Why the difference-Chrome vs IE

[burns334]

When using the Chrome browser my hard drive is dead silent when changing pages, going to different sites etc but when using IE I hear the hard drive get accessed, click, with every activity? Can anyone explain why?

burns

[lukee]

Internet Explorer is proprietary, closed-source application so it is hard to be diagnosed what is causing the HDD clicking. But you can be sure in one thing: Chrome/Chromium browser has more efficient open-source code and uses less of system resources than IE. My recommendation is: don't use IE if you really don't need it.

[dr_st]

But you can be sure in one thing: Chrome/Chromium browser has more efficient open-source code and uses less of system resources than IE.

No browser that I know uses more memory than Chrome. It's a huge resource hog. And of course, open-source code is automatically more efficient than closed source.

[Neil]

Might have something to do with how IE and Windows always seem to rely on hard drive swap space no matter how much RAM is installed. Maybe Chrome is designed in such a way to use only RAM (even if it's a bunch of it) until there just isn't enough.

Curious, burns, how much RAM do you have installed?

[lukee]

dr_st: more efficient code != using less memory automatically. Better to use more memory and do less swap operations than to use less memory and swap each time a new tab is opened... at least it is better for user's experience to feel the system more dynamic. And the RAM is cheap nowadays - who cares about tens or hundreds of megabytes?

[FrankL]

dr_st: more efficient code != using less memory automatically. Better to use more memory and do less swap operations than to use less memory and swap each time a new tab is opened... at least it is better for user's experience to feel the system more dynamic. And the RAM is cheap nowadays - who cares about tens or hundreds of megabytes?

I do, because my T43 only has 2 GB of RAM. I'd like my applications to use the RAM as efficiently as possible, and not waste loads because of sloppy coding... leaving less for the OS to use as disk cache (resultantly slowing down the user experience).

And indeed, open source does not mean much other than if you have money or coding skills, you can afford to make tailor-made changes to the code. Firefox is a good example of this (only seems to have been getting reasonable in behaviour since the last couple of releases).

[kge420]

... and the browser champ is? I use Chrome and agree it is a resource hog but haven't found anything that's much better. Any suggestions?

[ajkula66]

Define "better"...

I use Kmeleon...and would not touch Chrome with a 10-foot pole, but that's me...

[kge420]

Better as in faster load times of web pages. Trying Seamonkey but no tabs.

[kge420]

correction: SeaMonkey has tabs

[ajkula66]

If you like having a lot of tabs open with limited memory use, give Kmeleon a shot.

[kge420]

I spent the past 2+ months using SeaMonkey browser and am pleased. I went to open Chrome the other day and it seemed to take forever. Looks like I drank a bit too much of the google kool-aid! Also gave K-Meleon a shot but haven't used it enough to comment. I'll be uninstalling Chrome tonight.

[burns334]

When using the Chrome browser my hard drive is dead silent when changing pages, going to different sites etc but when using IE I hear the hard drive get accessed, click, with every activity? Can anyone explain why?

burns

Odd realization, I installed a SSD in my T43 and when I use IE I still get the clicking/snap sound. So it's not a hard drive noise but no closer to what it is, just wondering?

burns

[Johan]

It is not anything as simple as this?

Johan

[burns334]

It is not anything as simple as this?

Johan

Johan, ha ha, I think you found it. T43 is not with me now but that "sounds" like you found it. I am not sure I ever dug in there before or knew it was there.

thanks
burns

[Saucey]

When it comes to extensions, there will be some RAM used up for each one.
I was surprised when I checked the task manager onto why there were so many Chrome.exes running in the background.
They are for each extension when I had shut down the process.

I'm on the IE dislike bandwagon, Firefox works well on certain websites that won't load up on Chrome.

[pianowizard]

For the longest time, I used IE exclusively, not because I was particularly fond of it, but because I didn't want to install an additional program. Recently, I started to use Chrome as well as IE, mainly because while running IE in Windows 7, I can't eject any of my USB devices. (Somehow, Windows Vista and 8 do not have this problem.) Also, some web sites display properly in Chrome, but not in IE. But IE is superior in several other ways: most sites load faster, keyboard shortcuts are easier to use, and text looks nicer.

[TRS-80]

For those looking for a snappy, light browser, that opens quickly: try Opera. It has been my daily driver for years. IMO, Firefox (although popular) is about equal to IE in bloat and (lack of) speed. Having said that, Firefox is always my second choice, as it does have a ton of very useful extensions and plug ins, and is widely supported. After those two, I do keep a copy of IE installed for those times I "must" use it (eg., Windows Update, certain AutoDesk plug ins, Silverlight for Netflix, etc.).

I have not tried Chrome, need to get around to that one day. I guess I am just very happy with what I already use, especially since finding Opera, and haven't felt any further need to look around.

