Opera releases browser update

2010-11-23 14:43

Duncan Alfreds

Cape Town - Opera Software has released a new version of its Opera browser that enables better desktop web browsing management.

The Opera 11 beta supports stacked tab browsing - it enables users to "stack" their tabs - much like working with a set of documents or "to do" list. The company hopes that this will continue to spur growth of its browsers.

"We see that new releases of the web browsers drive strong growth in usage. The Opera desktop browser now has more than 50 million users, and we see that our downloads are more than double now than one year ago," Opera told News24.

While the idea of tabbed browsing is not new, Opera has demonstrated more functionality with their stacked browsing and the new version has a smaller memory footprint than previous versions.

Slower internet connections

"It is easy to stack tabs. Simply drag one tab on top of another. Hovering the mouse over a tab will cause the stack to expand in a visual preview. Clicking the arrow icon expands the current stack across the tab bar.

"Opera 11 is 30% smaller than Opera 10.63, despite including new features," the firm said in a statement.

Known for producing browsers for cellphones, Opera has specifically built this update for slower internet connections typically experienced by South Africans over wireless networks as ADSL access remains patchy.

"The Opera web browser is designed with a wireless internet experience in mind. That's why we have unique features like Opera Turbo, which boosts browsing speed on slow connections with our compression technology."

Tabbed browsing suits users who multi-task across various websites and should result in a neater, more uncluttered look for these users.

"These tabs can often be grouped by theme or purpose, for example e-mail and social networking websites, a group of sites related to work or study, and other tabs for current browsing projects like travel planning or online Christmas shopping," Opera said.

Security

Internet security remains key and the new browser has been designed with increased security that hides what the company calls "unnecessary" information.

"In Opera 11 beta the address field now hides unnecessary information, and puts the security status of each page front and centre.

"Now, badges within the address field explain the security status of the site, giving consumers clear information about the sites they visit. Users can click on the badge for the website to see information about the site they are visiting."


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