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Firefox Struggling to Compete as Corporate Browser

Posted by Soulskill on from the mo-zilla-mo-problems dept.

ericatcw brings us an article describing some of the obstacles Firefox is facing while competing with Internet Explorer for business use. Quoting Computerworld: "Now nearly three-and-a-half years old and nearing the release of Version 3, Firefox no longer can be accused of being callow. And while many IE-only apps remain, plenty of others have been overhauled to support Firefox as well. However, other obstacles to broader adoption have emerged. Mozilla thus far has neglected to develop tools to help IT departments deploy and manage Firefox, and it doesn't offer paid technical support services to risk-averse corporate users. Janco Associates Inc. in Park City, Utah, currently gives Firefox a 16% usage share among visitors to 17 business-to-business Web sites that it monitors. Janco puts IE's share at 67% while giving 9% to Netscape and 3% to Google Desktop."

9 of 364 comments (clear)

  1. dude... by rastoboy29 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Already, IT people who use or promote IE are considered bitches, and everyone knows it.  Is there any more powerful incentive to use Firefox?

    But more importantly, who cares?  It's not like Firefox's stockholders are going to revolt.

    --
    expandfairuse.org
  2. Re:Is that so bad? by hoggy · · Score: 2, Funny

    s/would/wouldn't/

    idiot

  3. Google Desktop? by methano · · Score: 2, Funny

    I've downloaded Google Desktop. I didn't know it was also a browser. Well, you live and learn.

  4. Re:I as an administrator by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Its superior spellchecher?

  5. firefox sucks by cinnamon+colbert · · Score: 2, Funny

    I was a ff fanboy, and was personally responsible for gettting friends, family and every computer at my small biotech company to have fire fox - and a lot of people thanked me (I also get a lot of thanks for the wierd utilitys I install, like screenhunter)
    then ff became the enemy, google: they pay their ceo more then they spend on rnd and they are now a google captive, that will NOT be net neutral but will help google sell ads
    no more ff for me,until it forks into something reasonable.
    maybe this is the way of all successfull companies: they have to abandon their early base of wacko fanboys to grow into a mature company
    ps: I have worked at 3 small biotech companies in the last 6 years, and i have asked the ceos and it people about linux/ff, and they look at me like i am crazy
    the cost of MS is simply so low, and the "problems" are PERCIEVED as so unimportant, that switching to linux/ff is just not even on theradar screen

    1. Re:firefox sucks by El+Yanqui · · Score: 2, Funny

      Out of curiosity; What browser are you using/convincing friends, family and biotechs to install now?

      --
      Well, thanks to the Internet, I'm now bored with sex.
  6. Re:IE by mhall119 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Admins can have client PCs pull IE updates through automatic updates on the client, and WSUS as the distribution source. This works on the client side with system services accounts - no client privs required. So just add Firefox to WSUS and have those privileged update processes on the client pull the Firefox updates too.
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    http://www.mhall119.com
  7. GUI? by Frosty+Piss · · Score: 2, Funny

    There's a Firefox registry setting you can use to turn on automatic NTLM authentication. Type "about:config" into the address box in Firefox and...
    I'm sorry, open WHAT? Edit WHAT? Huh? Is there a GUI for this?
    --
    If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
  8. Re:I would blame this on... by PitaBred · · Score: 2, Funny

    Please, please, PLEASE tell me that you're not an IT professional typing like that. You're making the rest of us look illiterate and stupid.

    --
    My blog. Good stuff (when I remember to update it). Read it.