Generally speaking, I believe in (and recommend to people) keeping a few browsers installed on a machine, in order to have options to switch to in case something seems "funny" i.e., in the event of a browser hijack, sometimes you can switch to a different browser and work around the problem towards removal.

As much of a fan of Opera as I am, it pains me to report that recently they decided to discontinue development on their own underlying engine, and instead begin using the Chrome engine (or a fork of it?) on newer versions of Opera. I am not sure exactly when this change took place (and I suppose I should find out) but I would try to find the last version of Opera before switching to the new engine. They also made some other (IMO) undesirable changes in the browser around that time IIRC.

Going forward, my understanding is that the Opera programmers will be contributing to the underlying Chrome engine code base. My hope is that they will be able to influence that project for the better, streamline, reduce bloat, etc. but we will see. I am guessing it would be a while yet before any of that bears any fruit however.

[jdrou]

As much of a fan of Opera as I am, it pains me to report that recently they decided to discontinue development on their own underlying engine, and instead begin using the Chrome engine (or a fork of it?) on newer versions of Opera. I am not sure exactly when this change took place (and I suppose I should find out) but I would try to find the last version of Opera before switching to the new engine. They also made some other (IMO) undesirable changes in the browser around that time IIRC.

Going forward, my understanding is that the Opera programmers will be contributing to the underlying Chrome engine code base. My hope is that they will be able to influence that project for the better, streamline, reduce bloat, etc. but we will see. I am guessing it would be a while yet before any of that bears any fruit however.

Interesting; I wasn't aware of that. I have also used Opera for many years (and it had tabs before Firefox existed I believe) but in the last few they started making interface changes that I didn't care for. I'm currently using v12.16; the next version was 15 and it appears that is where they made the engine change. I installed that once and didn't like it. One thing that I like about IE compared to Opera is that it gets security patches without needing to do a full version upgrade. Do security fixes get backported to older version of other browsers?

[GACrabill]

IMO, Firefox (although popular) is about equal to IE in bloat and (lack of) speed. ... After those two, I do keep a copy of IE installed for those times I "must" use it (eg., Windows Update, certain AutoDesk plug ins, Silverlight for Netflix, etc.). ...

IE hasn't been required for Windows Update in years.
So you must be talking about how slow the really old IE8 is on XP.
On Windows 7, IE11 makes Firefox look like a snail.

I liked the way someone else described Chrome on these forums, it's spyware with a browser front-end.

IE11 is my browser of choice with Win7, with Firefox as a backup for those sites that still haven't recoded their websites to work correctly with IE11.

Chrome uses vast amounts of memory and comes from the master of all tracking companies ... no thanks.

[Saucey]

Chrome uses vast amounts of memory and comes from the master of all tracking companies ... no thanks.

And MicroSoft comes at a close second...

I mean Microsoft gave encrypted Skype information to the NSA without a fuss at all.
...and the fact that the Xbox One Kinect's camera is constantly watching you.

IE's "standards" is simply not complying with the other browsers compatibility with websites e.g. HTML 5 comparability.
I know IE has come a long way, but even then I wouldn't trust it with my information.

[QWERTY Andreas]

If you want a browser that doesn't take a lot of resources, try "FlashPeak SlimBoat". I use it on my F-07C, which is a sloooooow thingy, and it really Works well. Much snappier than Chrome, IE, FF, K-meleon and so on.

It uses only a very low amount of the system resources.

[ajkula66]

If you want a browser that doesn't take a lot of resources, try "FlashPeak SlimBoat". I use it on my F-07C, which is a sloooooow thingy, and it really Works well. Much snappier than Chrome, IE, FF, K-meleon and so on.

It uses only a very low amount of the system resources.

Thanks for the suggestion.

I've just downloaded SlimBoat and will report back on how it behaves on older hardware when compared to Kmeleon which I found to be the best low-resource solution this far...

[burns334]

Slimboat, LIKE

[GACrabill]

... Recently, I started to use Chrome as well as IE, mainly because while running IE in Windows 7, I can't eject any of my USB devices. ...

One of the main causes for being unable to 'Safely Remove' USB devices is RealPlayer and its IE add-on.

Another solution that seems to have worked for many people is to change the 'Distributed Link Tracking Client' Service from "Automatic" to "Manual".

[dr_st]

Finally, there's the solution of ignoring the "safely remove" and just removing the device.

[jdrou]

Finally, there's the solution of ignoring the "safely remove" and just removing the device.

Yes, in theory I think it shouldn't be a problem. IIRC the USB connector standard includes the ability to detect that a removal is happening so that I/O can be stopped automatically. Not sure if that requires driver support though and if the driver is not responding it may not be able to interrupt I/O either.