on Netscape is outdated, and insecure.

Probably just for nostalgia's sake it would be an interesting experiment, albeit given the superb nature of today's browsers I can't imagine making it a permanent fixture on my computer.

 

Steve R Jones wrote:
"I used Netscape for many months in the late 90's... Have no desire to try it again "

Didn't you like it? Wasn't Netscape the most popular browser in mid to late 90's? Did you prefer IE instead?
I have Netscape 3.04 on a Windows 95 computer, works still surprisingly well. I have never used the contemporary MS browser, IE3. I have tried IE 2, I think its clearly inferior compared to NS 3.04, has less features, (well, it is older also), is hardly capable to view any websites nowadays. Even Mosaic 2.0 A7, which I have on this computer, works a lot better (e.g. I am able to post here).
If you had some other favorite browser back then, I might try it on that Win95 box.