(*gets up on technological soapbox*) Not many people like change. When it comes to computers, my wife likes change even less, especially when I change something that effects her working environment. I don't blame her.

Recently, Microsoft put out Internet Explorer 7 as a "critical update", forcing many people to change to a new method, for them, of browsing the internet: Tabs. Tabs have been around in web browsers for ages, and as can be seen in the image here, even cartoon characters are on the tabbed browsing bandwagon. It is time for more people to hop on.

I'm a Microsoft guy by profession, and I think Internet Explorer 7 is not near as fun/enjoyable to use as Firefox, but that is my humble opinion. Tabs take getting used to, but I now find myself unable to live without them. I research a ton of documents in my work, and I have several Firefox browsers open, each holding tabs relating to different topics. One Firefox session has 8 tabs related to solving a Windows error. Another session has 10 tabs finding out how to improve security. Yet another session is a hodgepodge of news. Often I will have another session of Firefox holding my Newegg shopping cart containing my dream computer parts. All of this takes up only a few precious spaces on the task bar, and my thoughts are all sorted out for me.

And to add to the function, you can download all sorts of addons. I've had a web page maker, a download manager, a music manager, a blog manager, a news reader, an FTP client, a search tool, a mail checker, and a notepad, all in a web browser. The internet is an amazing place; it helps to have a swiss-army-knife-like tool to surf it. I'm not going on a 50-mile hike around the 'net with a little fanny pack. I've got a traveler's pack ready for a trek.

Change is tough, but for those who have been using the default browser their computer came with, they shouldn't get too mad at Microsoft for pushing a seemingly new thing. It has been around for a long time, and they've been made fun of (literally) for not having tabs.

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