Web Browsers And Packages

 The webpages that load up in the web browser is actually processed by various processors within a Web Platform or Web Engine. A Web Platform can be shared by multiple web browsers or be added to one or more web browsers individually. This helps web browser makers to concentrate on building a better or niche web browser and the Web Platform provides instant webpage processing to the program. Makers of other products can also make use of Web Platforms for instance HTML Email in email products, accessing and viewing information in help dialogs or programs and even enhance parts of operating environments such as Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS X, K Desktop Environment, Gnome and Xfce.

Each Web Platform usually has one layout engine that process HTML (HyperText Markup Languge) webpages and web applications, CSS (Cascade StyleSheets) and XML (eXtensible Markup Language) documents, XHTML (eXtensible HyperText Markup Language) webpages and web applications and other XML based languages.

Also most usually has one scripting engine or virtual machine that process small pieces of programming that can enhance the functionality of documents, webpages and web applications. Another processor is to handle pixel based (or raster) images such as PNGs and JPEGs.

Plus various other processors to handle Internet, email, network and security protocols.

 Microsoft's main Web Platform is called Trident. Microsoft is playing catch-up with other companies that have far more Web Standards compliant and feature rich Web Platforms. Trident is a part of Windows so parts of the operating system can use the web processing to enhance the user experience and allows Trident to be the central Web Platform that many web browsers for Windows can refer to for webpage processing.

Microsoft's web browser Windows Internet Explorer is the main or flagship web browser that uses Trident. Many other web browsers use Trident include WebbIE (a web browser for blind and visually impaired users), AOL for Windows, BT Yahoo! Browser, Maxthon, The World Browser, Green Browser and Slim Browser.

Trident is the most used Web Platform and Windows Internet Explorer is the most used Web Browser because Windows is the most used operating system and a lot of people are not aware that there are other Web Browsers that use Web Platforms that provide an improved and interoperable Internet experience. A lot of users and most webpage and web application developers and designers hate providing for Trident based environments due to the out-dated and non interoperable web feature support in Trident. Microsoft is now fully going for improved feature and interoperability support to provide designers, developers and users a level, Web Standards Internet and application experience.

Microsoft also has Internet Explorer Mobile which is also playing catch-up with other Mobile Web Browsers. The latest Internet Explorer Mobile 7 is like Internet Explorer 7 for the desktop.

 Mozilla Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation and are committed to an open web, free of proprietary and patent restrictions. They provide the open-source Mozilla Web Platform, sometimes referred to as Gecko which is the name of the layout engine. Many of Mozilla's products are cross platform so they can run on Windows, Mac OS X and GNU/Linux with at least Gnome or Xfce. The flagship web browser that uses the Mozilla Web Platform is Mozilla Firefox and the flagship email program Mozilla Thunderbird also uses it. Other web browsers include SeaMonkey, Camino and K-Meleon. Mozilla Firefox is the most popular and second most used web browser.

Mozilla also now has Firefox for Mobile providing full desktop quality web features for mobile phones (or cellular phones).

 Opera produces the closed sourced Presto Web Platform as part of its flagship web browser Opera Browser. Forms of Presto and Opera are available for not just most desktops but for mobile phones, PDAs, games consoles and even cars and other vehicles.

 Apple has the open-source WebKit Web Platform which is a framework in Mac OS X and used by their flagship web browser Apple Safari, their email program Apple Mail and Mac OS X's help viewer amongst other programs. WebKit has also been brought to Windows with Apple Safari for Windows. Other web browsers on the Mac that use WebKit include Shiira, OmniWeb and iCab.

WebKit has also been ported to mobile phones as WebKitS60, to Gnome as WebKitGTK (or libWebKit) and also to the QT Application Platform as QWebKit (or QTWebKit) and so is now a second Web Platform for the K Desktop Environment (KDE). Arora is the main QWebKit based web browser and KDE's new file manager Dolphin is powered by QWebKit.

A mobile version of Safari providing desktop web features is available on the Apple iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad.

 Google has gone into the Web Browser industry with their open-source Chromium Web Platform, mostly based on Apple's WebKit. Chromium is used in Google's own Chrome web browser. It is also used in SRWare's Iron web browser.

 The open-source K Desktop Environment (KDE) uses the KHTML Web Platform (named after its layout engine KHTML). KHTML does have some catching up to do to the likes of Mozilla, Presto, WebKit and Chromium Web Platforms. Konqueror is KDE's flagship web browser that uses KHTML.

Microsoft Trident based: MS Internet Explorer, Internet Explorer Mobile, WebbIE, AOL Desktop for Windows, BT Yahoo! .

Mozilla based: Mozilla Firefox, Mozilla Firefox for Mobile, Flock, SeaMonkey, Camino, Epiphany (Mozilla Edition), K-Meleon .

Presto based: Opera, Opera Mobile, Opera Mini, Nintendo DS Browser, Nintendo Wii Internet Channel, some mobile phone browsers, vehicle web browsers .

Apple WebKit based: Apple Safari, Apple Safari Mobile, iCab 4+, Shiira, OmniWeb 4.5+, Epiphany (WebKit Edition), Midori, AOL Desktop for Mac, some mobile phone browsers .

Chromium based: Google Chrome, SRWare Iron .

KHTML based: Konqueror (KDE 4).