How Browsers Work

What Every Web Site Owner Should Know HOW BROWSERS WORK So, what exactly is a browser anyway? While that may seem like a stupid question, obviously it is what you use to get on the Internet, but, have you ever really thought about it? Of course, you know what it is basically, but what about a little more in-depth? How do they work and why? These are just a few of the major questions people have, but don’t want to ask. So, let’s break this down: When you open your browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari etc ...) and visit a Website, this is what happens: 1. When a user, we’ll call him Joe, opens a browser, he is launching a very powerful program. Even though you might not think of your browser as a program, it is exactly that. 2. Joe types www.EverMoreTech.com into the address bar and presses Enter. 3. The request for that Web page travels out over the DNS system. 4. Eventually (actually, at light speed) it reaches the Web hosting server that actually hosts the web page. 5. The hosting server processes the request and then breaks the file into millions of small data packets and sends them back over the Internet to the Joe’s computer. These packets are then rebuilt and placed in all of the correct order on Joe’s machine and sent to his browser. Now, here’s where the fun begins; the web page that you see is not what was sent over the Internet. Actually, a simple text file containing HTML source code was sent. This source code is the equivalent of an architect’s blueprint. Your browser acts similarly to a house-builder and interprets these “blueprints” and assembles the Web page accordingly. Any images, graphics or other files that may be needed are then downloaded. However, just as builders are not created equally, browsers have differences as well (see the Tech Note). Currently, the most popular browser is Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (there are several versions in parentheses). A rival browser, Firefox, is gaining market share quickly. This is significant because; the browser builds the Website based on the blueprints provided by the web server and there may be significant differences in the results. When you are deciding on a Webmaster, be sure to consider this and make sure that cross browser compliance is included! Nerd Note! If two builders are given the same set of blueprints, the structures that they build could be quite a bit different, this is due to differing interpretations of the blueprints.. Likewise, different browsers will assemble Web pages differently. Some browsers conform to web standards and some do not. Standards Based Browsers all produce the same overall results, while Non-Compliant Browsers do not necessarily conform to the “rules” of Web design. This is known as cross browser compatibility. You should make certain your site looks presentable in any of the major browsers.