It has been months since the new Mozilla Firefox 3 version came out of the shelves. I was awed when I first run it — it was so fast — and prior to the release of Internet Explorer Beta 2, Microsoft’s and other company’s web browsers were out of my mind. However, I noticed significantly now that Mozilla Firefox 3 is getting slower each day I use it — and I still use it each day. So, tell me — where is the speed it once boasted? It’s gone, and it’s a shame.

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It’s been just days since Microsoft released the second preview version of its flagship web browser that shocked me in disbelief, turning my negative expectations on Internet Explorer down. Now, we heard that Google just released its own browser dubbed as Chrome. For Google and its followers, it sounds like an exciting, business tool; for other browser developers, it’s less than a threat; for web developers like me, while it performs good, it’s also another piece of crap.

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Internet Explorer 8 Beta 2 deserves the spotlight. I strongly confirm that without any doubt now.

One day after Microsoft released IE 8 Beta 2, and after scratching the features, stability and reliability of the new Internet Explorer for 24 hours, it is clear that the Microsoft IE8 Beta 2 is an eye-opener for Microsoft and Internet Explorer pessimists like me. I’m pretty sure hardcore Firefox fans would not (or just hesitant) to believe this, but give Microsoft Internet Explorer 8 Beta 2 a try and you would believe how great this browser would be when its full version will be released — especially to web developers and Internet-savvy persons like me.

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Thank heavens! Did Microsoft finally address all our complaints with their flagship web browser? Something great just happened to me today when I updated my Internet Explorer 8 Beta 1 to Beta 2, the second preview version of the upcoming major release of the world’s most popular web browser. I’ve already known for a fact that Internet Explorer 8 is now more standards compliant than its predecessors, but I wasn’t awed with the performance of IE 8 Beta 1. Today’s release of IE 8 Beta 2, many things have changed — it came with new features, new speed, new look — and it made me forget Firefox for the moment.

…it came with new features, new speed, new look — and it made me forget Firefox for the moment.

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Blow all your whistles and toot all your horns for BlogRush, but I beg to disagree that their web service is able to drive substantial traffic. The teaser on their homepage, which reads “the fastest and easiest way to instantly drive a flood of targeted readers,” is none other than just a highfalutin blurb. I’ve been using it for months and the highest traffic I got from a single post was one – quite a drought.

BlogRush is a cooperative syndication network launched by John Reese. Their web service binds the blogs of their members through their widget which displays five clickable blog post headlines. Each member earns one syndication credit every time the widget is loaded on their respective blogs. It also costs them same value to have their recent blog post title displayed on another member’s blog.
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Last March 29, I saw another notice in my WordPress control panel telling me that the latest version of WordPress, version 2.5, has been released and my installation must be upgraded. I’ve read from many blogs that this version will bring new looks and speed to the WordPress control panel. So, without further ado, I instantly downloaded the new version from WordPress official website and upgraded mine.

The upgrade process went very smooth and definitely transparent. As usual, WordPress guys made things easy – no “computerese,” no jargons whatsoever, just good steps. After I upgraded, I was redirected to the WordPress login and it is where my impression begins.

The login design has been changed for better. It looks very neat and fresh now, unlike the blue one that we used to see in the previous version which, in my opinion, was large.

The center of improvement came after I logged into my WordPress control panel. I was surprised – indeed, there are big changes. The first thing I noticed basically is the design. The new WordPress 2.5 default dashboard configuration displays recent comments, incoming links, WordPress development blog, popular plugins and the typical box news.

The default main menu now comes with only five items: Write, Manage, Design, Comments and Ratings. The Write menu item when clicked displays the Write Post page featuring the revamped (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) WYSIWYG WordPress blog editor. The Manage menu item lets you manage posts, pages, links, categories, tags, link categories, media library and like before, boasts WordPress Import and Export function. The Design menu, on the other hand, is equivalent to previous “Presentation” menu. The Settings, Plugins and User menu items are now displayed in small font to the upper right portion of the administration panel.

Another thing that is noticeable with the new WordPress is the speed. It is a whole lot faster than the previous one – one thing many bloggers will like (including me). The one-click plugin upgrade is superb. It asks for your domain’s FTP login information, and then it upgrades the outdated plugins for you.

My conclusion is that I very much prefer the previous blue-themed control panel. When I found that the color scheme can be changed to classic through the Settings, however, my little disappointment vanished. Now, WordPress 2.5 looks good and I love it like other bloggers do.