If you are still using only Internet Explorer to browse the Internet, I suggest you try Mozilla Firefox too. It’s probably better than IE and safer against virus and spyware attacks. I use IE and Firefox and I like them both equally, but the one thing that annoys me is that it takes 2-3 seconds to load. This is unacceptable when you see the computer speeds and response times of today. Therefore, I did some research on how to make it load faster and I found several methods to do this.

The fastest and easiest method is downloading and installing Firetune software from the Totalidea Web site. It has been designed to optimize and improve your browsing experience with Firefox. It is based on a popular and working collection of settings used and tested by experts. By using this program, you don’t have to do any manual adjustments. You only have to choose the settings. It supports Firefox version 3.

Another method begins with draging the Firefox shortcut onto the Start Menu, in the left column. Then, right clik on the icon (in the Start menu) and click on Properties. In the Target field, add /Prefetch:1 next to the address (the location of the Firefox executable file). This will preload Firefox on start-up, just like IE usually is, and it should open faster. Now the line should read “C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe” /Prefetch:1

You can also test the Firefox Preloader. This is a utility that is designed to load parts of the Firefox browser into memory before it is used to improve its startup time. This tool is free and only for Windows users.

Another method is explained on the Gizmo’s tech support alert. It involves downloading the UPX software and 4 more steps.

If your browser also has trouble opening pages, then go to Our-Picks Web site and read how you can improve this. Our-Picks presents tips and tricks to make pages open faster in Firefox.