Forum Moderators: open
A free plug-in released Wednesday for Internet Explorer allows users to mouse over Web search listings for an instant view of the content rather than having to wait for the full page to download.
From the FAQ on their site:
When you do a search, Browster reads the result list and preloads, or prefetches, the links into memory very quickly, so you don't have to wait for the load time.
The tool, if it ever becomes popular, could well have a negative effect. It a is similar problem to the pre-fetching debate about Firefox. The mouseover preview means that sites are downloaded without necessarily being viewed. Therefore cookies can be set and the site's statistics show a visit when the viewing was by the machine only. It could cause problems in a corporate setting when a user could inadvertantly "view" a site deemed inappropriate by the employer.
There is another problem. Also from the FAQ:
When you preview a web page in the Browster window, you may also see relevant sponsored links or sites from our advertisers appear in the window.
So the tool is using third-party content to display their own ads. Will the preview block or interfere with the site's own ads? Isn't this much the same as framing another person's site and showing ads? They give the tool away free, so what's their business model?
They give the tool away free, so what's their business model?
That's what makes me leery of downloading this tool. I tend to stay away from anything "free" unless it's open-source.
Server and statistical objections aside, though, I can see how this could be useful to some people. Firefox has a couple of extensions that do the same thing.
