14 DAY TRIAL // Which are the most recent standards when choosing a web browser? Most of us go for resonant names and the quality of other products the developer has accustomed us to. Other Internet users look for the features of the software, like tabs, session resuming, popup blocking, ad hunter, mouse gestures, etc.
Is your default browser equipped with such gears? If not, that's too bad because they really ease up your work. You will find the true meaning of browsing fast and saving lots of time. Auto fill forms make personal data entry futile.
How many of you have bumped into a web browser that can take pictures of the opened web page? I am not referring to saving the web pages as text or HTML, but in the real JPEG format, or BMP. The name of the Internet tool capable of doing this is Gogo Explorer, a software developed by Gogosoft, that is released for free, like the majority of all the other web browsers out there.
The interface of the software is not too appetizing, although it is skinnable. Its ancient looks betray the emphasis of the developer on the functionality of the software. The skins you can choose from are Mac OS and windows XP.
But lets put the aesthetics aside and proceed to more functional aspects of the program. When I first opened the application I was not expecting too many features, but the programed proved itself to be a real asset, especially when I discovered the Net Tools.
Some other additional tools are the shortcuts to Windows' My Computer, Calculator and Notepad. What can I say, the software has all the options a regular web browser will offer and more.
The Net Tools includes Ping, Trace Route, DNS, Proxy, Bind (associate host with searched proxy), Info, Redirect and Source. You see that the range of tools in here is not as limited as one might think.
A feature that really appealed to me was the page capturing one. The software is able to take pictures of the whole active web page and save it in either JPEG format or BMP. At the beginning I thought the PrintScreen was activated, but this option will capture the whole page and only the page. You will not see the Windows taskbar in the final image, but just the webpage, from top to bottom.
Auto Fill forms are also available in here and they even have an icon on the toolsbar, right near the Net Tools. The user can save either as general or the current form. This feature will make much easier the access to all the forums you need an account to enter.
URL dragging onto your local drive is a very interesting function as you no longer have to use the Save As option, but instead you just click the image, or any link and drag it into your file manager and that's it. No more copy/paste.
Gogo Explorer offers you the chance to be a little different from the regular Internet users in the sense that you can set the browser to display the tabs of the pages at the bottom of the window. Double-clicking on the tabs will close that window.
If the user accidentally closes the browser while there are opened pages, there is no problem as in the Options menu of the software you can set it to display closing confirming dialog which will allow you to resume the session at the next opening. So there is nothing lost.
As for the tabs, they can be maneuvered in what mode you want. To make the transition from one tab to another you can use only the mouse wheel. As I already said, the position of the tabs can be either at top or at bottom. Choose where you want the New Tab to open (next to current or at end). The user can also configure the activation of tabs when one of them is close (previous, next one in line or the last active tab).
A new feature most of today's web browsers are using is the mouse gestures (go back or next only by defining a straight line to the left/right with the mouse pointer). Gogo Explorer makes available this option, too.
I know that every user has certain web pages they visit daily or at least on a regular basis. URL alias will help you open that page a lot faster, just by typing a single letter in the address bar. Although the software is equipped with only two skins, the user can change their colors, hue, saturation, luminance and contrast.
Some of us are very concerned of the computer memory used by the applications we open. This browser permits you to optimize the memory and control the amount of memory.
The Good
The features of the software speak for themselves.
The Bad
I could not find a keyboard shortcut to open a blank new tab. If I wanted to open an address in a tab I had to overwrite the address in the bar or go to File>New>Blank Page.
The Truth
At the beginning I was pretty reluctant to use this software, but when I saw the features and options it is "endowed" with, my opinion changed. I have seen a bad review for the software and whatever the problem was, the software worked just fine at my testing.
I had a little trouble with the Net Tools, as the window kept popping, but that was just me and after I made the necessary setting everything went back to normal.
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
