Receptional - 11:44 am on Sep 21, 2005 (gmt 0)

Aren't we a fickle bunch to jump ship again so quick? Now, I have had lots of fun with Opera, from using the browser to buying their ads, and don't get me wrong - it is a good browser - but sooner or later, webmasters are going to have to stop jumping from flavour of the month to flavour of the week and buckle down with a set of tools they feel comfortable with.

I think this tendency to jump ship is quite am American one (it's certainly not Scandinavian) - a bi-product of the disposable age. New credit card with the low introductory rate - new search engine - new car... but the disposable approach is certainly not a phenomenon originating from Europe - and especially not central Europe. There, things are built - in the main - to last. The cars, the houses... and the relationships.

Is Opera fatser than IE or FF? sure. Is it BETTER? I think people should consider what they are giving up before they jump ship again. Do you really want Google to know everything about everyone? maybe... but at what point do you move the focus of outrage from Microsoft to Google in the Big Brother stakes?

Do you really want to stop the only serious challenger to IE6 in its tracks, by splitting an already meagre market share onto two?

Do you really want to spend your days looking at your sites in a different browser than your customers are using?

I am not saying don't use Opera. I am saying don't be so fickle when you change your allegiences - do it with a better reason than because it is Brett's favourite. He knows how to wield it - most of us mortals will never use it properly.

My alternate perspective :)